We have a interview with junior guard Justin Turner of Detroit Renaissance, preview of the upcoming Operation Friendship, state championship predictions, and game of the week picks.
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North Farmington Hangs On In Battle Against Southfield 62-60
4 Mar
North Farmington led comfortably 43-26 against OAA Red foe Southfield with 3:50 remaining in the third quarter. The Blue Jays were ready to call it a day, however, junior forward Miguel Priest wasn’t. Priest scored seven of Southfield’s next 15 points in a 15-6 Blue Jay run to close the third quarter, and place his team down single-digits entering the fourth.
“Teams like Southfield feed of their energy and build confidence making it tough to stop,” said junior guard Billy Thomas.
Southfield’s confidence continued to build. A 10-2 spurt within the first three minutes of the fourth sparked by two threes from sophomore guard Reme Torbert knotted the game at 51-51. Three minutes later, sophomore point guard Michael Flowers connected on a three to put Southfield up one, the team’s first lead since the opening quarter. However, the lead was short lived, on the ensuing Raider possession, junior Billy Thomas connected on two free-throws to place North Farmington up 59-58. Following a series of missed Raider free-throws and Southfield blunders, the Blue Jays held the ball with less than thirty seconds remaining down one with the possibility win the game. Southfield turned the ball over just twice the entire fourth quarter, and one happened with 12.5 seconds left, Raider junior Alex Darden swiped a Blue Jay pass, and was fouled. Darden split his free-throws, Southfield ball down two with eight seconds left. Flowers brought the ball up the court, got into the lane, but his contested runner fell short. A scrum for the rebound killed the clock, North Farmington victory.
For Southfield, Priest led the way with 17 points and 13 rebounds, and senior Khary Fanning scored 14 points, hauled in seven rebounds, and assisted on four Blue Jay buckets.
The Raiders were led by senior forward Jeron Rogers with a game-high 20 points, and junior front-court mate Alex Darden with 11 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two assists.
“Jeron (Rogers) and Alex (Darden) were really helpful,” Thomas added. “They both do a great job rebounding and altering a lot of shots. Both can handle the ball very well for their size.”
For Thomas, he contributed 14 points and five rebounds as the sixth man from the bench. Billy was recently granted eligibility from the state to participate a few weeks ago, and has embraced his role thus far.
“I am perfectly fine with that,” Thomas said of him coming off the bench. “I just come in and do what I do, I want to win and if I have to come off the bench I will.”
Although he is able to play in the Raiders’ last remaining games, Thomas was ruled ineligible for the playoffs. Thomas said the school and team is continuing to seek opportunities for Thomas to participate in the post-season. With Thomas, the Raiders add another shooter and ball-handler to compliment the back-court of Anthony Qasawa and Jacob Joubert.
Depth is invaluable in the second season, for instance tonight, Qasawa, normally a reliable shooter, only scored 10 points, six off free-throws. However, it was Thomas that filled in Qasawa’s role and assisted Rogers as the team’s scorer.
The playoffs begin in a week, any plenty of questions remain regarding North Farmington. But when asked North Farmington’s goal for the rest of the season, Thomas said, “I think we are a state championship caliber team no doubt.”
Great Games For The Final Week Of The Season
2 MarTuesday March 3rd
Pershing (9-8) @ Consortium (12-5)
Outlook: Consortium has won four out of their past five games, and might be peaking at the right time of the year in Class B.
Mt. Clemens (13-5) @ University Prep (12-5) 6:30 PM
Outlook: Mt. Clemens won the MAC Blue Division, while University Prep fell just short of the Charter School League crown in the championship game.
Detroit Edison (12-5) @ Melvindale ABT (9-9) 6:30 PM
Outlook: Not the typical ABT season by Gator standards. But expect a close game against a young, but talented, Edison squad.
Southfield (9-9) @ North Farmington (15-3) 7:00 PM
Outlook: In the pre-season, this looked like the game to decide the OAA Red. Southfield has stumbled, yet battled valiantly against the Raiders on January 12th, losing a six point game. The Michael Flowers and Billy Thomas matchup on the perimeter will be intriguing.
Muskegon Heights (10-5) @ Shelby (18-0) 7:30 PM
Outlook: Two Class C powers meet in what could be only their first meeting of the month.
Pontiac (11-5) @ Troy Athens (10-8) 7:00 PM
Outlook: Athens scored a key victory against Oak Park last week, and could secure the OAA White outright by Thursday. A Pontiac victory would place the Phoenix in a two-way tie with two divisional games remaining.
Thursday March 5th
Rochester Adams (12-6) @ Clarkston (18-0) 7:00 PM
Outlook: Adams has the perimeter shooting to keep up with Clarkston. The Highlanders and Wolves could potentially play twice in eight days as the two are in the same district.
Detroit Edison (12-5) @ University Prep (12-5) 7:00 PM
Outlook: Huge week for both teams wanting to conclude the regular season strong with momentum entering the playoffs.
Cesar Chavez (14-0) @ Monroe St. Mary (14-3) 7:00 PM
Outlook: Chavez receives their first challenge of the year, Class C contender St. Mary. The senior Aztec Eagle guard trio of Robert Walton, Marcellus Pittman, and Kylynn Willis meet the dynamic duo of Byrce Windham and Stephen Umfress.
Muskegon (18-1) @ River Rouge (14-4) 7:00 PM
Outlook: Not the same Rouge team Muskegon rolled over a year ago. Both teams are primed for deep runs in March. River Rouge forward Jalin Gibson will need to win his individual assignment against Deyonta Davis if Rouge is to spring the upset.
Plymouth (14-5) @ Walled Lake Western (18-1) 7:00 PM
Outlook: Plymouth and Western each won their respective conferences of the KLAA, Plymouth the Kensington and Western the Lakes. Now the two meet for the association title. Walled Lake Western will need to compensate for the shooting of 6’3″ senior Josh Reynolds, while Plymouth will need to limit the dynamic playmaking ability of Jerald Booker.
Ann Arbor Huron (16-2) @ Ypsilanti Lincoln (10-7) 7:00 PM
Outlook: Lincoln has been a disappointment, while Huron has achieved exactly of what was expected of them. On an individual basis, plenty of talent will be on display here.
Friday March 6th
Pontiac (11-5) @ Oak Park (9-6) 7:00 PM
Outlook: If Athens stumbles twice before Friday, this one could be for the OAA White title. Pontiac won earlier in the year 60-49.
Saturday March 7th
Operation Friendship @ Calihan Hall
Renaissance (11-7) vs. St. Mary’s (10-9) 12:00
Outlook: Renaissance has not played since the PSL city championship game. Key match ups will be on the perimeter. Renaissance’s Justin Turner, Daryl Smith, and Richard Talley against CJ Wilson, Jalon Bailey, Jason Boswell and Lamon Mathison for OLSM.
University of Detroit Jesuit (17-2) vs. Western (17-0) 2:00 PM
Outlook: The exact reason for to why the Operation Friendship was reinstated, to find out the best team in Detroit. Western has been ranked number one since December and feature four players 6’6″ and taller, to go along with six guards the Cowboys can rotate in their lineups. To counter, U of D has the best pure point guard in the Midwest, junior Cassius Winston. This may be the first meeting between the two, as a potential semi-final date looms on the horizon.
Three-Peat. U of D Jesuit Earns CHSL Crown 58-44 Against St. Mary’s
1 Mar
“The more things change, the more they say the same.”
University of Detroit Jesuit replaced four starters from a season ago. The one man that remained, junior point guard Cassius Winston, simply owns the Catholic League. In his three years of high school, Winston has won three straight Catholic League regular season and tournament crowns. Cassius and the word victory are often inalterable when discussing U of D.
“He’s a good player,” Jesuit head coach Pat Donnelly said of Winston. “He’s a leader out there on the floor, and we hold him accountable, and in turn he holds other people accountable.”
St. Mary’s strategy was to force someone not named Winston beat them for the third time on the year. And it worked, up to a point. The Eaglets held Winston to a meager two points in the opening half on just 1-5 from the floor.
Winston knew he needed to impact the game in other aspects if U of D was to win their third consecutive A-B Division Championship. Six of his team-high ten assists occurred in the first half, Jesuit led 25-17 at intermission.
“That’s fine with me,” Winston said of his distributing role. “As long as everyone’s happy.”
St. Mary’s would stick around, however. Keeping the deficit around 7-10 points throughout the third quarter. The Eaglets decided to use a smaller lineup against a vertically-gifted Cub front-line, and able to cut the lead to seven twice aided by seven uncharacteristic U of D third quarter turnovers.
“They went to a smaller lineup, they we’re beating us off the dribble,” Donnelly added. “I just thought our match ups defensively with a smaller lineup we’re a little bit more in our favor.”
U of D then opened the floodgates in the fourth. Slowly but surely, Jesuit built a double-digit, from 7-0 the first two minutes, then a 11-5 spurt three minutes after to comfortably distance themselves from the Eaglets and hold a lead at one point by 24 points.
“We pride ourselves to make those spurts,” said Winston. “I guess sometimes we save them up sometimes for late.” “We came out in the first half lackadaisical, and second half they (coaches) got into us a little bit.”
The entire U of D season, Winston has been the leader for the Cubs. In games against the state’s elite, Cassius has provided twenty and even thirty point performances. The CHSL title, not so much. Aside from Winston, three fellow Cubs scored double figures, senior guard Gary Collins, junior forward Matt Schearer, and sophomore forward Greg Eboigboden all contributed 10 points to the victory. Cassius ended the day with 12 points, 10 assists, and seven rebounds.
The supporting cast the Cubs will need to return to the Breslin Center in late March.
Next on the schedule for U of D is Operation Friendship, a date with the PSL champs, Detroit Western, undefeated and ranked number one in the state Saturday at Calihan Hall. There is a strong possibility the contest is a preview for a later matchup in the Class A semi-finals. But for Winston’s, he takes it as just another game.
“It’s going to be another game, we’re going to play our game.”
(Photo Courtesy of Paul Snyder)
Walled Western Betters Rival Walled Lake Central 73-66 For Lakes Title
1 MarWalled Lake Western was struck with a dilemma against rival Walled Lake Central Saturday night. Not only was one Warrior member of the KLAA Lakes’ All-Conference team forced to sit extensively with foul trouble, but two.
Senior guard Jerald Booker and Marcus Bailey both were plagued with fouls throughout the contest. Bailey, a Wayne State football commit, received his second personal foul with 1:53 remaining in the first, his Warriors led 21-12. His classmate, Booker, led Walled Western seven points in the first.
However, less than three minutes into the second, Booker picked up his second foul, and was forced to the Warrior bench. However, Western’s play did not suffer, sophomore Delano Smith, and seniors DJ Young, Daryl Porter, and John Flowers all increased their play during the absences of Bailey and Booker. Western survived the first half 33-25.
“I think John Flowers just played outstanding, he came over ran the point,” Western first year head coach Chip Lutz said. “I thought Delano Smith stepped up in a big time game. DJ Young is kind of the unsung hero, he played great on the boards, and then Porter (Daryl) was Porter, athletic, guarding people.”
The one ailment for Western the entire night was 5’10” junior guard Walter Kelser. Kelser led the Vikings with a game-high 41 points, with 25 of those from the free-throw line.
“Kelser is just a great player,” Lutz said following the game. “We tried to keep him out of the lane.”
In one stretch during the second half, Kelser scored 9-10 of Central’s points. He single-handedly kept the Vikings hopes of defeating Western for a second time on the year alive.
Western was able to lead by margins of 6-8 early in the fourth. Leading 62-54 with 3:27 remaining, Booker fouled out of the game for good. Central’s other guard Nate Collins managed to score six straight in a one minute span to put the Vikings down four. With one minute remaining, Central had trimmed Western’s lead to three and held the ball, but were unable to get any farther. Collins and Kelser both picked up their fifth fouls in the final minute, and Western hit 5-8 free-throws to secure the Warriors’ first conference championship since 2000, and first in the KLAA.
Bailey played roughly seven minutes the night. Booker led Western with a Warrior-high 24, Delano Smith added 14 points, John Flowers contributed 11 points and six rebounds, and Daryl Porter scored 12 points.
Western improves to 18-1 on the year, and will wait until Thursday for an affair with Plymouth for the KLAA Association title.
Coach Lutz feels he is laying the groundwork for Western to build into a perennial contender not only in the KLAA, but state as well.
“We’ve talked about doing things the right way,” Lutz said. “We’re playing the right way.”
Consortium’s Defense Stifles Oak Park En Route To 51-49 Victory
1 Mar
Two teams heading in opposite directions entering the last week of regular season. Following a 51-49 Consortium win against Oak Park on the last day of February, the Cougars have won four of their past five games improving to 12-5 on the year, while the Knights have dropped their last two, and have not met pre-season expectations as a ranked team in the state.
“It feels good,” Consortium junior guard Luster Johnson said following the game. “Because a win is just a good feeling. But to know that you beat a good team makes it even better.”
In a game of two evenly matched teams, the outcome came down to execution in the fourth quarter. From six minutes on, there were two ties and four lead changes. Johnson, who led Consortium with a team-high 16, scored the Cougars’ last five points from 1:30 on. He connected on a three to give his team a 49-48 lead with 1:15 remaining. Then following one Oak Park free-throw, Johnson drove to the basket and finished at the rim in what turned out to be the go-ahead basket with 0:49 left.
“I knew that if something was to happen,” Johnson referred to the last few minutes of the contest, “I wanted it to be me to do it.” “I was feeling myself and I knew those were shots that I could make so I took them with confidence.”
An Oak Park steal with 13 seconds remaining gave the Knights the ball with the opportunity to potentially to tie or win the game. Oak Park had two shots in the final seconds, the first one missed and went off a Cougar. With two seconds left underneath the basket, guess who made a play? Johnson, a steal securing a Consortium victory.
The last play was only a microcosm of Consortium’s defensive prowess. The Cougars forced twenty Knight turnovers, Johnson had four on the day.
“We knew that we had some height over their guards,” Johnson said. “So we put a lot of pressure on them and got a lot of hands on their passes.”
Johnson was complimented in scoring by junior point guard Charles Figueroa, who contributed with 13 points. The Cougars received just 14 points from their combined interior posts, leaving the game to be decided on the perimeter.
“Charles (Figueroa) and I have been playing together for a long time,” Johnson said of his teammate. “Basketball made us family, we have a lot of chemistry together.”
The defending Class C state champions will compete in the Class B for the 2015 state tournament. Much has changed in the last year for the Cougars, in fact, Luster is the only returning player who saw time in the starting lineup a season ago. Johnson is confident his team’s new identity will still garner post-season success.
“We see ourselves getting as far as we want,” Johnson said acknowledging the post-season. “If we play our game and don’t beat ourselves, we are a pretty good basketball team.”
“I know we have the heart to persevere through whatever, all we have to do now is go out and show the State of Michigan.
On a lighter note, Luster is known for his offense, but registered three impressive defensive blocks on the day. One of which was of the chase-down variety made popular by LeBron James. Johnson said he will do take whatever it takes to not see the ball go through his team’s net.
“Just last night against Lincoln Park I had a chase-down block and I was over the rim,” Johnson said jokingly. “I just hate seeing the ball go in.”
New Haven Remains Undefeated and Betters Mt. Clemens 51-43.
28 Feb
Mt. Clemens and New Haven are two schools separated by 10 miles on historic Gratiot Avenue. The latest meeting between the Battling Bathers and Rockets was a typical high school rivalry game; a filled to capacity gym and a boisterous crowd, yet, it was the work of a transfer who flipped what might have been New Haven’s first loss of the year into the Rockets’ nineteenth victory, 6’4″ senior guard Dmonta Harris.
Harris has thrived in his lone year at New Haven. Harris has averaged double-figures with both scoring and rebounding en route to leading the Rockets to an outright MAC Gold Division championship. He is a strong candidate for Class B player of the year.
Harris’ Rockets have averaged close to 70 points in games the entire season, but not against Mt. Clemens. The Bathers used their speed and quickness to frustrate the high-powered New Haven attack, limiting the interior touches to 6’10s” Innocent Nwyoko and Jerry Ben, while forcing 12 uncharacteristic Rocket turnovers in the first half. The Rockets would manage to score only four points in the entire second quarter and Mt. Clemens led 21-18 at intermission.
Even in the early and middle portions of the third, New Haven could not find their offensive rhythm and the Bathers capitalized. Mt. Clemens used their high-tempo, five guard transition offense to lead as many as 11 points with 3:12 remaining in the third quarter. New Haven decided to match them fire-for-fire.
“That was a concern coming into the game, they run a five guard set and sometimes their speed is so fast,” New Haven head coach, Tedaro France said. “We’re a big team, but we got the luxury of going small, so we had to match their speed for speed.”
And speed the game up New Haven did! Four different Rockets scored to close the third quarter on a 13-0 New Haven run to lead 33-31 entering the final stanza of play; the first Rocket lead since the opening quarter.
“We didn’t have enough energy,” Harris mentioned which was his coach’s message at the half. “We knew that in order to get this victory, we had to be more scrappy and do the small things.”
Emotions ran high in the fourth, which is expected in any rivalry game. Technical fouls were assessed to each team less than two minutes into the fourth. The hostile environment only fueled Harris. Harris scored 10 of New Haven’s 18 points in the fourth quarter, including one stretch where he scored 8-10 of his teams points. Harris finished with a team-high 19, only four came about in the opening half and Harris did not register a single point in the second.
“He can score a lot points,” France referred to Harris following the game. “He’s so unselfish to the point at times I got to say, ‘Hey you got to score.’ But he gets the whole team involved, and then when he takes off, he takes off.”
Mt. Clemens would keep the score tight in the fourth. The Bathers had the game tied with 3:45 seconds left. However, Harris’ classmate, Austin Sherrell, connected on a jump shot with the ensuing possession for New Haven to gain a 43-41 lead. From then on, New Haven relied on defense to finish off a well-earned victory. Allowing just two points the final 3:30 seconds of the contest and held Mt. Clemens scoreless on their final seven possessions.
Aside from Harris, Austin Sherrell contributed 12 points and six rebounds and John Galloway added 11 points. Mt. Clemens was led by senior guard Devin Felts with 15 points.
When asked about whether or not he knew New Haven could achieve regular-season perfection, Harris is still in awe about the reality of the situation. “I thought we were going to be pretty good, but not this good,” Harris added. “I never thought we’d be undefeated, I never imagined that!”
Mt. Clemens had won nine of the previous 11 meetings against New Haven. Both are champions of their respective MAC Divisions, only adding to the game’s intensity. While he still is the newcomer at New Haven, Harris has been met with open arms from the Rocket community. “It sill means a lot,” Harris acknowledged playing in his first New Haven vs. Mt. Clemens game, “I know the community supports me a lot; they support my family a lot.” “Whatever I can do to help, come out and get a victory like this makes everybody happy. That’s all that matters.”
New Haven has just one more obstacle in their pursuit of perfection, a meeting and rematch against Madison Heights Madison.
Both Harris and Coach France are aware from now on, continuing into the playoffs, that every team is going to want a piece of New Haven. The lessons learned in a playoff-like atmosphere will be invaluable for the Rockets moving ahead into March when each contest is a one game season.
“For the playoffs, I think close games like this show what we can really do as a team,” Harris said. “This is preparing us to respond to adversity, respond to being pressured, respond to being in a close game, packed out stands, it’s going to be much more of this. So it prepares us for the pressure of the next level.”
Prep Ball Review Podcast Five
27 FebInterview with Detroit Western’s Josh McFolley, too early player of the year projections, teams with most to prove, and game picks for the weekend.
East English Village Routes Taylor Kennedy 85-63
27 Feb
Detroit East English Prep junior Kamari Newman did not appear in the starting lineup against Taylor Kennedy. Quite the oddity for a Detroit Public School League All-City first team member.
“I didn’t practice yesterday because my ankles,” Newman said following the game. “So I had to come off the bench, so that was nothing.”
And nothing it was.
Newman poured in a team-high 23 points off the bench as the number 20 ranked Bulldogs routed twenty-fifth ranked Taylor Kennedy 85-63.
“Everybody contributed to offense, everyone played solid defense, it was a good solid overall win for our team,” said Newman.
Aside from Kamari, three other Bulldogs contributed double-figures scoring wise. 6’4″ forward Cedric Lattimore tallied 19, front court mate Jaylin McFadden added 14 points to go along with seven rebounds, and senior point guard Fred Jones contributed 11 points. Compared to Kennedy with just two players with more than nine points.
“It doesn’t matter whose scoring,” Newman added. “Me, Chris (Rollins), Ced (Lattimore), Nate (Bowlware). It doesn’t matter everybody can pretty much go-off.”
As much as the Bulldogs are talented offensively, The Village’s defense also impacted the game. EEVP’s full-court pressing defense caused 22 Kennedy turnovers. 10 of those occurred in the third quarter, where East English outscored the Eagles 25-10 after a narrow lead of six at intermission. Other than senior guard Andia Marsh, only one additional Eagle scored more than five points in the second half. Marsh finished with 21 points to lead Kennedy.
“Our defense, that’s one of the biggest things about our team,” Newman mentioned. “We lock-up, we play defense at practice just like we play in a game.”
East English Village decided to take 13 days off since their last game, a narrow four point loss to Renaissance in the city semi-final. Much has been expected of this Bulldog squad since the pre-season. East English won 10-12 contests against league competition, the other loss was against Detroit Western, the state’s number one ranked team. In March, however, the Bulldogs could possibly only face one PSL team en route to the Breslin Center, a rematch with Detroit Western in the regionals. The Village isn’t short on talent to have reservations for East Lansing in late March.
“The city championship loss, that just made us hungry,” Newman said. “So we can get ready for this state playoff run.”
“Defense and rebounding, that’s going to be our main goals.”
Brown and Washington Power Southfield Christian Past Southfield 71-68
25 Feb
Coaches love athletes that play their heart out, just ask Southfield Christian’s Brock Washington. The 6’2″ sophomore combo guard scored ten of his team’s 15 points in the opening quarter. Then a uniform blunder. Brock, as a result of his play, dripped blood on his jersey in the second quarter. Which might or might have not explained his point total, scoring only one basket in the second quarter alone.
Southfield was able to gradually distance themselves in the second quarter from the Eagles. Behind 6’7″ senior forward Isaiah Green’s 11 points, the Blue Jays outscored Christian 26-12, and led comfortably 42-27 at half.
“We couldn’t give up,” Washington said following the game. “We had to make sure we knew what we had to do mentally.”
Washington flipped his jersey, and ignition switch for the Southfield Christian offense. Junior backcourt mate Marlo Brown scored 12 of his team-high 28 points in the third, and Christian held the Blue Jays to six total third quarter points. Ending the quarter on a 17-2 run the last six minutes to close the deficit to three.
The Southfield dynamic front-court of Khary Fanning and Isaiah Green were neutralized the entire second half. Fanning and Green combined for two points, despite an undersized Southfield Christian lineup. Often times the largest player on the court for Southfield Christian was 6’3,” while Green and Fanning are 6’7″ and 6’6″ respectively.
“We got Green in foul trouble, which was huge because we had a hard time stopping him,” Southfield Christian head coach Josh Baker said.
“With Isaiah, once he put it on the floor we wanted to double him. Try to force him make a jumper…he’s a tough cover.”
“Khary we wanted to keep him in front, he’s so athletic, and then we knew he scored on the second shot a lot.”
Christian held their first lead since the first quarter with four minutes left. Southfield, however, mounted a stand. Sophomore point guard Michael Flowers scored 16 of his Blue Jay high 25 points in the fourth quarter, including three threes, and a layup with 1:12 remaining, the last Southfield lead of the game. His 10th grade counterpart, Brock Washington, calmly knocked in a three on the ensuing Eagle possession, 67-65 with under a minuted to play. Christian would miss crucial free-throws with under 50 seconds remaining, combined with a Mike Flowers steal-and-score with 8.3 left, Southfield trailed 70-68. Brown split his next two free-throws, leaving the opportunity open for Southfield to potentially tie the game. Pushing the ball up the court, Flowers was unable to get a clean look for a shot to send the game into overtime. His three fell harmlessly to the ground. Game over.
Aside from Flowers, Isaiah Green scored 20 points and hauled in 12 rebounds. Khary Fanning added seven points and eight rebounds, while junior Miguel Priest contributed 11 points.
Brown and Washington accounted for 53 of the team’s 71 points, Marlo with 28 and Brock 25.
“It’s great having him (Marlo),” Washington stated. “It’s great having all these people, it’s just great positive energy, we’re always working hard, always pushing each other, it’s great.”
Southfield Christian has now won 13 of their last 14 contests. The three-time defending Class D state champions will compete in the Class C state playoffs for 2015. And despite a good deal of new faces to the program compared from years past, Christian might be finding their groove at the right time. A narrow win over a larger Class A school should boost the young Eagles’ confidence as March grows closer.
“You got to win close ones down the stretch,” Baker said. “To be able to win that one and have the pressure. I think that’s really big for us.”
About that number change for Washington 15 to 11. Number 11 was reserved for sharpshooter Lindsay Hunter a season ago. The impact of that change is debatable, but Washington did finish 5-8 beyond the arch.
“I guess you could say it gave me some power,” Washington said with a smile.
The Prep Ball Report 