Hidden Gem Ted McCree Talks Junior Season at St. Mary’s

17 Feb

VG OLSM_Lahser 4Many view Orchard Lake St. Mary’s as a football power within the State of Michigan.  However, the Eaglets have quite a winning tradition on the hardwood, with six Catholic League titles since the 1998-1999 season under dual football and basketball coach George Porritt, while producing notable players such as former Michigan State point guard Kalin Lucas.  The 2013-2014 St. Mary’s squad has had an up and down season thus far, but have the potential to make a long post-season run in the Class A state playoffs, and a key player in determining if St. Mary’s has a successful campaign will be junior 6’4′ shooting guard Ted McCree.

A versatile scorer and finisher on the offensive side of the floor who models his game after Kevin Durant, McCree in the midst of a break-out junior campaign.  Averaging about 23 points a game this season (for a club that scores 52 points a game), including a phenomenal 32 points against Brother Rice earlier in the year, and hauling down eight rebounds each game as well.  

“The season is going by so fast” McCree had to say.  “The regular season was a bit rough, but we are working to smooth the edges out and get the job done.”

The Class of 2015 in Michigan is full of guards and wings that have the ability to put the ball in the basket.  He says scoring the ball is his natural talent, but in order to distinguish himself from his competitors, Ted is aware that he must bring a variety of skills to the court in order to achieve success.

“I also like to get my team involved by getting assists,” McCree notes, “and I leave everything on the floor, I play every game like my last game.”

McCree does have an official college offer as of now, however, the St. Mary’s junior does have a list of schools that keep in contact with him regularly such as U of D Mercy, Akron, Florida International, Central Michigan, and Oakland.  While he is far from making a college decision, Ted does have a few qualities he will look for in a school that will be crucial when makes his college decision.

“Somewhere where I can go and play as soon as I get there, along with a great coaching staff, great teammates, and of course, the education is most important.”

Basketball does not end simply at the conclusion of the high school season for players anymore.  The first AAU tournaments of the season are only a few weeks after the high school season closes.  And while there is still much to play for in a St. Mary’s uniform, McCree is eager to reunite with his AAU program from last season, Detroit’s own The Family.  Ted is hopeful the upcoming AAU season will help boost his recruiting situation, but at the same time, is looking forward to playing with fellow notable juniors in the state.

“I will be looking forward to the Peach Jam Tournament,” Ted had to say, “because I missed that tourney last year.”  “I played with them (The Family) in Indiana, and I had fun playing with guys like Eric Davis and Bakari Evelyn.

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Warren Mott Cruises Past Grosse Pointe North 88-72

14 Feb

UnknownBehind strong performances from seniors Kenny Goins and Stef Johnson, as well as junior Derek Murphy, the Warren Mott Marauders were able to run past Grosse Pointe North 88-72 to improve their record to 10-5 overall, with a 7-2 record in the MAC White division.

With regular starters wing Derek Murphy and power forward/center Kenny Goins not starting for Mott, senior combo guard Stef Johnson came out hot for the Marauders, scoring 10 points in the opening 8 minutes of the game to give Mott a 31-20 advantage after one.

“Stef set the tone,” Derek Murphy had to say, “he knew his situation without me or Kenny out there, and he held it down.”

Once Mott returned to full strength in the second quarter, with Murphy slashing to the basket, and Kenny Goins dominating the paint, running the floor, and controlling the boards, the Marauders built up their largest lead of the game at 49-28 with one half of the game left.

North came out strong in the third quarter trailing only by 13 with 4:31 left in the period with senior forward Justin Kennedy doing all he could to match Goins down low on the block.  Kennedy had his moments throughout the game, he has a nice back to the basket style of play, and can score on either side of the basket.

However, Mott opened the floodgates in the fourth, and took the starters out with 4:34 remaining in the contest and coasted for the easy victory.

Goins finished with a double-double for Mott with 27 points and 18 rebounds, Derek Murphy had 24 points, and Stef Johnson contributed with 15 points of his own.

Kennedy finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds for North.

“I feel that we have the tools to be a top contender in the state,” Murphy noted, “but it’s going to have to start with our leaders.  Intensity is key.  We must play 32 minutes every night!”

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Warren Fitzgerald Wins Crucial MAC Blue Game Over Grosse Pointe South

13 Feb

FitzgeraldBehind a tremendous performance from senior Tony Jackson, the Spartans of Warren Fitzgerald clawed and scratched their way pass Grosse Pointe South to place their record at 11-1 overall, and a two game lead in the MAC Blue Division at 8-0 over South with a record of 6-2.

Fitzgerald got off to a quick start in the contest, with senior DeAngelo Hutson hitting two threes in the opening minutes of the contest to give Fitzgerald a 17-9 lead after one.  Fitzgerald continued to play hard-nosed defense, keeping South on the perimeter for the majority of the second quarter, and were eventually able to stretch their lead to 11 at 30-19 at half, setting up one exciting of a second half in high school basketball.

After being held to only 6 points in the first half, Grosse Pointe South senior big man and McDonalds All American nominee Danny Dixon began to assert his will in the opening minutes of the third.  Dixon was unstoppable for South in the third, he was connecting with everything within 5 feet of the basket, using his superior size at 6’8″ to his advantage over the much shorter Spartans to score 14 points in the third to put South back in the game at 41-38 entering the fourth.

Grosse Pointe continued to feed Dixon in the opening minutes of the fourth, a 5-0 run by Danny himself gave South their first lead of the contest since the opening minutes of the game at 43-41 early in the fourth quarter.  With Dixon dominating inside, it allowed senior guard Jabari Burton to attack the basket and get to the free-throw line to give South their largest lead at 51-43 with 4:59 remaining in the contest.  However, the Spartans did not want to send their fans home unhappy on senior day, a 9-1 run over the next 1:52 minutes was capped off with a Tony Jackson and-one on a three pointer to knot the game up at 52 all.   South would never retain the lead the rest of the game, senior Aron Black’s only basket of the game would be the game decider, a lay-in with 2:07 left in the contest would give Fitzgerald a lead they would never give up the rest of the game.  A Hutson three pointer would give Fitzgerald a 58-54 lead with 1:10 in the contest, and finally Tony Jackson and DeAngelo were able to go 3-4 from the charity to put the game away sealing the win for Fitzgerald.

Tony Jackson was the definition of a stat sheet stuffer for the Spartans all game long, Jackson finished with 30 points, six rebounds, four steals, four blocks, and three assists in the win for Fitzgerald.  Jackson played fearless the entire game, driving to the rim on every play, slamming a few home on the break, and has a bruised eye to show for his performance, Tony knew he had to step up his play when fellow senior and starter Jeremiah Becker went down with an injury in the first half.

“It’s a blessing,” Tony had to say after the win, “the team trusted me and I had to score when Jeremiah went down.”

Tony is listed at 6’3″, and Fitzgerald’s tallest player on the roster, while it maybe a disadvantage going against the taller Dixon of South, the Spartans were able to use their speed and quickness in order to get the win.

“We are a scrappy team,” Jackson went onto say, “and we had to fight for every point and we didn’t want to lose this game at our house.”

Jackson’s partner in crime for the game was 5’10” guard DeAngelo Hutson, who contributed with 20 points on the night, and while Jackson was banging down low it the post, it was Hutson who kept South off-balanced with five three-pointers in the contest.

Fitzgerald will have no more home games the rest of the year, and will have to go on  the road in order to gain momentum for the playoffs.

“The key has been to let our defense create for our offense” Jackson noted.  “We are the smallest team in the league, so we have to use our speed and quickness, we can go far if we continue to work hard, stay humble, and use our quickness.”

Grosse Pointe South was led by Danny Dixon with 31 points, and 14 rebounds.

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Allen Academy Tops River Rouge 72-55

9 Feb

70743612After holding a narrow 28-25 lead at halftime in a tightly contested rivalry game, the Wildcats of Allen Academy were able to hold off River Rouge in the second half of play to up their record to 14-1 on the season and a perfect 5-0 in the Michigan Metro Conference.

“It’s always good to win a game like that, especially when the other opponent is talking trash,” said Allen Academy senior guard Pakiya Ellis.

Ellis and sophomore guard Jason Williams both scored 27 points on the night, with Williams dropping seven assists, and Pakiya hauling down eight rebounds and swiping five steals.

“We played great today,” Ellis had to say about his and Williams’ performance, “I mean Jason is going to get his basket, he’s one of the best point guards in the State of Michigan hands down.  I just try to play my game and let others feed off of me, just good team basketball for us.”

Craving an upset, Rouge came out hot to start the game, leading 15-14 after one, in a first quarter which saw Ellis score 11 points and three three-pointers in the opening.  After a sluggish second quarter for both teams, it was the sophomore Williams taking the game over in the third.  The 5’9″ Williams scored 15+ of his 27 points in the third to give Allen 47-36 lead after three, with his jump-shot not falling the way it normally does, Williams knew he had to attack the basket, get to the free-throw line, and set up his teammates in order to be successful on the night.  Allen was able to keep Rouge and bay in the fourth, not letting the Panthers get the lead into single digits the entire period.

In a Class C with the likes of Detroit Consortium and Mt. Clemens at the top, the Wildcats are right where they want to be, under the radar, picking up momentum and improving everyday for district play which starts in less than a month.

“Season is going good for us,” Ellis noted.  “We just build off the games we have played and try to keep the confidence up and practice as hard as possible.”

Jalen Gibson led River Rouge with 21 points and 18 rebounds.

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Romulus Defeats Belleville for the Second Time This Year

5 Feb

romulusIn the Battle of Hannan Road between the Romulus Eagles and Belleville Tigers, it was the Eagles of Romulus coming out victorious with a 56-36 decision.   It was clear this rivalry game would be a slugfest, with the first basket of the game not coming until 4:30 in the first quarter, Belleville eventually led 10-7 after the opening frame.  After leading 25-19 at halftime, Romulus came out and started the third quarter on a 6-2 run to lead 31-21 with 5:36 remaining, a double-digit lead the Eagles would not give back for the rest of the game, holding Belleville to only 7 points in the fourth quarter.

This is a huge win for the Romulus Eagles, with starting guard Tyron Hamby and junior Rio Washington out for the game, the Eagles knew others would have fill the void left by Hamby and Washington.  Sophomore D’Angelo Hansbro played arguable the best game of his young varsity career, the 6’0″ point guard started the game, and helped out with a 14 point and six rebound performance.

“We are a very deep team” senior guard Deonte Bell had to say after the win.  “Everyone on our team 1-15 is ready and able to step in and play minutes if needed.”

A consistent starter so far this season for Romulus, Bell scored all eight of his points in the first half, with 5 coming in the first quarter that helped Romulus gain confidence on the offensive-side of the floor after a shaky start to the game.

“Our defense leads our offense,” Bell went onto say, “we just had to focus on defense and we knew the offense would come.”

Along with Hansbro and Bell, junior guard Jaylin Walker contributed in the win with 15 points and ten rebounds, most of which come in the third quarter and were vital for Romulus in taking control in the game, and senior wing Kris Clyburn scored 12 points, hauled down nine rebounds, and played defense coming away with five steals.

Arlington Hambright led Belleville with a team high 13 points.

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Team Rankings Heading Into Week 9

3 Feb

puigThe last month of the regular season of high school basketball is upon us.  During this month, teams will attempt to gain momentum before the playoffs that start in roughly a month.  A truly competitive season will only be getting better as the season winds to a close.

Statewide Rankings

1. Muskegon

2. Mt. Clemens

3. University of Detroit Jesuit

4. Detroit Consortium

5. Saginaw Arthur Hill

6. Jackson Lumen Christi

7. Pershing

8. Taylor Truman

9. Holt

10. Bloomfield Hills

11. Holland

12. Wyoming Godwin Heights

13. Jenison

14. Grand Rapids South Christian

15. Clarkston

16. Battle Creek Central

17. Flint Carman Ainsworth

18. Detroit Renaissance

19. Southfield Christian

20. Grand Blanc

21. Canton

22. Detroit Allen Academy

23. Detroit Southeastern

24. Millington

25. Ypsilanti Lincoln

26. Kalamazoo Central

27. Ypsilanti

28. Utica Eisenhower

29. Walled Lake Central

30. Powers North Central

 

Class A

1. Muskegon

2. University of Detroit Jesuit

3. Saginaw Arthur Hill

4. Pershing

5. Taylor Truman

6. Holt

7. Bloomfield Hills

8. Holland

9. Jenison

10. Clarkston

11. Battle Creek Central

12. Flint Carman Ainsworth

13. Detroit Renaissance

14. Grand Blanc

15. Canton

16. Detroit Southeastern

17. Ypsilanti Lincoln

18. Kalamazoo Central

19. Ypsilanti

20. Utica Eisenhower

21. Walled Lake Central

22. Ann Arbor Huron

23. Romulus

24. Romeo

25. Cass Tech

Class B

1. Jackson Lumen Christi

2. Wyoming Godwin Heights

3. Grand Rapids South Christian

4. Millington

5. Milan

6. Comstock Park

7. Yale

8. Goodrich

9. Imlay City

10. University (Ferndale)

11. Paw Paw

12. Otsego

13. Warren Fitzgerald

14. Reed City

15. Dundee

16. Freemont

17. Escanaba

18. Detroit Country Day

19. Clintondale

20. Wayland

Class C

1. Mt. Clemens

2. Detroit Consortium

3. Detroit Allen Academy

4. Shelby

5. Negaunee

6. Boyne City

7. Detroit Loyola

8. Southfield Bradford

9. Boyne City

10. Pine River Area

11. Pewamo-Westphalia

12. Hillsdale

13. Homer

14. Marlette

15. Muskegon Heights

Class D

1. Southfield Christian

2. Powers North Central

3. Bellaire

4. Battle Creek St. Phillip

5. Adrian Lenawee Christian

6. DuBois Prep

7. Cedarville

8. Allen Park Inter-City Baptist

9. Munising

10. Our Lady of the Lakes (Waterford)

Truman Senior PG Devain Newbill Looks for Statement End to Senior Year

3 Feb

8m4tIJuEThe Downriver League, which was created as a break-off from the old Michigan Mega Conference for the 2009-2010 season, has only had one team enjoy a long post-season run, the 2009-2010 Taylor Kennedy Eagles, who made it all the way to the state quarterfinals before bowing out to Detroit Denby.  Kennedy’s cross-town rival Truman, currently sitting at 11-0, good enough for first place in the Downriver League, and a top ten ranking in the Class A poll, is in prime position to gear up for what the Cougars hope to be a long and meaningful postseason run.

Truman is led by U of D Mercy commit Aaron Foster-Smith, a 6’7″ power forward who is averaging 22 points and 12 rebounds a game this year.  While Aaron receives the spotlight, and rightfully so considering the fact that he recently joined the 1,000 point club for his high school career on January 25th against Allen Park Inter-City Baptist, a key player that will determine whether or not Truman has a successful season is the play of 6’2″ 180 pound senior point guard Devain Newbill.

Newbill, a former transfer from perennial state power Romulus last season, has produced a quality season so far, averaging 12 points, and five rebounds and assists a game to go along with three steals as well. 

“The season has been good,” pointed out Newbill “actually we are just taking it game by game not looking ahead.  I want to average a double-double and I’m close to it though.”

Devain thrives best with the ball in his hands.  He is quick, explosive, athletic point guard that excels in space, especially on the break.  Newbill can score the ball when he wants to, but can also drop a dime or two to keep to defense off-balanced.  He also did as well a job a defender can against Inter-City Baptist’s star guard Evan Kraatz, holding him to only seven points on the game and zero in the second half.  While Devain can certainly fill up the score sheet, his role on the team extends beyond the stats he averages. He says he likes to model his game after former Romulus guard and current Missouri Tiger Wes Clark, a player he looked up during his time at Romulus.

“When I’m out there I’m the coach on and off the floor,” stated Devain.  “I’m the team’s captain, I just need to work on my shooting and I would be a real good player.”

No schools have reached out to Newbill in terms of offering scholarships to play basketball next year at this point.  However, Devian would make for a late great addition to a variety of the programs in the State of Michigan.  When asked why a college should take him, Devain responded “Because I am a hard worker, leader, coach on an off the court, I can score from anywhere on the court, I can pass, play great defense, I’m coachable, I listen, and I play my role.  I am a team player.”

As the season winds down and Truman readies themselves for the district playoffs, the Cougars will be eager to erase the memories of last years opening round playoff game, a 90-48 beat down by the eventual Class A champion Romulus Eagles.  It would mean even more to Newbill to not only beat Romulus because that is his old school, but because he has a developed a brotherhood with the seniors he is with at Truman currently.

“We are all brothers,” said Newbill, “that’s my family. With Kendarius (Slaughter) our shooting guard,  I’ve known him since last year he’s a really good kid I love that guy. Aaron (Foster-Smith) thats my brother, I’ve known him for 2 years, he’s always in a good mood, he makes me better on and off the court, I love him too.”

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Southeastern Tops PSL West Division Leader Renaissance

2 Feb

The last time the Jungaleers finished undefeated in the PSL portion of their schedule, it would be the 2010-2011 eventually city championship season with a perfect 10-0 record.  Southeastern, currently 8-0 in the East Division of the league, took another step in the right direction for claiming PSL superiority with 49-41 win of West Division leader Renaissance on Saturday at Detroit Western, part of the DPS makeup games that were cancelled a few weeks ago due to the recent snow storms in Southeast Michigan.

It was a traditional PSL retro slugfest between the Jungaleers and Renaissance, with only 17 points being scored in the first quarter alone, and even more surprising than that, the first bucket of the 2nd quarter didn’t come until the 4:25 mark.  Recent Florida A&M offeree Leonard Harper-Baker paced SE in the first half with 7 points, including a buzzer beating three to give the Jungaleers a 16-15 halftime advantage.

In the second half, the only time Reniassance would lead for the rest of the game would be when they held a 20-17 advantage with 4:34 left in the third.  A key part for the Phoenix in gaining the lead was the play of star sophomore guard Justin Turner.  Turner was man amongst boys in the half-court set, he hit a few contested three-pointers, had his mid-range game working, and finished through contact at the rim for a couple of and-one opportunities.  Turner led Renaissance in scoring with a game high 26 points, with 10 coming in the third quarter alone, and was a solid defender all game long coming away with four steals.

The closest Renaissance would get in the fourth quarter would be a 30-28 defect with 7:00 left to go in the final period.  But Southeastern’s tradition man-to-man defense did just enough to slow down Turner, limiting him to only seven points, and coasting to the victory via the charity stripe.

Southeastern’s season started out 0-5, but have climbed back to over .500 who are now guaranteed at least a share of the East Division title, and can lock the division up outright with a win at Detroit Douglass on Tuesday.  Also, Southeastern is now guaranteed the number one seed in the PSL playoffs that start next Friday. The difference in the December version’s of Southeastern and the Southeastern of January with wins coming over Cass Tech, Pershing, and Renaissance this week has been the play of their starting senior forwards and brothers Leonard Harper-Baker and Darryl Bingham.

Harper Baker led SE with 14 points, and eight rebounds, while Bingham chipped in with nine points and seven rebounds.  “It feels very good.” said Bingham after the win vs. Renaissance. “In the Cass and Pershing games, me and my brother (Harper-Baker) had to prove we were better than Cass and Pershing”

Another key in Southeastern’s development as a well-rounded team has been the play of sophomore guard Ean Blackwell.  Ean had some large shoes to fill at the beginning of the season, stepping in for four-year varsity point guard Kenyatta Singleton, who graduated last year.  Senior Darryl Bingham, notes the increased production of Blackwell, has garnered increased success in Southeastern.

“Well he is getting used to playing with large crowds,” Darryl noted, “that was the biggest issue of him, not playing in front of large crowds, I’m proud of him.”

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Country Day Betters Flint Southwestern on Senior Night

1 Feb

12471147-standardOn senior night for the Yellow Jackets of Country Day, DCD rallied from a halftime defect over Flint Southwestern to place their record above the .500 mark with seven wins and six losses midway through the season.

Trailing 18-14 after one, the Knights of Southwestern used the second quarter to gain their halftime lead.  Down 28-21 with 4:31 left in the quarter, FLSWA used a 13-5 run to lead 34-33 at end of two quarters.  In the second quarter, Country Day had no response or defense to defend Southwestern’s 6’3″ junior wing/shooting guard Neshua Wise.  Wise scored 11 of his game high 24 points in the second, including three three-pointers.

However, in the second quarter is where Country Day came out and asserted their will.  After a sluggish start to the game, McDonald’s All American Game nominee and Xavier commit Edmond Sumner came out and simply took the game over.  Getting offensive-rebounds, and-ones, hitting three’s, and slashing to the basket at will in the second half, Edmond accounted for 15 of his teams 24 points in the quarter, and DCD led the Knights 57-52 at the end of three.

By the fourth quarter, Flint Southwestern ran out of momentum they had gained in the second quarter, holding Neshua Wise to only two points in the quarter.  Country Day was able to maintain a continuous 7-10 point lead for the whole quarter, the shortest defect the Knights would have in the fourth quarter would be 64-58 with 4:21 left.  But it was not meant to be, as Country Day was able to put the game away at the free-throw line and win the game 77-67.

For Country Day, Edmond Sumner led the way with a game high 32 points, with 25 coming in the second half, Sumner also had 10 rebounds as well.  The unsung hero all knight for DCD was 6’5″ swingman Maceo Baston.  Baston came out hot and set the tempo early for the Yellow Jackets, scoring 11 of his 23 points in the first quarter, he got to the basket a few times, but hit two three-pointers and 11 free-throws, he also hauled down 6 boards.  Junior Nazir Wallace chipped in with 10 points and 10 rebounds, and senior Taylor Graffa had 9 points, all on three pointers.

For Flint Southwestern, 6’3″ Neshua Wise had a team high 24 points and 11 rebounds, Wise was effective all game long for the Knights, he hit his six three-pointers taking a very low number of shots to get there.  Fellow juniors Akileon Fisher chipped in with 20 points, and Jaire Grayer recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

With the loss, Flint Southwestern now falls to 4-6 on the season.

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Southeastern Remains Undefeated in PSL. Top Cass Tech 57-51.

30 Jan

The last time the Jungaleers of Detroit Southeastern traveled to Cass Tech to take on the Technicians was in last year’s city semi-final, where SE had their hearts broken on a controversial last-second tip-in by future Youngstown State commit Kyle Steward.  Eager to exercise the demons of that loss, Southeastern took the rematch on Wednesday by a 57-51 decision.  The Jungaleers came out and set the tempo early, leading 16-8 after one.  In the second quarter, emotions started to run high on both squads as one technical foul a piece was granted, Cass eventually led 29-27 at the half.  Moving to the fourth quarter, the last CT lead would come with 6:00 left in the fourth after senior Kenny Carpenter nailed a three to put the Technicians up 47-45.  However, it would be the last lead Cass would have for the rest of the game, as the senior trio of Leonard Harper-Baker, Darryl Bingham, and D’Cari Charleston stepped up their play in the final minutes of the game to score just enough to outlast CT.  Cass would eventually have the ball left down three with 11.8 seconds to go, but Kenny Carpenter turned the ball over, giving the ball back to SE to put the game away at the charity stripe.

Darryl Bingham paced Southeastern with a game high 19 points, and ten rebounds.  Fellow senior D’Cari Charleston stepped with 16 big point for the Junagleers and wing Leonard Harper-Baker chipped in with 13 points, including two threes.  CT was led by Kenny Carpenter with 17 points, and both Sharif Black and Mike Laster chipped in with 9 points.

With the win, Southeastern improves to 6-0 in the PSL’s East Division, with a huge game looming at Pershing on January 31st.  Cass Tech now falls to 4-2 in the West Division, one game behind leader Renaissance at 5-1.  And interestingly enough, the two teams play for superiority in the West on the 31st as well.

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