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P-W survives toughest test yet |
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Bank Hoops -
High School
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PEWAMO- A veteran coach like Laingsburg's Greg Mitchell knows the danger inherent to gimmick defenses. The junk approach often inverts traditional help-defense principles, which can lead to break-downs when a player's ingrained reactions take over, and the gimmick breaks down. That happened Wednesday to Laingsburg with its box-and-1 on Pewamo-Westphalia's Nick Spitzley. It effectively shut down the 6-2 sophomore for 30 minutes, during which Spitzley scored three points on three shots. But with 2 minutes to play he was all alone in the left corner. 6-5 Lane Simon kicked the ball out to his fellow sophomore and Spitzley calmly sank his second 3 to give P-W its largest led of the night 42-38. They won 49-45 after Spitzley secured the rebound when Andrew Wade's pullup jumper rimmed out then walked to the other end and stuck both free throws. The key CMAC matchup began with only Laingsburg playing like it was a rivalry game. It took six minutes for P-W to get on the scoreboard. It was 17-2 after one quarter thanks to a 30-foot chuck at the horn from Laingsburg junior guard Jacob Zielinski. But the Pirates would return from halftime with energy and focus, looking more like the state's No. 4 ranked team in Class C, improving to 12-0, 10-0 CMAC. No. 21 Laingsburg is 8-3, 6-3. The Wolfpack has played P-W tougher than anyone else in both their games. Laingsburg will get a third shot at the Pirates in district play.
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P-town wins Big North classic |
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Bank Hoops -
High School
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CADILLAC - In his two-and-a-half seasons of varsity basketball, Zak Lewis has never been on a team that's lost a Big North Conference game. With 5 seconds to play Friday at Cadillac, it looked like the state's 10th-ranked Class A team might finally drop a league contest after 27 straight victories. But not before Lewis, the lone holdover from Petoskey's 2010 Class B quarterfinalist, got in one more shot. With the right sideline in-bound action happening largely up top with Jake Mullin coming off two screens, 6-3, 200-pound senior found himself isolated deep on the low block. Lewis flipped in a soft James Worthy-style half-hook with 2.4 seconds to go and the Northmen would head back up on 131 their winning streak intact, 48-47. They're 13-0, 8-0 in the Big North.
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Arthur Hill has all the pieces |
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Bank Hoops -
High School
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MUSKEGON HEIGHTS - It's a dangerous proposition, getting behind a team whose most talented players are a senior center who is physically fragile and socially erratic and a freshman point guard. But if Saginaw Arthur Hill continues to play like it did in Saturday's 71-68 win at Muskegon Heights, pencil in the 11-3 Lumberjacks as one of the favorites in Class A. Arthur Hill's point guard, 6-2 freshman Eric Davis, is playing with twice the confidence and aggression he had back in December. The real trick, he's improving so quickly while still playing a controlled game, the same trait that allowed Drake Harris to flourish as a freshman last season. Davis does more communicating and looks for his shot with regularity than early in the year. He's smooth long and skilled, and can create a jumper or full drive. Again like Harris, Davis is the best guard in his class. He scored 15.
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It takes a team, Dowagiac now 5-1 |
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Bank Hoops -
High School
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DOWAGIAC - The orange sign in Dowagiac's student section with Dontel Highsmith's #3 said it was "Too Easy." No, kid. Basketball may be beautifully simple, but it's rarely easy. So there was no repeat of Highsmith's December 56-point game, no Wolverine Conference record, for Highsmith. A well-coached Three Rivers team made him work for everything and sometimes make him pay even if he did get it, before falling to what was likely Dowagiac's best overall team effort of the season 62-54. Highsmith has rocketed up the rankings and coaches' recruiting lists thanks to the prolific December during which his explosive play eliminated concerns about what had been a lingering knee injury. That left him a healthy 6-2, 190-pound junior point guard whose playing resume is the strongest in the 2013 class, as it features a Class B state semifinal appearance and two years of national 17U AAU.
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