February 29th, 2008 Doug Donnelly
The Associated Press, Detroit News and Detroit Free Press have picked All-State basketball teams for decades. A new All-State team has emerged and is the first one out from this past season.
Bankhoops.com has released its Class C and Class D All-State teams.
Go to: http://blog.mlive.com/highschoolbasketball/ to view the teams. Locally, Whiteford’s Josh DuPree was a first team choice in Class C and his teammate, Dave Gust, was an eighth-team choice.
The AP, News and Free Press teams come out later.
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February 28th, 2008 Doug Donnelly
You remember the Six Degrees of Separation Game, don’t you? Six Degrees of Separation is a trivia game based on the idea that everyone on earth can be connected using fewer than six associations.
Let’s play that game with the four remaining boys basketball teams for the Monroe County Region and former Whiteford Coach John Rice. Rice is now the head coach at Toledo Bowsher, which finished the season 4-15 in the Toledo City League:
WHITEFORD: This one is easy. Rice coached Whiteford for 30 seasons. He coached current Bobcat coach Brad Stevens during his four years on the varsity. He coached several relatives of current Bobcat leading scorer Josh DuPree and the three brothers of second-leading scorer Dave Gust. Stevens, incidentally, played on the first Bobcat team to win 20 games — the 1982-83 squad — that Rice coached. If Whiteford wins Friday against Madison (7 p.m. at Blissfield) it will give them 20 victories for the third time in school history.
FLAT ROCK: This one is almost as easy. Rice coached Flat Rock last season in a one-season effort when Ram coach Andy Mangin resigned shortly before the season started. The Rams went 4-17. Several current Rams — such as Jake Richardson, Adam Pavilanis, Mike Marcon, Andrew Scarton, Garret Matthews and Mike Boyce — all played for Rice last year. He did not coach Devon Crain as the senior moved into the district after the season started. Crain did hang around the team though for the second half of the season.
SMCC: Rice is the second-winningest coach in Region history behind SMCC coach Ray Lauwers. I had a conversation recently about coaching in the Toledo City League and Coach Rice told me that “Ray Lauwers is as good as or better than any basketball coach in the City League.” Back to the game: The biggest connection is Rice coached SMCC’s opponent, Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, for two seasons after leaving Whiteford (2003-04 and 2004-05). He did not coach current Richard stars Eso Akunne or Josh Herbeck. He did coach Josh Herbeck’s brother, Mike, for two seasons. He also coached some brothers of a few other Richard players. The remaining connection is Irish captain and reserve Brian McNally. Coach Rice brought McNally up to the varsity during the 2004-05 season when he was a ninth-grader and he appeared in several games.
IDA: Rice never coached at Ida, but coached against Ida several games while at Whiteford. One of Ida’s biggest upsets ever was in the District finals of the 1982-83 season against the Bobcats (the same Bobcat team that Brad Stevens played on and went 20-2 that I mentioned above). That was Ida’s last District championship. Mark Hubbard was the coach of the 13-8 Ida squad that season. Hubbard is back on the sidelines this season as an assistant coach for Ida. Another connection: Rice was Whiteford’s JV girls basketball coach for two decades. The varsity coach at the time was Kris Hubbard — Mark’s wife.
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February 28th, 2008 Doug Donnelly
Four Monroe County Region teams will be playing in the District finals Friday:
SMCC: The Falcons are 15-7 and play 18-5 Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard. Richard has an All-State candidate in junior Eso Akunne (951 career points) and is the two-time defending Catholic League champions.
WHITEFORD: The Bobcats are 19-3 and are trying to win 20 games for just the third time in school history (1982-83 team was 20-2; 2002-03 team was 23-1). Josh DuPree and Dave Gust have both scored more than 400 points on the season – the first time in school history two players have done that in the same season. Whiteford’s opponent will be Madison, who is 21-1.
To take a look at the Class C state tournament pairings, visit: http://monroepublishing.com/images/districtpairingsC.pdf
FLAT ROCK: The Rams have the top scorer in the Monroe County Region in Devon Crain, who just set the single season Ram point mark. Flat Rock has beaten Grosse Ile once this season. Can they do it again?
IDA: The Bluestreaks are led by junior All-State candidate Nic Jobe and are having a fantastic season. It faces a scheduled-tested Chelsea squad.
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February 27th, 2008 Doug Donnelly
By DOUG DONNELLY
doug@monroenews.com
BLISSFIELD — The Whiteford Bobcats made it look easy Wednesday with an 81-43 District semifinal win over Morenci in a game that featured a running clock for a good part of the second half.
”I’ve never been involved in that, either for or against me,” said Bobcat coach Brad Stevens after his team improved to 19-3 on the season. “It was a good team win all the way around.”
After a close win Monday against Blissfield the Bobcats left no doubt in this one. Dave Gust scored the first two baskets of the game and made it 8-2 early in the first quarter as Whiteford continued to gain momentum.
Quick passes and strong rebounding helped the Bobcats to a 21-8 first quarter margin. Jake DuPree scored eight straight points to open the second quarter and Jake Ritzenthaler’s 3-pointer closed out the first half with Whiteford leading 52-21.
The second half was just as kind to Whiteford. Cody McCartney, Kevin Fischer and Josh DuPree all chipped in baskets during a third-quarter Bobcat run as the lead swelled to 65-24 with 3:45 left in the quarter. The rest of the second half was under a running clock as most of the Bobcat starters stayed on the bench in the fourth quarter. The Bobcats lead stayed around 40 points the rest of the way.
”Dave (Gust) kind of did it early and often and that opened things up,” Stevens said. “Cody (McCartney) was hitting the boards and we weren’t giving them many second shots.”
Jake DuPree led all scorers with 18 points, with his brother Josh chipping in 16, Gust 16 and McCartney 13 points and a dozen rebounds. Ritzenthaler had 7 in a solid effort off the bench. No one on Morenci (7-14) reached double figures.
Whiteford has reached the District finals for the first time in Stevens’ five seasons on the bench. Madison (21-1), a team that beat the Bobcats twice, including by 23 points last week, will be the opponent. The finals are at 7 p.m. Friday.
”We have to prepare for a solid defensive effort,” he said. “(Madison) will try and take Josh out of his game. That’s what everybody has tried to do the last couple of weeks. Tonight, it was nice to see Josh get focused and get everyone else involved. That’s a sign of maturity.”
Whiteford 21 31 21 9 = 81
Morenci 8 14 8 13 = 43
WHITEFORD: Fischer 2 0-0 5, Bunge 0 0-2 0, Josh DuPree 7 1-2 16, Hansen 0 1-2 1, Jake DuPree 7 2-2 18, Pant 1 0-0 3, Gust 7 2-2 16, McCartney 4 5-6 13, Keeling 1 0-0 2, Ritzenthaler 2 2-4 7. Totals 31 13-20 = 81. Three-point field goals: Josh DuPree 1, Jake DuPree 2, Pant 1.
MORENCI: Wolf 2 0 1-2 5, Hoadley 1 0-0 3, Ries 0 1-2 1, Barron 2 0-0 4, Jacob Bovee 2 5-6 9, Martinez 2 0-0 4, Swett 3 1-1 9, A. Tompkins 1 0-0 2, T. Tompkins 3 0-0 6. Totals 15 8-11 43. Three-point field goals: Hoadley 1, Swett
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February 27th, 2008 Doug Donnelly
Here’s a preview of tonight’s District boys basketball games involving Monroe County Region teams:
Gibraltar Carlson vs. Taylor Truman in Class A District at Taylor Kennedy, 7 p.m.: Ryan Winningham is one of the top scorers in the Monroe County Region for Carlson and he’ll be needed if the Marauders are going to upset Truman.
Erie Mason vs. Chelsea in Class B District at Milan, 5 p.m.: The Eagles are 7-13 and play 10-10 Chelsea. This is the first time this season Chelsea has played another Class B school.
Ida vs. Onsted in Class B District at Milan, 7 p.m.: Ida is the favorite but Onsted has been on a roll lately. It beat traditional Class D power Lenawee Christian just over a week ago and has been playing well.
New Boston Huron vs. Flat Rock in Class B District at Riverview, 5:30 p.m.: Devon Crain has pretty much wrapped up the Monroe County Region scoring championship, but a District championship would be even better for Flat Rock.
Airport vs. Grosse Ile in Class B District at Riverview, 7 p.m.: Grosse Ile won the Huron League and has league MVP Lonnie Pugh.
Whiteford vs. Morenci in Class C District at Blissfield, 6 p.m.: The Bobcats survived a scare Monday when a last-second shot by Blissfield didn’t go in. The last time the Bobcats faced Morenci at Blissfield the Bulldogs won when they made a free throw after the final buzzer went off.
SMCC vs. Summit Academy in Class C District at Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, 6 p.m.: The Falcons beat Romulus Summit Academy 45-30 a few weeks ago and are holding opponents to 42 points a game.
Dundee vs. Ann Arbor Richard in Class C District at Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, 8 p.m.: Looking for a Class C team that could make a deep run into the state tournament? Look no further than Richard. The 15-5 Fighting Irish feature All-State candidate Eso Akunne (19.7 points a game) and 3-point shot artist Josh Herbeck (15.6 points a game). It’s losses this season were to Orchard Lake St. Mary, Flint Powers Catholic, Birmingham Brother Rice, Detroit Loyola and Detroit Community.
Bedford will host two games tonight, Adrian vs. Saline (6 p.m.) and Tecumseh vs. Ypsilanti Lincoln (8 p.m.). If you can’t go, you could listen to broadcasts of those games on Adrian’s WLEN station (103.9 FM).
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February 27th, 2008 Doug Donnelly
Here’s a look at tonight’s boys District basketball schedule:
Gibraltar Carlson vs. Taylor Truman in Class A District at Taylor Kennedy, 7 p.m.
Erie Mason vs. Chelsea in Class B District at Milan, 5 p.m.
Ida vs. Onsted in Class B District at Milan, 7 p.m.
New Boston Huron vs. Flat Rock in Class B District at Riverview, 5:30 p.m.
Airport vs. Grosse Ile in Class B District at Riverview, 7 p.m.
Whiteford vs. Morenci in Class C District at Blissfield, 6 p.m.
SMCC vs. Summit Academy in Class C District at Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, 6 p.m.
Dundee vs. Ann Arbor Richard in Class C District at Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, 8 p.m.
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February 25th, 2008 Doug Donnelly
Let the madness start!It’s my favorite time of the year — District basketball week. It used to be you could go to a game just about every night of the week. With the girls tournament going on at the same time of the year, it is a little different now. The boys are just playing Monday-Wednesday-Friday. But, there’s still plenty of basketball to see.I’ve been checking www.monroenews.com (and the new Web site) and it looks like Ida, Flat Rock and Whiteford are winners tonight. Whiteford beat Blissfield 59-58 in what looks like the tightest game of the night.
To see a story about that game, visit: http://www.lenconnect.com/articles/2008/02/26/sports/sports02.txt
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February 22nd, 2008 Doug Donnelly
Congratulations to Coach Ray Lauwers, who won his 600th game at SMCC Thursday.Counting his 31 wins at Detroit Annunciation, he now has 631 career coaching victories, making him one of the winningest coaches in state boys basketball history. (http://www.mhsaa.com/games/recbbb.html#coach)Here’s a link to look at his year by year record: www.monroenews.com/assets/pdf/MP39859222.PDF Here’s an excerpt from the 2008 Prep Basketball reference guide (on sale now! — shameless plug, I know) – keep in mind this is straight out of the book. You have to add this year’s 13-7 mark to get to 631:Ray Lauwers has compiled an incredible career at SMCC.Prior to coming to Monroe, Lauwers coached four seasons at Detroit Annunciation:1963-64 (11-7); 1964-65 (7-11); 1965-66 (6-12); 1966-67 (7-11); TOTAL (31-41)Since taking over the Monroe Catholic Central program, here’s what Lauwers has accomplished:-587 wins, bringing his overall record to 618-329. [It's 600-295 after Thursday, so 631-336 overall]- Michigan Associated Press Coach of the Year in 1976. That Falcon team posted an 18-3 overall record, owned a 15-game winning streak and finished No. 4 in the statewide AP poll.- United Press International Michigan Class B Coach of the Year in 1985. That Central powerhouse notched the school’s best hoop record at the time of 21-2 and No. 1 winning skein at 20 in a row.- Region Coach of the Decade for the 1980s over stiff competition.- Monroe County Region Coach of the Year nine times.- Won 12 District championships- Won 12 league championships- On Jan. 28, 2006, SMCC officially named the court where the Falcons play “Coach Lauwers Court.”
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February 20th, 2008 Doug Donnelly
St. Mary Catholic Central Coach Ray Lauwers is getting closer to another milestone — his 600th career coaching victory. Lauwers has a 598-284 record heading into Thursday’s game at Blissfield. Blissfield is coached by John Vandecaveye, who recently won his 250th game as head coach of the Royals, and played for Lauwers at SMCC. Both are featured in the history book, which are still available at Evening News offices.
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February 19th, 2008 Doug Donnelly
Whiteford came up short in its biggest game of the season Tuesday, losing to the Tri-County Conference champion Madison Trojans, 69-46.
The Bobcats were never really in the game and a 24-point, 10-rebound performance by forward Dave Gust was the only thing that kept Whiteford from being blown out early in the contest.
Madison scored the first 11 points of the game and held the Bobcats scoreless for half of the first quarter. Gust scored 13 of Whiteford’s first 17 points and helped lift the Bobcats within two at 20-18 at the midpoint of the second quarter.
Then, the wheels fell of the Bobcat bus. Madison went on a 11-2 run to close out the second quarter, including a free throw after a technical foul and a pretty buzzer beater that gave the Trojans (18-1, 14-1 in the TCC) a 31-20 halftime margin.
It never got better for the Bobcats as the Trojans continued to build on its lead with short runs of its own. Whiteford cut the lead to 13 with two minutes left in the third quarter but a buzzer-beater by Chase Mann at the end of the third quarter extended the lead back to 15 points entering the final stanza.
Jake Agruda scored a career high 26 points for Madison. Vince Beekel added 17 and Jon Vallejo 11.
Mann, the Trojans’ four-year point guard chipped in with eight. Jacob Crison scored three points but more importantly for Madison shadowed Whiteford’s top scorer, Josh DuPree. DuPree scored only once, on a broken play layup off a steal. He missed his other six floor shots to give him 2 points on the night. He came into the game averaging 23 points a contest and challenging Flat Rock’s Devon Crain for the Monroe County Region scoring lead. His basket came with 4:14 remaining in the game.
Madison outscored the Bobcats in every quarter, had only eight turnovers and forced Whiteford into 20 miscues. The Trojans scored the final 10 points of the game to seal the outright TCC championship. The Bobcats play at home Thursday against Sand Creek.
Whiteford and Madison could meet again. Both schools are in the Class C District at Blissfield, but are on opposite sides of the bracket and couldn’t meet until the finals.
Whiteford is 16-3 (12-3 in the TCC) on the season, with two of its losses coming to Adrian Madison.
The TCC crown is Madison’s sixth all-time, and first since 2001. Trojan coach Jeff Webster played on TCC champion teams in 1978 and 1979 for Madison and now has coached the squad to a league title. He’s the first boys basketball coach in league history to play on and coach a league champ. He played for Jim Hartley, now Madison’s superintendent.
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