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All Basketball - Boys Stories
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The first half of the Downriver League basketball season has wrapped up and the implementation of a new league format should make for an interesting month of February.
The standings now shift to a “top-five, bottom-five” formula that mirrors the DRL volleyball format that has been used for years.
The top five teams in the standings – Truman, Trenton, Roosevelt, Lincoln Park and Allen Park – will jockey for position in a race for the league title while the bottom five teams – Carlson, Anderson, Kennedy, Melvindale and Woodhaven – battle amongst themselves.
Fourth-place Lincoln Park, fifth-place Allen Park and sixth-place Carlson all have 5-4 league records and head-to-head tie-breakers were used to determine positioning among those three teams.
Each team from each group will play a total of five Downriver League games. Four of these games will be against opponents in the same pool and will count towards the league standings.
Each team will also play a team from the other pool – “top-five team” versus “bottom-five team” – in a crossover game that will not count towards their league records.
Downriver League Standings:
1. Truman 8-1
2. Trenton 7-2
3. Roosevelt 6-3
4. Lincoln Park 5-4
5. Allen Park 5-4
6. Carlson 5-4
7. Anderson 4-5
8. Kennedy 2-7
9. Melvindale 2-7
10. Woodhaven 1-8
Trenton could not take advantage of Truman’s loss last week and remains a game behind the Cougars after also falling on Thursday to Carlson 55-49.
The game was razor-close for three quarters and the teams entered the fourth quarter tied 42-42, but Carlson pulled away in the fourth with a 13-7 quarter advantage to notch its fifth-consecutive league victory.
Daton Aaron had 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists to lead the Marauders.
Alex Rahming had 12 points and Kaylyn Erwin added eight points and 12 rebounds in the win.
Trenton’s Dan Hall had one of his best games of the season with an 18-point, 13-rebounds effort.
Jerry LaBell made four three-pointers and ended with 15 points.
On Tuesday, Trenton traveled to Anderson and defeated the Titans 61-38.
After building a 17-9 lead after eight minutes, the Trojans went on to outscore Anderson in every quarter in the win.
“Trenton got us,” Pratt said. “They played real well, they’re a great team and a very smart basketball team.
“We had trouble stopping (Jason Zahran) and I think most people do. I like the way they play because they just play super intelligent on the floor and that all comes from Coach Morrow.”
Zahran had 23 points and nine rebounds in the win while tallied another double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds.
LaBell was strong from beyond the arc for the Trojans and knocked down three triples for nine points.
Trenton (10-3, 7-2 DRL) will host Allen Park on Thursday while Anderson (8-5, 4-5 DRL) travels to Woodhaven that same night.
Bears in the hunt
After each of the teams ahead of Roosevelt in the league standings suffered defeats on Thursday, the Bears find themselves still in the hunt for a Downriver League title after winning a pair of games last week.
On Tuesday, Roosevelt held off a game Lincoln Park squad 57-54 in Wyandotte.
“We needed that win bad,” Roosevelt Coach Dave Cramton said. “We really needed that one and it was a good battle.”
Lincoln Park held a small advantage for much of the first quarter, but Roosevelt’s Tommy Cannon beat the buzzer with a putback to tie the game 13-13 after eight minutes.
The Bears started using its transition game for easy baskets in the second quarter and got behind the Railsplitter defense several times for layups for a 12-6 advantage and took a 25-19 lead into the break.
“First half, I thought we did a poor job getting back on defense,” Lincoln Park Coach Todd Tobin said. “They were sprinting down the floor and we were jogging.”
Roosevelt’s lead remained in the third quarter, but never grew over two possessions. The Rails cut the lead to one point, 32-31, with less than four minutes remaining, but the Bears scored the next five points to hold a 37-31 advantage late in the quarter.
Lincoln Park’s Delvon Byner-Simmons brought the Rails back to within a possession after he knocked down a big three-pointer with less than 10 seconds remaining in the quarter for a 37-34 Roosevelt lead entering the fourth.
The Bears looked primed to pull away early in the fourth after a 7-1 run in the first two and a half minutes, but Lincoln Park refused to go without a fight. Trailing 47-38, the Rails scored the next six points to climb within three points with three minutes left.
The teams traded baskets over the next few minutes, but sloppy Roosevelt play down the stretch allowed Lincoln Park to shorten the gap even further.
Lincoln Park’s Tywan Cage made it 53-50 with a layup with 40 seconds remaining and after a Roosevelt turnover, the junior knocked down a pair of free throws to pull the Rails within one, 53-52.
The Bears averted disaster on the next possession when freshman guard Donnie Corley took a near-turnover and turned it into a Roosevelt layup for a 55-52 lead.
“I’m happy we won, but turnovers we’ve got to clean up,” Cramton said. “That’s why we’ve lost a couple of key games is turning the ball over way too many times. If you do that, you’re just asking to get beat.”
The Rails outscored Roosevelt 35-32 in the second half, but poor shooting from the three-point and free throw lines plagued the visitors and prevented them from getting over the hump.
“I thought we played hard, but we didn’t execute very well,” Tobin said. “When you shoot 3-for-30 from three and 13-for-28 from the line, it doesn’t help.”
The Bears held a significant rebounding advantage throughout the contest with two players in double-figures on the glass and while another had seven.
“In the last six games, five of them we got outrebounded and we lost three of them,” Cramton said. “It comes down to getting more shots and, on the offensive end, it’s all about desire.”
All nine Roosevelt players who saw time on the court scored at least two points and the Bears were led by Stewart with 13 points. The senior also pulled down 11 rebounds.
Damon Singleton had eight points and 13 rebounds, Corley had eight and Cannon, Tyler Thorington and Jacob Lavis each had six.
“Credit to Wyandotte, they played hard and protected their home court,” Tobin said. “I think you see it’s two pretty evenly-matched teams.”
Lincoln Park’s Michael Tillmon-Cornett led all scorers with 17 points to go with seven rebounds and three steals. Cage had 16 points and Byner-Simmons added 11 points and five boards.
The Bears improved to 6-3 in league play on Thursday with a hard-fought 37-34 road victory at Kennedy.
Roosevelt held a 24-20 lead at the half and both offenses stalled in the final two quarters
“We jumped out 8-0 and missed probably a half-dozen layups in the first half and a half-dozen more in the second,” Cramton said. “It’s a big week and we need every league win we can get, but we’ve got to start finishing, especially the easy ones around the basket.”
Divon Robinson led the Bears with 15 points.
Kennedy’s Matt Woloczyk had a solid game in the middle with 18 points on 8-for-10 shooting to go with 10 rebounds.
Roosevelt (9-4, 6-3 DRL) hosted River Rouge on Monday and will begin the second half of its league schedule on Thursday at Lincoln Park.
Jags top Cards
Allen Park secured a spot in the top five on Thursday by defeating its neighboring rival Melvindale 68-51.
The Jags improved to 7-7 overall and 5-4 in league play by outscoring the Cardinals in every quarter.
Tyler Warga led Allen Park with 20 points. Trevor Simms added 15 in the win and Richie Slate chipped in 14.
DaiZoun Oliver led the Cardinals with 12 points.
Allen Park will travel to Trenton on Thursday.
On Tuesday, the Cardinals fell to Carlson 66-53.
Melvindale had one of its highest-scoring quarters of the season in the first and led 20-14 after eight minutes.
The Marauders punched back in the second quarter and outscored the home team 19-7 for a 33-27 halftime lead.
The Cards remained close and trailed by seven, 46-39, entering the fourth quarter, but Carlson would pull away over the final eight minutes for its fourth straight win.
Carlson’s Daton Aaron was nearly unstoppable and led the Marauders with 27 points and six assists.
Kaylyn Erwin had 15 points and eight rebounds in the win while Larnell Tidwell added 12 points and eight boards.
Oliver had 16 points to lead Melvindale in the loss.
Carlson (11-4, 5-4 DRL) will travel to Truman on Thursday while Melvindale (3-11, 2-7 DRL) hosts Kennedy that same night.
LP secures spot
Lincoln Park will enter the second half of the league season sitting in fourth place after a 52-38 victory road victory over Woodhaven on Thursday.
Donnie Stoddard led the Warriors with 18 points and eight rebounds while Brandon Imperati joined him in double figures with 11.
Lincoln Park (6-6, 5-4 DRL) will host Roosevelt on Thursday.
On Tuesday, Woodhaven earned its first league victory of the season with a 59-55 home win over Kennedy.
In a game that consistently remained within a few possessions, the Warriors were paced by four scorers in double-figures.
Stoddard went 9-for-12 from the free throw line and led Woodhaven with 17 points and six rebounds.
Maurice Witherspoon scored 15, Imperati had 14 and Nick Towianski scored 10 in the win.
Andia Marsh led the Eagles with 16 points. Kareth O’Neil scored 12, David Cheeks had nine and Matt Woloszyk had six points and 11 rebounds.
Kennedy (5-8, 2-7 DRL) will travel to Melvindale on Thursday while Woodhaven (3-11, 1-8 DRL) hosts Anderson.
BOYS' BASKETBALL: Downriver League starts second half (PHOTO)
Photo by Dave Chapman
The standings now shift to a “top-five, bottom-five” formula that mirrors the DRL volleyball format that has been used for years.
The top five teams in the standings – Truman, Trenton, Roosevelt, Lincoln Park and Allen Park – will jockey for position in a race for the league title while the bottom five teams – Carlson, Anderson, Kennedy, Melvindale and Woodhaven – battle amongst themselves.
Fourth-place Lincoln Park, fifth-place Allen Park and sixth-place Carlson all have 5-4 league records and head-to-head tie-breakers were used to determine positioning among those three teams.
Each team from each group will play a total of five Downriver League games. Four of these games will be against opponents in the same pool and will count towards the league standings.
Each team will also play a team from the other pool – “top-five team” versus “bottom-five team” – in a crossover game that will not count towards their league records.
Downriver League Standings:
1. Truman 8-1
2. Trenton 7-2
3. Roosevelt 6-3
4. Lincoln Park 5-4
5. Allen Park 5-4
6. Carlson 5-4
7. Anderson 4-5
8. Kennedy 2-7
9. Melvindale 2-7
10. Woodhaven 1-8
Trenton could not take advantage of Truman’s loss last week and remains a game behind the Cougars after also falling on Thursday to Carlson 55-49.
The game was razor-close for three quarters and the teams entered the fourth quarter tied 42-42, but Carlson pulled away in the fourth with a 13-7 quarter advantage to notch its fifth-consecutive league victory.
Daton Aaron had 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists to lead the Marauders.
Alex Rahming had 12 points and Kaylyn Erwin added eight points and 12 rebounds in the win.
Trenton’s Dan Hall had one of his best games of the season with an 18-point, 13-rebounds effort.
Jerry LaBell made four three-pointers and ended with 15 points.
On Tuesday, Trenton traveled to Anderson and defeated the Titans 61-38.
After building a 17-9 lead after eight minutes, the Trojans went on to outscore Anderson in every quarter in the win.
“Trenton got us,” Pratt said. “They played real well, they’re a great team and a very smart basketball team.
“We had trouble stopping (Jason Zahran) and I think most people do. I like the way they play because they just play super intelligent on the floor and that all comes from Coach Morrow.”
Zahran had 23 points and nine rebounds in the win while tallied another double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds.
LaBell was strong from beyond the arc for the Trojans and knocked down three triples for nine points.
Trenton (10-3, 7-2 DRL) will host Allen Park on Thursday while Anderson (8-5, 4-5 DRL) travels to Woodhaven that same night.
Bears in the hunt
After each of the teams ahead of Roosevelt in the league standings suffered defeats on Thursday, the Bears find themselves still in the hunt for a Downriver League title after winning a pair of games last week.
On Tuesday, Roosevelt held off a game Lincoln Park squad 57-54 in Wyandotte.
“We needed that win bad,” Roosevelt Coach Dave Cramton said. “We really needed that one and it was a good battle.”
Lincoln Park held a small advantage for much of the first quarter, but Roosevelt’s Tommy Cannon beat the buzzer with a putback to tie the game 13-13 after eight minutes.
The Bears started using its transition game for easy baskets in the second quarter and got behind the Railsplitter defense several times for layups for a 12-6 advantage and took a 25-19 lead into the break.
“First half, I thought we did a poor job getting back on defense,” Lincoln Park Coach Todd Tobin said. “They were sprinting down the floor and we were jogging.”
Roosevelt’s lead remained in the third quarter, but never grew over two possessions. The Rails cut the lead to one point, 32-31, with less than four minutes remaining, but the Bears scored the next five points to hold a 37-31 advantage late in the quarter.
Lincoln Park’s Delvon Byner-Simmons brought the Rails back to within a possession after he knocked down a big three-pointer with less than 10 seconds remaining in the quarter for a 37-34 Roosevelt lead entering the fourth.
The Bears looked primed to pull away early in the fourth after a 7-1 run in the first two and a half minutes, but Lincoln Park refused to go without a fight. Trailing 47-38, the Rails scored the next six points to climb within three points with three minutes left.
The teams traded baskets over the next few minutes, but sloppy Roosevelt play down the stretch allowed Lincoln Park to shorten the gap even further.
Lincoln Park’s Tywan Cage made it 53-50 with a layup with 40 seconds remaining and after a Roosevelt turnover, the junior knocked down a pair of free throws to pull the Rails within one, 53-52.
The Bears averted disaster on the next possession when freshman guard Donnie Corley took a near-turnover and turned it into a Roosevelt layup for a 55-52 lead.
“I’m happy we won, but turnovers we’ve got to clean up,” Cramton said. “That’s why we’ve lost a couple of key games is turning the ball over way too many times. If you do that, you’re just asking to get beat.”
The Rails outscored Roosevelt 35-32 in the second half, but poor shooting from the three-point and free throw lines plagued the visitors and prevented them from getting over the hump.
“I thought we played hard, but we didn’t execute very well,” Tobin said. “When you shoot 3-for-30 from three and 13-for-28 from the line, it doesn’t help.”
The Bears held a significant rebounding advantage throughout the contest with two players in double-figures on the glass and while another had seven.
“In the last six games, five of them we got outrebounded and we lost three of them,” Cramton said. “It comes down to getting more shots and, on the offensive end, it’s all about desire.”
All nine Roosevelt players who saw time on the court scored at least two points and the Bears were led by Stewart with 13 points. The senior also pulled down 11 rebounds.
Damon Singleton had eight points and 13 rebounds, Corley had eight and Cannon, Tyler Thorington and Jacob Lavis each had six.
“Credit to Wyandotte, they played hard and protected their home court,” Tobin said. “I think you see it’s two pretty evenly-matched teams.”
Lincoln Park’s Michael Tillmon-Cornett led all scorers with 17 points to go with seven rebounds and three steals. Cage had 16 points and Byner-Simmons added 11 points and five boards.
The Bears improved to 6-3 in league play on Thursday with a hard-fought 37-34 road victory at Kennedy.
Roosevelt held a 24-20 lead at the half and both offenses stalled in the final two quarters
“We jumped out 8-0 and missed probably a half-dozen layups in the first half and a half-dozen more in the second,” Cramton said. “It’s a big week and we need every league win we can get, but we’ve got to start finishing, especially the easy ones around the basket.”
Divon Robinson led the Bears with 15 points.
Kennedy’s Matt Woloczyk had a solid game in the middle with 18 points on 8-for-10 shooting to go with 10 rebounds.
Roosevelt (9-4, 6-3 DRL) hosted River Rouge on Monday and will begin the second half of its league schedule on Thursday at Lincoln Park.
Jags top Cards
Allen Park secured a spot in the top five on Thursday by defeating its neighboring rival Melvindale 68-51.
The Jags improved to 7-7 overall and 5-4 in league play by outscoring the Cardinals in every quarter.
Tyler Warga led Allen Park with 20 points. Trevor Simms added 15 in the win and Richie Slate chipped in 14.
DaiZoun Oliver led the Cardinals with 12 points.
Allen Park will travel to Trenton on Thursday.
On Tuesday, the Cardinals fell to Carlson 66-53.
Melvindale had one of its highest-scoring quarters of the season in the first and led 20-14 after eight minutes.
The Marauders punched back in the second quarter and outscored the home team 19-7 for a 33-27 halftime lead.
The Cards remained close and trailed by seven, 46-39, entering the fourth quarter, but Carlson would pull away over the final eight minutes for its fourth straight win.
Carlson’s Daton Aaron was nearly unstoppable and led the Marauders with 27 points and six assists.
Kaylyn Erwin had 15 points and eight rebounds in the win while Larnell Tidwell added 12 points and eight boards.
Oliver had 16 points to lead Melvindale in the loss.
Carlson (11-4, 5-4 DRL) will travel to Truman on Thursday while Melvindale (3-11, 2-7 DRL) hosts Kennedy that same night.
LP secures spot
Lincoln Park will enter the second half of the league season sitting in fourth place after a 52-38 victory road victory over Woodhaven on Thursday.
Donnie Stoddard led the Warriors with 18 points and eight rebounds while Brandon Imperati joined him in double figures with 11.
Lincoln Park (6-6, 5-4 DRL) will host Roosevelt on Thursday.
On Tuesday, Woodhaven earned its first league victory of the season with a 59-55 home win over Kennedy.
In a game that consistently remained within a few possessions, the Warriors were paced by four scorers in double-figures.
Stoddard went 9-for-12 from the free throw line and led Woodhaven with 17 points and six rebounds.
Maurice Witherspoon scored 15, Imperati had 14 and Nick Towianski scored 10 in the win.
Andia Marsh led the Eagles with 16 points. Kareth O’Neil scored 12, David Cheeks had nine and Matt Woloszyk had six points and 11 rebounds.
Kennedy (5-8, 2-7 DRL) will travel to Melvindale on Thursday while Woodhaven (3-11, 1-8 DRL) hosts Anderson.
Last Updated: 2/5/2013 1:28:37 PM EST