CLASS A
One of the best parts of the boys’ basketball finals was the down-to-the-wire finish in the Class A semifinal game which pitted Romulus against Rockford.
Romulus seemed all set to battle with Saginaw for the state title. But Rockford eked out the 62-61 victory, ending the Eagles’ season at 22-4.
The Rams shot 19 of 40 for 47.5 percent. But the Eagles didn’t hit the shots too badly either, going 25 of 52 for 48.1 percent.
Romulus had a whopping 33-18 rebounding edge over Rockford, but the Eagles also had six more turnovers, 13-7.
What especially made the game enchanting was the dramatic ending. There were six timeouts taken in the final minute, three by each team, although it’s not clear if that is a state finals record.
Ivy Johnson hit two free throws with 1:16 left to give a 61-57 lead to Rockford. Romulus went down, missed three shots, and grabbed three rebounds. Aveon Simmons made Rockford pay for the third one: 61-59. Rockford turned the ball over, and Wesley Clark made the Rams pay with a layup with 31 seconds left.
Then came a dramatic final seven seconds of action-packed excitement. Johnson was fouled, missed the first shot while making the second, 62-61. Elbert Matthews tried to throw the ball in for Romulus, but Mitch Caywood got the steal and passed it it to Scott Niodemski, who was fouled with four seconds left. Niodemski missed both free throws, Clark grabbed the rebound, and with three seconds left, the Eagles had one last chance.
Matthews tried a long 3-pointer and missed it as the buzzer sounded.
Two of Romulus’ losses this season were to eventual state champions Lansing Sexton and Saginaw.
“We started out 3-2 after our first five games,” Romulus coach Nate Oats said. “Our seniors started to step up.”
CLASS C
Two teams that broke the hearts of Clare and Ithaca basketball fans faced each other in the Class C semifinals. St. Francis beat Clare 68-52 in the regional finals, while Shelby eliminated Ithaca 63-33 in the regional semifinals. St. Francis prevailed 63-54 in the state semifinals, with Sean Sheldon collecting 16 points and 12 boards.
In the 74-60 loss to Beecher in the title game, St. Francis was down 41-21 at halftime and actually outscored Beecher 33-29 in the final half.
Beecher is the best team in the state in Class C,” said St. Francis coach Keith Haske. “They’re probably as quick as any team we’ve seen.”
ATTENDANCE
For the Class C and D session at the Breslin Center, the announced attendance was 9,227. The attendance for the Class A game was listed at 8,910. The Class B attendance was 8,449.
SEEDING?
Proponents of seeding teams for the state finals ― whether it be the final eight or the final four ― so that the most attractive match-ups are in the title game, will no doubt point to all the blowouts this season and for the boys’ games in particular. Sexton was up 38-10 over Lakeshore by early in the third quarter of the B title game. A Sexton vs. Country Day final would have been more preferable.
Of course, in the 2010 title game, it was Country Day 71, Lansing Sexton 47. So even seeding teams in no guarantee of a close contest.
Saginaw’s 54-42 win over Rockford was the only suspenseful title game in the fourth quarter. Last season, Kalamazoo Central edged Detroit Southeastern 46-42 in the state Class A title game. But the other title games were 75-60, 73-59 and 67-50.
Contrast that with the girls’ state basketball finals, which had games won by one point, four points, and seven points and the argument continues.