Max & More

The U-17 Mid Michigan Lakers went undefeated at the 2007 MYBA Summer Showcase at Aim High in Lansing on Saturday, besting the U-16 squad's 1-1 mark.

The U-17 squad got the weekend started off right with a decisive 71-49 win over North Farmington.

In what was arguably the Lakers' top individual performance of the season, Tyler Moreland (pictured left) stuffed the stat sheet to the tune of 13 points, seven rebounds, seven steals, five assists and three blocks.

Moreland's performance could not have come at a better time or place, as several division one coaches were in attendance.

Somehow Moreland managed to score while being shadowed by some pretty big fellows in the lane. T-Mo is too young to have that kind of man strength.

Not to be outdone, the Lakers' Devon Weaver (Flint Northwestern) scored nine points, pulled down 13 rebounds and dished out five assists. He also added three blocks and two assists.

Weaver has come from relative obscurity to becoming a bona fide player. If he continues to work on his game, we might be talking about Weaver the swingman this winter.

Aaron Badour (Davison) chipped in with 12 points while Chris Hutton and Max Gover added ten apiece.

In the Lakers' final game of the day, they held on for dear life against Showtime before finally winning by four.

Tyler Moreland led the team in scoring with 16 points, but the top performance of the game came from Hutton who scored 12 points with seven rebounds, four assists and four steals.

Weaver turned in another fantastic performance with nine points, 12 rebounds and a pair of steals.

Demetrius "Meechie" Miller (Flint Central) had every defender Avondale threw at him looking like they were wearing roller skates.

Meechie (right) was absolutely unstoppable on the offensive end, beating his man off the dribble and finishing at the basket with as much touch as any guard in the state (except for DeAndre Upchurch...sorry Meech).

Brian Sheridan (New Lothrop) helped ease the loss of Terrence Keaton with some serious toughness inside for the U-16 Lakers. There isn't another Laker who brings it more consistently that Sheridan.

Everyone involved with the Lakers' should be proud to know that one of our own, Mike Repovz (Lansing Catholic), has accepted a full athletic scholarship to Central Michigan University.

Repovz (left) has already begun a strict weight gain regimen to get ready to play defensive end at the college level.

He will play his senior year at LCC alongside another Laker, Max Gover, who will pass him the ball from his quarterback position--if Reeps is lucky.

Player: (In a photo finish) Tyler Moreland. I've never seen a stat line quite like that in summer ball.

Offensive play: (Tie) Any one of Meechie's drives in transition for two. When he gets to the basket, you know it's cash. AND Russell Hope's long bounce pass to Demarco Sanders in the second half against Avondale.

Dunk: Who knew Courtland Patterson could dunk off two feet? His dunk in the first half against Avondale was N-I-C-E.

Indication that college coaches were watching: The U-17 Lakers' abysmal free throw shooting in the second half against Showtime.

The U-16 Lakers will be meeting in Fenton for a Lake party with Courtland Patterson at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, July 24th.

Bring your suits, towels, sunscreen and an appetite for hot dogs, hamburgers and world-class tubing.

For those of you who don't like the water, there will be ample opportunities to watch from the shore the great Courtland Patterson (left) who will, undoubtedly, leave his mark on Marl Lake.

Patterson, also one of the top young basketball players in the Flint-area, has been reputed to be among only a handful of tubers in the Midwest to perform tricks with the tow rope in his teeth.

"I guess basketball is fine for hobby," said Patterson, the Lakers' second leading scorer in 2007. "But, I'm a tube guy at-heart."

Patterson, normally soft-spoken and modest about his God-given ability to skid across the chop, was feeling his oats in a recent interview with Tubing Illustrated.

"There's nothing to it, really," remarked Patterson, who received the publication's "newcomer of the year" award in 2006. "I just get on that tube and magic happens."

Magic like Patterson's patented "1440 skull crusher" in which he flips his tube four times before landing face first in the wake at 35 miles per hour.

What looks like an embarrassing and painful wipeout to the untrained eye, is actually the culmination of several minutes of strict training.

"I've been working on the '1800' skull crusher lately," he said. "But I don't want to bring that bad boy out until August when I compete at the national tournament at Lake Tahoe."

Even if Patterson saves his best stuff for the judges in Tahoe, you can rest assured that whatever he does on Tuesday will be better than anything you can do.

"Whatever I do on Tuesday will be better than anything you can do," said Patterson. "Don't you know who the (expletive) I am?"

US 23 South to Owen Road exit

Turn right onto Owen road.

Go to the second light.

Turn left onto Jennings road.

Go to the first stop sign.

Turn right onto Bennett Road

Go seven-tenths of a mile.

Turn right into the driveway.

There will be balloons on the mailbox of the right home.

Mott head coach, Steve Schmidt, to speak at Lakers' practice on Friday about playing college ball

Mott Community College head basketball Coach, Steve Schmidt, will be speaking to both Mid-Michigan Lakers squads at practice on Friday, July 18th.

In his 16 years as head basketball coach at Mott, he has won over 400 games, numerous state and regional titles, two national runner-up finishes and two national titles. He has also been named national coach of the year twice.

This past season, Schmidt's Bears went 35-3 on their way to winning the NJCAA national championship.

Over the course of 16 years, Schmidt has sent legions of his players to play at the division one and two level. Just this past season, Schmidt sent all five of his sophomores to play at the next level--four to division one, and one to division two.

He has sent players to the Big Ten, the ACC, the SEC, and the Big East just to name a few.

He played collegiate basketball at the division one level at Central Michigan University in Mt. Pleasant and has since become one of the top coaches in terms of player development at any level.

Most recently, Schmidt's handiwork can be seen in Flint's Kevin Tiggs. The 6-4 Tiggs went from not even playing a full season at Flint Northern to becoming the national player of the year as a sophomore at Mott and a division one athlete.

In short, he knows a thing or two about what it takes to play basketball in college.

Flint has been lucky to have him for so long, but it won't be long before he gets snatched up for a division one gig.

South Bend-- Two of the top sophomores in the Flint-area showed out for the U-16 Mid-Michigan Lakers at the Adidas Midwest Explosion tournament at Notre Dame this weekend.

Terrence Keaton (IAF) led the Lakers with 18 points, 13 rebounds and seven blocks in a 59-50 win over Camp Darryl.

Courtland Patterson (Flint Carman-Ainsworth) turned in his finest performance as a Laker in the same game with 17 points, eight rebounds and two blocks.

The Lakers defeated Tiffany's in the quarterfinals before losing to MBA Select, a South Bend-area squad, in the semifinals.

Demetrius Miller (left) showed flashes of brilliance on Sunday, carving up opposing defenses with his impressive ballhandling.

When the Lakers were nursing a slim lead, the ball usually went to Miller who can dribble the ball through the eye of a needle.

Once Meech gets his shot dropping on a consistent basis, he will be a nice combo guard in the Saginaw Valley.

Everyone connected with the Lakers, coaches, parents, and your humble director, are as proud as we can be of the U-16 boys.

The U-17 Lakers lost to the Indiana Elite, 68-66, before getting their skulls crushed by another IE squad on Saturday.

Ryan Praski (New Lothrop, lower right) was the Lakers' most consistent all-around player. If every player in Lakers' blue could match his intensity and smarts, there aren't too many teams that could beat them.

Lau'ren Jones (Burton Bentley) was also another bright spot for the Lakers. In the opener, Jones scored nine points and dished out four assists.

The Lakers sorely missed having Chris Hutton (Lapeer West) this weekend. Hutton, their leading scorer, would have been the difference in the first game against IE.

The U-17 Lakers' final two games on Sunday were uneventful at best, ugly at worst.

They lost twice by a combined six points to two teams that should have been buried by halftime.

In the final game against Club Indiana, Aaron Badour (Davison) scored 15 points and played tough on the defensive glass.

Patrick Ellison (Burton Bentley) turned in a fine performance on Sunday after a forgettable Saturday at Notre Dame. Ellison scored 26 points in two games and played hard.

The Lakers' Max Gover missed most of both games after being ejected in the early-going of game three.

Terrence Keaton: Keaton (6-5 Flint International Academy) would be the best post player on the Lakers' U-17 team as well. He is all energy on offense and defense and never gives up in the paint. He's never intimidated against taller opponents. Despite a nagging ankle injury, TK was working out on Camp Darryl on Saturday.

Courtland Patterson: Patterson (6-3, Flint Carman-Ainsworth) was out cold in crunch time. Patterson made some huge shots down the stretch against CDBA. His steal and slam in transition was the play of the day. Patterson came up huge against in the Lakers' quarterfinal win over Tiffany's. With Terrence Keaton on the bench with four fouls, Patterson scored six points in less than two minutes to lead the Lakers to the victory.

Danny Thwing: Thwing (6-2 Davison, top left)) is the U-16 Lakers unsung hero. He does everything well, and never takes plays off. Thwing turned in a great performance on Sunday against the MBA Select. The 6-2 combo guard doesn't shy away from playing with the big boys. Thwing and fellow Laker, Kevin Pickens, are the squad's five tool players.

Brian Sheridan: Sheridan (6-4, New Lothrop) is an absolute grinder. He plays bigger than 6-4 in the post with the strength of his trunk. Sheridan always play hard and routinely outrebounds bigger opponents.

Ryan Praski: Praski (6-0 New Lothrop) is Unselfish, hard-nosed and smart. How he managed to pull down seven boards in the Lakers' opening loss to IE is beyond me. The only major problem with Praski's game is his runaway unselfishness. Shoot the ball, RP!

Devon Weaver: D-Weave (6-5 Flint Northwestern) was outstanding in the second half against IE in the opener. He spearheaded the Lakers' comeback. He showed off his inside/outside game and played some spirited defense. Despite the Lakers' poor performance in four games, Weaver had an excellent weekend individually.

Steve Wilmers: Steve Wilmers (6-5, Lapeer East) wasn't able to pick up the slack for Hutton, scoring-wise, but he was the Lakers' best defensive player on both days--blocking shots while defending the wing and, at times, the post. Wilmers has that rare quality of never getting out his game. Even when a game is effectively over, he always looks for his teammates and gives maximum effort. The Lakers' best athlete also had the highlight of the weekend when he put down a lefty slam in the their loss to IE.

Max Gover: Mad Max (6-4, Lansing Catholic) wasn't at his best in the Thunderdome on Saturday, but he still led the team in scoring in both games. Max is arguably the Lakers' most skilled player. When his outside shot isn't falling, he can take his man down low for easy baskets. Like his teammate, Tyler Moreland, Gover can manufacture baskets with the best of them. Unfortunately, Max wasn't around for the Lakers' last two games after being ejected for arguing with an official.

The U-16 and U-17 Lakers squads will be heading south and west to take on some of the top competition in the Midwest at the Adidas Midwest Explosion at Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.

This is an especially important tournament for everyone involved, as it is NCAA certified.

These events are all about exposure, so players must bring their best no matter if the team is getting its head kicked in.

With that in mind, I think it is important that we have everyone there who is able. The only way that can happen, however, is to have the handful of stragglers who have not yet paid their team fee come correct.

As much as I would like to see everyone there, it's not fair to the players who have paid--or to the bankrupt director!

If your name is on this list please bring your money to practice next week so I can get an idea of how many players will be available from each team.

If you can shoot me an email before that to tell me if you will be there for sure, please do so: jfield@flintjournal.com

Players who need a hotel room for Saturday should also let me know in advance. It should not be more than 20 dollars per player.

Dimondale, MI-- The U-17 Lakers did something Sunday that would've seemed impossible just 24 hours before they took the floor against the mighty Michigan Mustangs.

After two disappointing performances on Saturday in pool play, the Lakers bounced back with a tremendous performance against one of the top teams in Michigan.

And sure, the Lakers didn't come away with a victory; but, they proved to everyone that they can play with the big boys.

The Mustangs, after going into halftime knotted at 28, pulled away late to secure a ten point victory--65-55.

The Lakers' super scoring guard, Chris Hutton, threw the most punches Sunday afternoon. The 6-0 junior from Lapeer West scored a game-high 21 points and pulled down seven rebounds.

Hutton has been turning it out as of late and is starting to make a name for himself on the travel circuit.

Norm Oden, the patriarch of the Mustangs, told me last year something that I'll never forget when I asked him about the Arizona-bound Laval Lucas-Perry.

I see the same trait in Hutton. He comes up big in big games, he's a team player and he always plays defense. He's never intimidated.

The Lakers managed to pull to within three points midway through the first half before being hit by a barrage from all over the court.

Select made the most out of numerous second and third chance opportunities en route to a convincing win.

Demetrius Miller scored a team-high 14 points for the Lakers and Kevin Pickens and Carlos Benton added eight points apiece in the loss.

Offensive Player: Chris Hutton - He hit big shot after big shot all game long. Nevermind that he was playing a team full of future D-1 players.

Defensive Player: Mike Repovz - This guy is a workhorse. Repovz held down the paint and refused to let the Mustangs' 6-10 center, Jared Washburn, set up shop down low. Repovz also managed 14 points against the Mustangs' bigs.

Play: Ahmad Cheers' floater in the lane late in the second half over Washburn.

Offensive Player: Demetrius Miller (above left) - The slinky sophomore guard from Flint Central showed a nice burst and, as always, proved to be an excellent finisher at the basket.

Defensive Player: The running clock. It was the only thing that kept Select under the century mark.

Play: Carlos Benton's "Crateresque" pass off the dribble from half-court for two.

After losing by one to the Michigan Wolves, coach Pope's team proved that it understood what it takes to win close games pulling away from OAA Select, 66-57.

In the first half, the two teams went back and forth, but the Lakers never panicked and played for every possession. After Terrance Keaton fell into early foul trouble, Courtland Patterson came off the bench to take over with twelve-first half points, including a nice one-handed dunk in transition. He would finish with 22 points, twelve rebounds and three steals.

In the second half, Patterson took a backseat to Carlos Benton. Benton punished OAA Select from all over the floor accounting for 18 points, four rebounds, four assists and two blocks.

After two rough games in which the U-17s faced teams with some unsigned seniors, the Lakers put on a clinic against the Michigan Express, 78-35.

Five would score in double figures. Tyler Moreland led with 19 points. Max Gover, Mike Repovz, Devon Weaver and Chris Hutton chipped in 14, 13, 13 and 11.

This time around it looked as if coach Matheson's bunch was going to make a go of it. It was a scrappy game and quite frankly one of the ugliest halves of basketball I have ever seen, but the Lakers managed to stay in it for most of the first half.

Then a technical foul, followed by another, gave Team Detroit some breathing room and the Lakers a punch in the gut.

The game just continued to get uglier for the Lakers as no one scored over ten points. Max Gover, Chris Hutton, Tyler Moreland and Aaron Badour all finished with eight points.

After a tough one-point loss, the Lakers made a big statement against the Pride.

Courtland Patterson led with 15 points, while Terrance Keaton and Demetrius Miller contributed 14 and 12 points respectively.

Dimondale, MI-- The hits just keep coming for the U-17 Lakers as they drop game one, 82-64.

Things started out well in the opener at Aim High against the Michigan Ballers as the undersized Lakers came out swinging. An early collision sidelined point guard Tyler Moreland for the first half, but the exceptional play of their post picked up the slack.

Despite giving up a few inches to the taller Ballers, Aaron Badour and Devon Weaver combined for 14-first half points. Weaver had the play of the game when he stripped the Ballers' Bernard King at half-court and went the other way for a nasty one-hander. At the half, it was the Lakers up, 41-35.

The second half started out ugly as the Lakers were unable to score in the first few minutes, while the Ballers couldn't seem to miss. After giving up the lead, the Lakers' Moreland returned to spark some life on back-to-back lay-ups.

Unfortunately that spark was quickly extinguished as the Ballers continued to go to their size advantage inside, while their guards continued to connect from deep.

Max Gover led the Lakers with 16 points and nine rebounds. Tyler Moreland and Chris Hutton added twelve and eleven respectively.

The perimeter attack of Daniel Thwing, Joe Blanchett and Russell Hope allowed the Lakers to come out with an early lead, but as the game progressed poor decision-making allowed their Michigan Wolves to get back in the game.

The Lakers after too long found themselves down by ten, but a surge from Courtland Patterson and Torey LaFerney brought the game within contention.

A game of free throws ensued and the Lakers found themselves on the losing side with a final score of 71-72.

Russell Hope led all scorers with 27 points. Brian Sheridan contributed 19 and Terrance Keaton 14.

Fort Wayne, IN-- The U-17 Lakers, coming off their silver division championship at the Bankhoops tournament last weekend, entered the Run-n-slam Memorial Shootout with some bit of momentum and a great deal of wonder.

For now, they are better; but, the U-17 Lakers proved good enough compete with some of the top talent in the Midwest.

Coach Miller has a better way of putting it: The Lakers are better than they are playing, and not as good as they think.

The boys lost in the opener Friday night to the larger frontline of Tiffany's, 54-50, in what turned out to be a lackluster performance for most of the game.

Tyler Moreland and Chris Hutton scored 43 of the Lakers' 50 points and Steve Wilmers' 13 rebounds were two less than the entire team could muster. Mix in a paltry four total team assists and you have yourself a bad loss.

The first game on Saturday pitted the Lakers' slight post against an even bigger team--the Wisconsin Blaze. The Lakers were resilient all game in

what turned out to be a shootout victory, 86-81.

Chris Hutton (above) scored 21 points to lead the Lakers. Max Gover added 18 and Tyler Moreland, in his best game of the tournament, had 11 points, four assists, three rebounds, a steal and a block.

The Lakers lost a barn-burner in the finale to the Michigan Elite, 66-65. Tyler Moreland, inexplicably, was whistled for a hand-check in the backcourt with under 20 seconds left. That call proved to be the game winner.

Moreland led the way with 19 points and Max Gover added 13 points, seven rebounds and three steals.

Offensive player: Chris Hutton: West's best averaged nearly 17 points per game to lead the Lakers on offense. Hutton made several tough shots in crunch time to prove to his teammates that he has the moxy to compete against anyone.

Defensive player: Lau'ren Jones: Ren played Cavalier-style defense in all three games and finally wrestled this distinction away from Tyler Wilson and Ahmad Cheers--if only for the weekend. Jones showed quick hands and a lot of effort in all three games.

Play: Lau'ren Jones' two free throws in crunch time against Wisconsin to seal the win.

Individual effort: Steve Wilmers' 13 boards against Tiffany's in the opener.

In the weight room: Tyler Wilson (left): TW put the Lakers (especially D-Weave) to shame in the weight room. Wilson was doing reps at 225 like it was 135. Chris Hutton turned some heads as well, proving that he is, indeed, stronger than Ahmad Cheers.

Max Gover and Tyler Moreland lead U-17 Lakers to silver division championship at Bankhoops tourney

Three Rivers, MI-- What do you do with a 6-4 kid who can handle the ball, shoot the three, defend the post and rebound?

The U-17 Lakers leaned on their do-it-all junior from Lansing Catholic Central en route to a convincing 76-62 victory over the Macomb County Cougars in the silver division championship game on Sunday in Three Rivers.

Gover scored had 20 points, eight rebounds, and three assists on his way to earning all-tournament honors. For the tournament, Gover averaged better than 15 points per contest.

Even so, Mad Max played second fiddle in the scoring column to the Lakers' basket factory, Tyler Moreland. The slick 6-2 guard averaged just under 20 points per game and played team basketball throughout.

It was a balanced team effort in the final. Chris Hutton scored 13 points and Ahmad Cheers and Steve Wilmers added ten apiece.

Max and Moreland combined for 40 points in the Lakers semifinal victory over the West Michigan Warriors.

Player: Mad Max Gover - Gover did it all for the Lakers, and he has the hardware to prove it.

Play: Chris Hutton's steal and assist to Tyler Moreland for two in crunch time in the semifinal.

Effort: Mike Repovz for his body of work in the paint. After each and every game, this guy looks like he's gone 12 rounds with Butterbean.

Chris Hutton (right) - Chris was a consistent scorer all weekend including 23 versus Kalamazoo Courthouse. Even so, Hutton needs to be more aggressive attacking the basket. He is and excellent finisher and free throw shooter, so driving to the basket more often should pay dividends. He is a spot-up 3-point marksman who is wicked good from long range when he gets his feet set. He needs to be ready to shoot at all times (feet set and squared up), however, if he wants to eliminate some of his bad misses. Needless to say, the real Chris Hutton showed up this weekend.

Max Gover - Mad Max did it all for the Lakers on Sunday. He shot the ball well from mid-range and out and handled the ball with precision. His decision-making with the ball is improving every week. The biggest stride, perhaps, for Gover this weekend was mental. Gover has the uncanny ability to take himself out of his own game. For the most part, Max played his game and didn't get down on himself for mistakes.

Tyler Moreland - Struggled mightily with his outside shooting this weekend, but was relentless attacking the basket. Moreland is a scorer's scorer, but played unselfishly all weekend. Moreland sets the standard for toughness for the Lakers. His ability to finish in traffic with bumps in the lane is off the charts.

Ahmad Cheers - Excellent defense, as always. Ahmad scored ten points in the final game, but it could have been more. Cheers still plays at just a tick below light speed on offense and, in so doing, misses shots in the lane that he should make. AC just needs to go to finishing school. His ballhandling is much improved but his passing on the move still leaves something to be desired.

Steve Wilmers (left) - Mr. Consistency was rock solid this weekend. Wilmers even showed off his ability to shoot from deep with numerous 3-point bombs. Wilmers needs to show off his athletic ability more than he does, however. He's the best athlete we've got, and folks need to know it. Finally, he needs to concentrate on keeping his head up in transition and when driving to the basket.

Mike Repovz - The "repo man" was a workhouse in the post and, without the services of Patrick Ellison, we had to have him in there quite a bit. Mike rebounded well and played tough defense on some taller opponents. His biggest issue, right now, is defense. He is strong when defending opponents with their backs to the basket, but he needs quicker feet to defend players face-up. Mike is still nursing a nagging knee injury (say that five times fast) so that should come with time.

Devon Weaver - Devon has the energy and even the touch to be a very nice forward for the Lakers. His development as a player, however, is being stunted by his slender build. Once D-Weave hits the weights and works the kinks out of his two-handed shot, he will be a tremendous asset to the Wildcats at Northwestern. He is very athletic, so he is already ahead of the game where that is concerned.

Lau'ren Jones - It's all mental for Lau'ren. He has a lot of the tools to be a solid player, but he gets in his own way too often by making mental mistakes with the ball. His lack of physical strength is evident on drives to the basket. CONFIDENCE.

Three Rivers--It was just that close. Take away a turnover here, and a missed free throw there, and it's a different story. After a 1-2 performance in pool play, the Lakers missed out on the gold division by a single point.

The U-17 Lakers, after defeating Common Bond-Cain in their first game at the Camp Darryl Classic, dropped their final two games in pool play to Kalamazoo Courthouse (82-80) and the West Michigan Lakers (82-66). The Lakers earned a bye in the first round and will play Sunday at 2:30.

The most stupefying moment of the afternoon came near the end of the game versus Kalamazoo. Down by two with less than 30 seconds to go, the Lakers had the ball with a chance to tie.

But, due to the grossly incompetent officiating crew, Kalamazoo had a whopping SIX fouls to give!! In the end, time ran out on the Lakers without a shot going up.

For those of you doing the math at home, that's one foul called against Kalamazoo in nearly 16 minutes.

Moreland averaged 18 points per game including 21 in a scrimmage against Sean Romsek and Camp Darryl.

Cheers had Sean Romsek, one of the top players at the tournament, in a straight-jacket. Romsek never scored on Cheers--not even a free throw.

Offensive play: Steve Wilmers' tip-dunk off of a blown lay-up...err...alley-oop from Chris Hutton.

Defensive play: Devon Weaver's beat down block of Camp Darryl's Adrian Ledesma.

Effort: Ryan Praski's 11 second half points won the game for the Lakers against Common Bond in crunch time.

--Mad Max Gover can play with anyone. Gover scored 20 points on the West Michigan Lakers, arguably the tournament's best team. Mad Max didn't let his emotions get the best of him after a tough first half. In the second half the 6-4 small forward was out cold.

--Mike Repovz has a eight foot set-shot. You are hard, Repo man. I haven't seen a shot like that since George Mikan.

--Ahmad Cheers may have just wrestled the title of best Laker defender away from Tyler Wilson after his performance against Camp Darryl.

Detroit--The U-17 Mid-Michigan Lakers finished second in the 8th annual R & G All Stars tournament in Detroit Sunday.

The Lakers defeated the host R & G All Stars in the semifinals before bowing out to Team Detroit in the championship, 41-32.

Eight points in eighteen minutes wouldn't get the job done against Team Deckerville let alone Team Detroit.

Even so, the Lakers managed to outscore Team Detroit in the second half behind a couple gritty performances from Chris Hutton and Max Gover; but, in the end, the first half deficit was too great to overcome.

The battle was lost in the trenches for the Lakers as Detroit's bigger and more athletic post dominated the glass and cashed in on numerous second chance opportunities.

Lapeer West's Chris Hutton led the Lakers with 11 points and LCC's Max Gover added seven.

In the semis against R & G, Tyler Moreland (Flint Powers) led the Lakers with 12 points, four rebounds and two steals. Ahmad Cheers (Flint C-A) had 11 points and Mad Max Gover (LCC) added eight points and six rebounds.