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EAST LANSING — The four high school boys basketball champions have been crowned.
East Lansing dominated Wayne Memorial 66-46 in the Division 1 championship, Warren Lincoln came back to beat Romulus Summit Academy North 58-51 in the Division 2 championship, Riverview Gabriel Richard beat Arts and Technology Academy of Pontiac 79-63 in the Division 3 championship and Wyoming Tri-unity Christian topped Fowler 49-32 in the Division 4 championship.
More: Michigan high school basketball: Wyoming Tri-unity Christian legend Mark Keeler ends on top
Here were the top performers in each of the four boys basketball championships on Saturday at Breslin Center.
Cameron Hutson: Hutson led East Lansing with 20 points and seven rebounds, including a personal 7-0 run to give East Lansing its first lead in the second quarter.
"We had an emphasis on getting to the basket," Hutson said. "I liked my matchup so I was just being aggressive getting to the bucket, and I made a couple of layups."
Kingston Thomas: The sophomore East Lansing forward continued his coming out party at Breslin with a 19-point, 12-rebound performance, which featured a 10-point second quarter.
"It was a crazy moment, especially on the Breslin and the court I grew up on," Thomas said. "It's just amazing to be able to do my thing on that court, whatever I do. If it's a double-double with assists, a double-double with rebounds, it doesn't matter. It's just amazing to be able to come out here and get a win."
KJ Torbert: Torbert frequently showed off his athleticism with acrobatic finishes around the rim. Torbert had 16 points, four rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
"That's kind of our game," Torbert said. "When one of us gets a rebound, we are always told to run the floor and that's how we get easy looks in transition."
Carlos Medlock Jr.: Medlock helped Wayne Memorial get off to a fast start with 10 first-quarter points, including a pair of off-the-dribble deep 3-pointers, but finished with 14 points because of East Lansing's increased defensive intensity.
"They played a lot of good defense," Medlock said. "We just weren't executing our offense, it wasn't really anything special. We see that all year. It's just we weren't executing our offense at all today."
Markus Blackwell: Blackwell led Warren Lincoln with 13 points, including a late runner and pair of free throws to ice the game.
"When we went down in the third quarter, coach kind of told us that we got to pick it up and finish it off," Blackwell said. "We wanted our legacy, our last game to go out and be a win."
Geon Hutchins: Hutchins, an Oak Park transfer, finished his high school career with a ring. He had 12 points and nine rebounds, including one on the final possession to close it out.
"When I came over here, this was the whole goal for me, to go back-to-back," Hutchins said. "They welcomed me and this whole season we fought hard and we won."
Andrew Ashwood: Ashwood, a senior, led Romulus Summit Academy with 11 points and did most of his damage playing as a big man inside the paint despite normally playing guard.
"I didn't want to go out like that with (my teammates)," Ashwood said. "I wanted to make them proud. We came up short so it just hurts."
Charles Kage: The senior big man for Riverview Gabriel Richard was nearly perfect from the floor, shooting 7-of-8 with four free throws on four attempts, to finish with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
"I knew I had the size advantage over them so I knew I had to take that and use it to my advantage," Kage said. "i just knew my last game in my high school career, I had to go out with a bang."
Drew Everingham: Everingham got hot early with nine points during the opening 10 minutes as Gabriel Richard ripped off a 12-0 run to take control. The senior forward had 16 points and 11 rebounds, including the game-sealing dunk.
"It was amazing," Everingham said. "It was a huge momentum boost for our team. I love dunking."
Lewis Lovejoy: Lovejoy was the only A&T Academy of Pontiac player with a field goal until three minutes left in the second quarter. The freshman point guard finished with a game-high 21 points and eight rebounds.
"We tried to get back into the game," Lovejoy said. "I'm trying to do my part but we came up short."
Keaton Blanker: Blanker served as the floor general for Tri-unity Christian and had 12 points, five rebounds, five assists and four steals. He finished his high school career with consecutive championships.
"I would say I'm a very blessed young kid," Blanker said. "I think it was a statement we made and I'm very happy with the guys, the team, the chemistry, the bond that we built. It's a brotherhood."
Noah Silverton: Silverton had two layups in transition and a 3-pointer during a 13-2 Tri-unity Christian second quarter run to seize control of the game. Silverton had 11 points, two rebounds and two steals.
"We just penetrated and found our open people," Silverton said. "I trust whoever is making shots. We work in practice every day so I trust them, It was very big for us. It gave is the energy we needed to putt out the game."
Jacob Halfmann: The senior guard was the only Fowler player to finish in double digits, with 11 points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals.
"We have so much support from our community," Halfmann said, And in the game, just looking up and seeing them cheer for us, they are always reaching out, it means everything."
Jared Ramsey is a sports reporter for the Detroit Free Press. Follow Jared on X or Bluesky, and email him at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Standout players in Division 1-4 boys basketball state title games
Continue reading...
East Lansing dominated Wayne Memorial 66-46 in the Division 1 championship, Warren Lincoln came back to beat Romulus Summit Academy North 58-51 in the Division 2 championship, Riverview Gabriel Richard beat Arts and Technology Academy of Pontiac 79-63 in the Division 3 championship and Wyoming Tri-unity Christian topped Fowler 49-32 in the Division 4 championship.
More: Michigan high school basketball: Wyoming Tri-unity Christian legend Mark Keeler ends on top
Here were the top performers in each of the four boys basketball championships on Saturday at Breslin Center.
Division 1 championship top performers
Cameron Hutson: Hutson led East Lansing with 20 points and seven rebounds, including a personal 7-0 run to give East Lansing its first lead in the second quarter.
"We had an emphasis on getting to the basket," Hutson said. "I liked my matchup so I was just being aggressive getting to the bucket, and I made a couple of layups."
Kingston Thomas: The sophomore East Lansing forward continued his coming out party at Breslin with a 19-point, 12-rebound performance, which featured a 10-point second quarter.
"It was a crazy moment, especially on the Breslin and the court I grew up on," Thomas said. "It's just amazing to be able to do my thing on that court, whatever I do. If it's a double-double with assists, a double-double with rebounds, it doesn't matter. It's just amazing to be able to come out here and get a win."
KJ Torbert: Torbert frequently showed off his athleticism with acrobatic finishes around the rim. Torbert had 16 points, four rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
"That's kind of our game," Torbert said. "When one of us gets a rebound, we are always told to run the floor and that's how we get easy looks in transition."
Carlos Medlock Jr.: Medlock helped Wayne Memorial get off to a fast start with 10 first-quarter points, including a pair of off-the-dribble deep 3-pointers, but finished with 14 points because of East Lansing's increased defensive intensity.
"They played a lot of good defense," Medlock said. "We just weren't executing our offense, it wasn't really anything special. We see that all year. It's just we weren't executing our offense at all today."
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Division 2 title top performers
Markus Blackwell: Blackwell led Warren Lincoln with 13 points, including a late runner and pair of free throws to ice the game.
"When we went down in the third quarter, coach kind of told us that we got to pick it up and finish it off," Blackwell said. "We wanted our legacy, our last game to go out and be a win."
Geon Hutchins: Hutchins, an Oak Park transfer, finished his high school career with a ring. He had 12 points and nine rebounds, including one on the final possession to close it out.
"When I came over here, this was the whole goal for me, to go back-to-back," Hutchins said. "They welcomed me and this whole season we fought hard and we won."
Andrew Ashwood: Ashwood, a senior, led Romulus Summit Academy with 11 points and did most of his damage playing as a big man inside the paint despite normally playing guard.
"I didn't want to go out like that with (my teammates)," Ashwood said. "I wanted to make them proud. We came up short so it just hurts."
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Division 3 title top performers
Charles Kage: The senior big man for Riverview Gabriel Richard was nearly perfect from the floor, shooting 7-of-8 with four free throws on four attempts, to finish with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
"I knew I had the size advantage over them so I knew I had to take that and use it to my advantage," Kage said. "i just knew my last game in my high school career, I had to go out with a bang."
Drew Everingham: Everingham got hot early with nine points during the opening 10 minutes as Gabriel Richard ripped off a 12-0 run to take control. The senior forward had 16 points and 11 rebounds, including the game-sealing dunk.
"It was amazing," Everingham said. "It was a huge momentum boost for our team. I love dunking."
Lewis Lovejoy: Lovejoy was the only A&T Academy of Pontiac player with a field goal until three minutes left in the second quarter. The freshman point guard finished with a game-high 21 points and eight rebounds.
"We tried to get back into the game," Lovejoy said. "I'm trying to do my part but we came up short."
Division 4 title top performers
Keaton Blanker: Blanker served as the floor general for Tri-unity Christian and had 12 points, five rebounds, five assists and four steals. He finished his high school career with consecutive championships.
"I would say I'm a very blessed young kid," Blanker said. "I think it was a statement we made and I'm very happy with the guys, the team, the chemistry, the bond that we built. It's a brotherhood."
Noah Silverton: Silverton had two layups in transition and a 3-pointer during a 13-2 Tri-unity Christian second quarter run to seize control of the game. Silverton had 11 points, two rebounds and two steals.
"We just penetrated and found our open people," Silverton said. "I trust whoever is making shots. We work in practice every day so I trust them, It was very big for us. It gave is the energy we needed to putt out the game."
Jacob Halfmann: The senior guard was the only Fowler player to finish in double digits, with 11 points, three rebounds, three assists and three steals.
"We have so much support from our community," Halfmann said, And in the game, just looking up and seeing them cheer for us, they are always reaching out, it means everything."
Jared Ramsey is a sports reporter for the Detroit Free Press. Follow Jared on X or Bluesky, and email him at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Standout players in Division 1-4 boys basketball state title games
Continue reading...
