BLOOMFIELD HILLS — Seemingly bound for overtime with fourth-ranked Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, junior Jacob Lamb helped Brother Rice avoid it with his game-winner underneath the basket as time expired to give the No. 3 Warriors a 66-64 victory Friday night.

Trailing by two after Lamb had split a pair of free throws with 32 seconds left, the ball in crunch time went into the hands of senior Isaiah Hines for the Eaglets at a time where they would have normally looked to their star player, Trey McKenney, who remains sidelined with a hand injury suffered in a Jan. 9 loss to IMG Academy.

Hines, though, proved capable in the clutch, as he drove to his right towards the baseline before pulling up and hitting a fallaway jumper over two defenders with just over 15 ticks to go to tie the game.

Brother Rice senior David Williams brought the ball up the floor quickly before meeting resistance and kicked it out to junior Greg Grays, whose 3-pointer from the right wing hit rim and bounced into the air as time ran under six seconds.

Then, as both teams volleyed for possession of the rebound in the paint, it appeared to briefly land in the hands of a St. Mary’s player, but Lamb rushed in from the opposite block, ripped the ball away, and put up an off-balance shot that left his hand with about nine-tenths of a second remaining that went in to win the game and prompt a court storming that engulfed Lamb.

“I mean, it was just everybody crashing, everybody getting to the basket,” said Lamb, who finished with eight points. “My teammates Jeremiah (Coffey) and Trevor (Smith) crashed to get in there, number two (for St. Mary’s) came down with it, but I crashed in there, and I took the ball right from him and put it back up. It’s an amazing feeling.”

His timely finish broke a five-game losing streak to the Eaglets (9-6), including ones that eliminated the Warriors from the playoffs the past two seasons and another in last year’s CHSL Bishop Championship game.

“That wasn’t our prettiest, but we found a way to get it done, and I’m really proud of our guys,” Warriors head coach Rick Palmer said after his team’s 11th win in a row. “They just battled all night. And credit to St. Mary’s, that’s why they’re defending state champs. We know who didn’t play, but their other guys — Sharod (Barnes) made four or five big shots, Zip (Hines) was unbelievable all night — they’re still a really good basketball team with six, seven, eight college athletes and five or six that are going to play college basketball, so we’re really excited we won, we’re playing the right way, and I thought our team basketball tonight worked.”

Regarding the play by Lamb, Palmer added, “We talk about being us, and being us is playing through the whistle through the horn. (Jacob) had two turnovers down the stretch, missed a free throw down the stretch, but Jacob’s maturing a lot as a young man. He couldn’t have made that play after making those mistakes a year ago … That’s just part of growing up and part of the maturity process, and we’ve got a lot of guys that are playing really mature.”

Both Grays and Williams already reached double figures by halftime, at which point Brother Rice led 31-27, but the Warriors began to cook behind that pair coming out of the lockers. Grays knocked down a triple and was fouled on a transition basket that helped the Warriors extend their lead to 16 points with over two minutes to go in the third and looked assuredly on course for victory by some margin.

The absence of McKenney, however, didn’t prevent the Eaglets from eventually striking back. They cut the lead to 11 by the start of the fourth quarter, which saw Barnes take over and score 13 of his team-high 23 points. He connected from the corner and was fouled in front of his team’s bench for a four-point play, then knocked down a step-back 3-pointer that made it a five-point game less than a minute later with 4:45 on the clock.

A conventional three-point play by Jayden Savoury got St. Mary’s to within three with just over three minutes left, then the Eaglets got it to within one when Barnes’ driving bucket dropped in with over a minute remaining, making it 63-62.

“I thought we were really getting in the lane and sharing the ball, but I thought we didn’t handle the end of the game well,” Palmer said. “Listen, they hit some bombs — that and-1 three by Sharod, Zip was good all night — and credit to them, they clawed back like a championship team does. The last minute-and-a-half, we were kind of stalling, kind of weren’t, we weren’t sharp with that, so we’ve got to go back and fix that. Honestly, surprisingly, in the stretch, we haven’t had that many tight games. We haven’t had a lot of guys who’ve played in these types of games, so I think we can grow from this.”

Photo gallery of Brother Rice vs. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s in CHSL boys hoops action

Williams and Grays each knocked down three 3-pointers and finished with 22 and 21 points, respectively.

"We just wanted to come out and win the game, and that's what we did," Grays said. "We prepared for it all week of practice. This was a big game for us. Our student section came out. They did what they're supposed to do and we had to win the game."

Senior Jeremiah Caffey added nine points, including seven in the third quarter, for the Warriors (14-1). Hines ended with 16 points and Savoury added 11 for St. Mary's.

Both teams will host Toledo-based CHSL opponents next. The Warriors get Central Catholic on Tuesday and St. Mary's takes on St. Francis De Sales on Jan. 31.

Lake Orion picked up a 65-46 victory at Birmingham Seaholm Wednesday night in an OAA White matchup originally scheduled for the night before.

Senior Zack Parks commandeered the scoring effort for the Dragons with 28 points. Nathan Giacolone finished with 13 and Ryan Rocheleau added a dozen for LO, also. Charlie Gorcyca had a team-high 17 points for Seaholm (1-12, 1-7) and Evertt Wertz added a dozen as well for the Maples.

With its sixth win in a row, Orion improves to 10-5 overall and 7-1 in the league, sitting just a half-game behind Oxford.

More boys basketball

WALLED LAKE CENTRAL 55, SOUTH LYON 41 >> The Vikings (11-3) made it nine in a row Tuesday night as senior Jake Nellett added to his double-double count with 17 points and 11 rebounds.

ROYAL OAK 43, BERKLEY 37 >> Senior Nick Hofmann, junior Yurem Patino and sophomore CJ Hairston all put up 10 points, and junior Sam Zeller added nine in Tuesday’s win by the Ravens (6-7, 4-5 OAA Blue).

NOVI 52, HOWELL 45 >> Aaron Lauer finished with 16 points and fellow senior Trey Tesorero added 10 to give the Wildcats (10-3, 5-1) their fourth win in a row Tuesday.

LAKELAND 44, WALLED LAKE WESTERN 37 >> Nsikan Usen finished with 14 points and nine rebounds, while Ethan Rowley added eight points as the Eagles (8-6, 5-4 LVC) got back in the win column Tuesday.

Girls Basketball

SOUTH LYON 73, WALLED LAKE CENTRAL 22 >> Senior Izzy Noe scored 22 points and racked up 11 assists, while the Lions also got double-digit scoring out of freshmen Elizabeth Minke (16) and Rylee Miller (13) to improve to 9-1 overall and 5-1 in the LVC on Tuesday.

ORCHARD LAKE ST. MARY’S 58, DEARBORN DIVINE CHILD 37 >> The Eaglets improved to 11-1 Tuesday as Stella Poota knocked down six 3-pointers to finish with a team-high 22 points. Reese Holton had 17 points and seven boards, while Allie Crighton added nine points and eight assists in the road win.

ROYAL OAK SHRINE 50, MADISON HEIGHTS BISHOP FOLEY 25 >> Tess Tillman’s double-double of 24 points and 13 boards helped Shrine to victory Tuesday night. Summer Smith added 10 points and six rebounds for the Knights (6-5).

MILFORD 38, CLIO 16 >> The Mavericks (7-3) stifled the visitors Tuesday night as Ashlyn Lutz scored a game-high 20 points and Maddie Cornett chipped in eight.

ROCHESTER 54, FRASER 43 >> Kiely Robinson paced the winners Tuesday with 24 points, giving the Falcons (7-3) their sixth consecutive win.

Hockey

BIRMINGHAM UNIFIED 5, FARMINGTON UNITED 0 >> Birmingham evened its record to 8-8 on the year Wednesday night behind a pair of goals from Will Bergesen, while Dylan Brand helped the Kings keep a shutout. Michael Beals made 37 saves for Farmington (6-11).

BROTHER RICE 9, PORT HURON NORTHERN 1 >> Drew Morphy scored the game’s first two goals Wednesday night, while Zach Staelgraeve racked up five assists for the Warriors (8-7-1).

Orchard Lake St. Mary’s rebounded from its first defeat of the season a week prior to defeat Farmington Hills Mercy 48-46 at home Tuesday evening.

Allie Crighton carried the scoring load with a game-high 23 points and added five assists and boards each in the Eaglets’ win.

Reese Holton approached a double-double with eight points and 11 boards and Jess Asmussen contributed eight points and five assists as well for St. Mary’s (8-1).

More girls basketball

ROCHETER 52, BIRMINGHAM GROVES 36 >> Alice Max and Kiely Robinson each had 15 points Tuesday for Rochester (5-3), putting Max less than 20 points away from the 1,000-point career milestone. Sophomore guard Harlem Simpson led all scorers with 18 points for Groves (2-7).

MILFORD 48, WATERFORD UNITED 26 >> The Mavericks (6-2) won on the road Tuesday night to jump back above .500 in LVC play. Ashlyn Lutz led the winning charge with 15 points, plus Taylor Vogel and Ryleigh Johnston added eight each for Milford.

BERKLEY 51, NORTH FARMINGTON 25 >> The Bears rebounded from a double-overtime loss to Avondale five days early to improve to 7-3 on the season.

CLARKSTON 51, FERNDALE 39 >> Brooklyn Convert scored 15 points, Elia Morgner had 12 and Bella Flavin had nine in Tuesday’s win for the Wolves (6-5).

SOUTH LYON 34, LAKELAND 31 >> Aubrin Miller scored a team-high 11 points but the Eagles (6-3, 4-1 LVC) dropped a close one on the road Tuesday to the Lions (8-1, 5-1).

ROYAL OAK 59, TROY 47 >> The Ravens (4-4) opened up OAA White play with a victory Tuesday night behind 22 points and nine rebounds from Maddie Lawrence. Lucy Freytag scored 14 points as well in the victory.

SOUTH LYON EAST 53, WALLED LAKE CENTRAL 17 >> The Cougars improved to 3-1 in LVC play Tuesday in part thanks to 12 points from Kaitlyn Therian and 11 by Nyla Lake. The Vikings fell to 0-11 on the year in the loss.

BIRMINGHAM SEAHOLM 49, BLOOMFIELD HILLS 41 >> The Maples improved to 8-2 on the year Tuesday as Addy Flynn had a team-best 17 points and Ella Koosis chipped in 13.

PONTIAC NOTRE DAME PREP 52, REDFORD UNION 15 >> Kaylyn Sowers grabbed a double-double of 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Ellie Whalen added nine points and a handful of boards in Tuesday’s win by the Irish (4-2).

LUTHERAN WESTLAND 49, SOUTHFIELD CHRISTIAN 18 >> Gabby Reis scored a team-high eight points for the Eagles, to fell to 5-3 on the road Tuesday night.

Boys Basketball

WATERFORD MOTT 60, WALLED LAKE WESTERN 47 >> The Corsairs improved to 11-1 on Tuesday as Koby Menyweathers broke the Corsairs’ all-time steals record of 139 previously held by Andrew Hovsepian. He finished with eight in the win over the Warriors (3-7), as well as a team-high 24 points.

FERNDALE 62, BIRMINGHAM GROVES 60 >> The Eagles (4-9, 3-3 OAA Red) held on to score a huge win at home Tuesday night. For the Falcons (9-3, 4-2), Josh Gibson netted 32 points and broke the program’s previous all-time scoring record (1,156 points).

TROY 71, ROCHESTER ADAMS 68 (OT) >> In the Colts’ victory Tuesday night, senior Mason Parker scored a game-high 31 points to become the program’s all-time leading scorer. Andrew Lake finished with 17 points and Leo Penoza also had 14 for Troy’s third win in a row.

MILFORD 60, WATERFORD KETTERING 35 >> Carson Lutz kept up his high-scoring campaign with 31 points Tuesday as the Mavs improved to 8-3 and 5-2 in the LVC.

SOUTHFIELD CHRISTIAN 73, ROEPER 38 >> Levi Taylor poured in 25 points and Marcus Staton added 13 points in Tuesday night’s road victory by the Eagles (10-1). Will Claypool scored a team-high 24 points for the Roughriders (4-5).

PONTIAC NOTRE DAME PREP 62, WALLED LAKE NORTHERN 53 >> Knights junior Jack Cooper led all scorers with 16 points, while the Irish improved to 4-4 on the season with Tuesday’s win.

NOVI 55, CANTON 47 >> Chase LeFevre scored 18 points and Aaron Lauer added 13 as the Wildcats won the fourth game in their last five and jumped to 8-3 on the year.

ROYAL OAK SHRINE 51, MARINE CITY CARDINAL MOONEY 35 >> The Knights (6-6) built up a 20-point lead at the half and held on for their fourth consecutive win Tuesday night.

ROCHESTER 44, ROYAL OAK 39 (OT) >> Luke Lower and Max Muhl each went for 15 points Tuesday night for the Falcons (8-4), who improved to 6-1 in the OAA Blue.

LAKELAND 45, SOUTH LYON 37 >> Usen Nsikan posted another double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Eagles (7-4, 4-2 LVC), who also got 11 points from Hayden Cross and nine from Ethan Row.

MADISON HEIGHTS LAMPHERE 46, BERKLEY 36 >> The Rams improved to 8-3 overall Monday night behind 13 points each from Jack Robinson and Mychael Foster, as well as 11 from Cameron Cross.

BLOOMFIELD HILLS 62, FERNDALE UNIVERSITY 40 >> Carter Canfield canned six 3-pointers and finished with 25 points Tuesday night for the Black Hawks (7-4), who also got 14 points each out of Daron Mason (12 boards) and Carter Hartfield (eight assists).

Most hoops programs are attending team camps in the month of June, trying to get an eye for what they have when things begin to matter five or six months down the road.

Typically, it’s work that builds on the foundation of a program, but doesn’t fundamentally change that foundation.

In that way, Brother Rice did not have your usual June.

What the Warriors had, or thought they had, changed drastically in about a matter of a week that month, maybe less.

“It all kind of happened pretty quickly,” Brother Rice head coach Rick Palmer said.

Last season, Rice won a district championship, then a regional before bowing out with a nine-point defeat to eventual D1 champion Orchard Lake St. Mary’s in the quarterfinals, but Palmer still had a promising group back despite the graduation of Warren Marshall (Oakland) and Luke Salkowski (Denison).

There would be 6-foot-2 senior guard David Williams, who has several offers to keep hooping after this year already. Like Williams, Jeremiah Caffey seemed poised to turn more nights into double-digit production this season as a senior. And Adam Tribul, this year’s lone freshman on the varsity roster, loomed as incoming talent also, just to name a few.

And Palmer believes that, even if only for a sunrise or two, he thought the Warriors may have to-be juniors Elijah Williams and Greg Grays Jr. both within their ranks for 2025 and beyond, too.

Adding Grays, a 6-2 guard who averaged about 25 points as a sophomore last year at Farmington, in June was a massive piece to put alongside Williams, the son of then-Pistons head coach Monty, a top-10 player in the Class of 2026.

But on June 19, the Pistons fired Monty, casting obvious doubts, at the least, over whether the family would remain in Michigan.

They did not. Instead, Monty is now coaching Elijah this year at San Antonio prep school TMI Episcopal.

“I found out when everyone else did and knew pretty quickly after that Elijah and the family would be moving back to San Antonio,” Palmer said. “As good of a player as he is, he’s a great kid, one of the best I’ve ever coached, unbelievable family.”

Palmer called the departure a “big loss,” and said it shook the team, too, with the relationships they had built with the five-star talent. But Palmer emphasized his initial concerns were for his departing player. “I wasn’t worried about our team or me, I was worried about Elijah and (how) he probably found out,” he said. He was on the last day of tryouts for the USA U-18 team. Knowing how big of a day that was for him, and to get that news there (not at) home, in Colorado, my mind instantly went to thinking about him and what he had to go through.

“At one point, I thought we had Greg, (2026 guard Sebastian Thrower, another transfer from New Orleans), and Elijah … it all came really, really fast, but that stuff happens.”

However, Palmer believes that losing multiple players the year prior in John Blackwell (Wisconsin), Curtis Williams Jr. (Georgetown) and Henry Garrity (Notre Dame football) and still putting together a 20-win season, on top of getting further than imagined in the postseason, “kind of proved we had built something that had lasting power.”

With 10 games of evidence from this season, Palmer has tripled down on that sentiment.

In as many outings, the Warriors’ only defeat has been to unbeaten U-D Jesuit, as quality of a loss as anyone could have at this point. As far as the wins, there’s been a few real impressive ones among them, including Warren Lincoln, Warren De La Salle and East Kentwood.

“I think we are ahead of schedule,” Palmer said. “To be honest, if you’d told me we’d be 9-1, I’d probably have taken that back in June.”

Back in the tumultuous offseason, Palmer said that it became apparent that the Warriors, who won some games and got blown off the court in others during the summer, had to play a certain way to compete with the upper-echelon teams. “I think that message got across to the guys, but they’ve also improved a lot,” he said. “Some guys have really worked and developed … But for us, it’s about playing hard, how we have to compete guarding and rebounding, then moving the ball. What type of shots we’re going to get. We don’t have a guy where we throw them the ball and get out of their way. When it’s (a team-oriented approach), we’re really good. When it’s not, we’re not.”

Palmer says the Warriors strayed from the path in that loss to the Cubs, but it proved to be a teaching moment. Since then, the assist-to-turnover ratio and percentage of field goals generated off assists is as high as its been since the former Country Day assistant arrived to take over the Rice program in 2018.

And the list of leading scorers on a game-by-game basis verify Palmer’s approach to the offense. All the aforementioned newcomers or returners have been double-digit scorers at some point this season, as well as 6-8 junior forward Trevor Smith, who’s accruing mid-major D1 offers.

“With the guys we’ve lost in the last two years, to still be 9-1 and in the top-five or top-10 in the polls, it shows a lot about our program being bigger than any one guy,” Palmer said. “I’m just really proud of our guys and our coaches.”

With the Warriors off to a 1-1 start in the Catholic League, Palmer said he’s talked to his coaches about those last few things he believe need refining to take them to the level where they might be competing for the league championship or making another deep playoff run. He wasn’t willing to divulge them in print, but they’ve identified several keys internally.

“We think we’re really good, and to accomplish the main goals, we have to be great,” Palmer said. “Getting to that last step is always the hardest. We have two or three main things to emphasize this week, and coming up we’ve got a six-game stretch that’s as hard as anyone in the state’s going to play.

“If you’re only pretty good in those games, you’re probably going to lose a bunch of them. But our guys aren’t going to be complacent. We’ll still have a chip on our shoulder this whole year. I don’t have to worry about motivating them, though, and that’s a credit to our seniors, and really all our guys.”

Following Tuesday night’s game against Detroit Douglass, the Warriors begin that aforementioned stretch of tough games at Detroit Catholic Central on Friday.

Farmington, Dearborn, Walled Lake Central and L’Anse Creuse North were among the winners on the last day of the North Farmington Holiday Extravaganza on Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024.

CLARKSTON – Nothing could have been a better holiday present for Clarkston than getting a win over one of the top teams in the state, Detroit U-D Jesuit, on its own hardwood last Saturday.

And for at least one half, it seemed totally plausible.

Call it a consolation stocking stuffer then that hanging around with a D1 frontrunner could provide the gift of belief.

“We talked to our guys about that,” Clarkston head coach Tim Wasilk said after the 65-52 defeat, which was just a two-point game midway through. “If we can do it for two quarters, we should be able to do it for four.”

That didn’t necessarily make the loss any easier in the moment.

“The message is that we can play with at team like that,” said Clarkston senior John Kaul, who poured in 24 points just several days prior in a win over West Bloomfield, but finished with only four against the Cubs. “Like me, I’ve got to hit shots. That’s my fault. And we’ve got to take care of the ball. That’s kind of the problem in the second half. It led to them getting ahead, and we couldn’t really get back. It’s hard to come back against a team like that down 10-plus in the fourth.”

It’s that first part, though, that proves the big picture isn’t long amongst players even in the face of immediate disappointment.

In that big picture, Kaul is a major piece of this year’s bunch that began 6-0, the best start for Clarkston since it won a state title back in 2016-17.

With more games like that one against the Lakers, there’s a chance Kaul cracks the program’s top-10 for career 3-pointers made, one that includes Foster Loyer (first with 272), Dugan and Dane Fife, and Waslik himself. He has size around him with 6-foot-6 senior Quinn Rosenberg, who had 15 points himself in that West Bloomfield win, and 6-8 junior Hayden Flavin, who is bound to post a few double-double stat lines before the year is through. There’s production throughout the rest of the lineup as well in Hayden Barrow and Cole Charter (team-high 17 pts. against Jesuit).

There appears to be some nice complementary pieces on the bench developing, too.

“We only lost one game in the summer, two in the fall, so our kids gained a lot of confidence,” Waslik said. “Our six-through-eight guys are sophomore (Ace Walters), freshman (Shane Dasuqi), sophomore (Max Harmon); we didn’t have those guys last year. They’re three new pieces bringing really good minutes.”

Since winning that Class A title, the Wolves have had some good teams, though probably none better than when they went 21-1 before COVID cut their run short of a district championship. They’ve won four in as many years between then and now.

“We’ve had some good teams, and we could have made a run that COVID year, which was tough,” Waslik said. “We’ve had three regionals where, we’ve lost to St. Mary’s right in the last possession, Catholic Central in the last minute, Adams in the last three minutes. We’re right there knocking on the regional door and haven’t been able to break through. We’ve been in those battle, it’s been good, and now we’ve kind of regrouped here.”

Tradition that dates back even further than those district titles continues to fuel these Clarkston players. “That was my childhood, going to those games,” Kaul said. “I think it’s inspirational to all of us. When we were little, seeing those teams going that far, seeing Foster, CJ (Robinson), our assistant coach, and how they played. They’re just an inspiration to us to do the same thing and work hard.”

Photo gallery from Clarkston vs. Detroit U-D Jesuit boys basketball action

There's another more immediate goal Clarkston has in mind as well: a league title. Everyone is well-aware that the last time the Wolves added one to the banner was 2020, the 14th they had won in a row.

"We want more than just a district this year," Kaul said. We want to win the league. We haven’t done that in a while, since I’ve been here. One of our biggest goals is to win the Red."

Wins over Ferndale and West Bloomfield have the Wolves 2-0 to begin their slate of games in the Red. And though it may have spoiled the unbeaten start, last weekend's loss should help prepare them in the long run to try and add a "25" or two to that banner in Dan Fife Fieldhouse.

"Credit to Ferndale, North Farmington, West Bloomfield; there's been some really good teams in the league, and the talent level's been good," Waslik said. "But it's something we've talked about, we'd like to compete for a league title. We know it's gonna be tough, but we think we've got a team that can do it."

ROCHESTER HILLS – When the scoring got going Thursday night, it was Royal Oak Shrine, the smaller team by multiple definitions of size compared to Rochester, that initially had the upper hand.

The Falcons, however, proved to be too much for the D3 visitors, clamping down defensively in the middle quarters to win the non-league contest, 51-26.

“I thought it was good for us,” said Rochester head coach Andrew Topie, whose team rebounded from a three-game losing streak that included defeats to Stoney Creek and Utica Ford with the victory. “Our two guards are sophomores, so giving them that experience against teams that are as physical and as athletic as those teams we just played is invaluable. We can’t simulate that in practice, so getting them out there against teams that play hard, physical defense, it’s really valuable for them.”

While providing experience for the backcourt, it was the bigs that the Falcons leaned on throughout the course of the night to pull away, even if that edge didn’t materialize on the scoreboard at first.

Both teams went scoreless for the first three-and-a-half minutes, then the Falcons opened the scoring, but did little more throughout the rest of the quarter as Tess Tillman’s pair of 3-pointers boosted the Knights to a 10-7 lead after eight minutes.

“We come in here to a big school, and defensively, we tried something different,” Knights head coach Katie Tillman said. “We were trying to front the post and had some help on the back, and we executed that pretty well, at least for the first quarter.”

Eventually, Shrine could no longer deny the Falcons’ pair of six-foot seniors, Kiely Robinson and Alice Max. The latter of the two scored all 16 of her points by halftime, including a dozen in the second quarter, which ended with a wing triple by Marissa Wilkins, followed by a steal leading to a layup by Angela Cichowski (nine points).

Rochester continued to exert its dominance coming out of the break. On one possession, the Falcons seemed to endlessly board their own misses, getting at least six looks back that didn’t fall before finally converting a bucket.

Altogether, Rochester put together 25 points unanswered over a long period that spanned both sides of the interval and allowed just seven in the second and third quarters combined to lead 42-17 entering the fourth.

“It looked like we were playing soccer out there for a minute (laughs), nothing would go in,” Topie said. “We had lids on the basket. But I think we were taking good shots, so it was just a matter of whether they were going to fall or not. Alice really took over in the second quarter when we were struggling and showed why she’s the type of player she is, got us out of that rock … (At halftime) we just told them that the first two minutes (of the third quarter) that we just wanted to extend the lead and didn’t want to let them get back in it.”

Seven of Robinson’s eight points came in that third quarter when the Falcons (2-3) sealed the deal.

Freshman Nora Tillman ended with five points for the Knights (2-4), who next play Memphis on Dec. 27 in the Cardinal Mooney Memorial Holiday Tournament.

Thursday’s matchup was one of first-year head coaches, both of whom played college hoops – Tillman at Madonna, Topie first at Kirtland Community College, then Rochester Christian.

Each have had varying degrees of experience at their respective schools as assistant coaches before taking the leading role this season. They both spoke about how being in the head role differs from the assistant chair.

“I had to sort of come at it carefully, because a lot of them do know me and have played for me many years going back into grade school,” Tillman said. “So to have them hear me in a different voice, a different way, kind of a reset so to speak, that’s been my goal.

Photo gallery of Rochester vs. Royal Oak Shrine in girls basketball action

"I think was more of the good cop last year. You can be the fun assistant. I brought the candy and the music, a lot of fun out. I'm still trying to bring that, too, but I've got different responsibilities now as a head coach. But they seem to be responding well. I've got six seniors who are all-in. They're leading the drive here, hyping it up on the  bench. The scoreboard wasn't in our favor, but we're having fun on the bench, and that's what it's all about."

"It is (different as a head coach)," added Topie. "You have more control. As an assistant, you're kind of behind the scenes, keeping spirits up. As a head coach, you have to get on them a bit more because you have the vision, and hopefully they can meet your expectations. So there's a little bit of a difference, but at the same time, coaching starts with the relationships, and we have to build on those and see where we can go."

The Falcons won't play again until the calendar turns, returning to action Jan. 3 at home against another Catholic League opponent in Bishop Foley.

Royal Oak Shrine won the first quarter, but the rest of the game was all Rochester, who defeated the Knights 51-26 at home Thursday, Dec. 29, 2024.

AUBURN HILLS – Avondale came out on top in Saturday night’s game against Michigan Collegiate that was a tale of two halves.

The Yellow Jackets collected a 76-62 victory, which closed out a day of action on their own hardwood, all part of the Mitten Recruit Winter Invite.

Out of the gates, it was all Avondale, who began the game with a 12-0 advantage. That trend carried on throughout the quarter, which ended with the home side leading 23-5.

As with the opening stanza, six different players scored for the Yellow Jackets in the second quarter, and they took a 39-14 lead into the interval.

In his best offensive output of the early season, senior Jordan Clayton brought it best in that opening half, particularly in the dominant first quarter when he dropped a dozen points alone.

But while Michigan Collegiate paled in comparison offensively up to that point, the second half was a very different showing.

The Cougars (1-1) were primarily powered in the third by senior Jacob Moore and junior Darnell Murphy. Moore knocked down a pair of 3-pointers for 10 in the quarter, while Murphy added seven, all but one of them the free-throw line, helping their team outscore the Yellow Jackets by six, 24-18. Most of that work came in the early portion of the quarter, though, as Avondale poured in nine unanswered near its end, including a long-pull-up jumper sank by junior Ja’Kobe Louris (13 points).

Michigan Collegiate matched that scoring by putting up another 24 in the fourth, though Avondale continued to score enough. Despite the Cougars’ efforts to gamble and force mistakes through pressure, the Yellow Jackets often broke through the trap. That led to a few open shots from the corner that they buried, helping counter Michigan Collegiate’s advantage at the charity stripe – the Cougars went 15 of 23 on free-throw attempts and Avondale made four of six.

Clayton knocked down a pair of triples in that fourth quarter and ended with a game-high 27 points in Avondale’s win.

For the Yellow Jackets (4-2), junior Anthony Burton added nine, and seniors DJ Moody and Justin Greer-Sykes each chipped in eight in the win that improved them to 4-2 on the season.

Avondale head coach Jaret Thomas declined to comment on the win.

Jacob Moore, who scored the full handful of the Cougars’ points in the first quarter, finished with a team-best 23 points. Fifteen of those points came on shots connected from beyond the arc.

Photos from Avondale vs. Michigan Collegiate in boys basketball action

Murphy and Caleb Moore each notched 10 points for Michigan Collegiate in the defeat and Demarion Johnson added nine as well in the defeat.

After Monday's game against River Rouge, the Cougars return to league play Wednesday against Lincoln-King.

The Yellow Jackets are back in action Tuesday at Rochester Adams.