A quick look at top basketball performances from the first half of the week
Welcome to ‘Run and Gun,’ a quick roundup of recent Washtenaw County boys and girls high school basketball games. Follow the links below for complete reports and boxscores.
Strong finishes are just as important to the ‘Run and Gun’ as quick starts. Unfortunately for the Pioneer boys basketball team, they lacked the former on Tuesday in a 60-52 loss to Detroit Country Day.
TOP SCORERS DEC. 10-13
BOYS
35 - Andrew Khouri (Greenhills) vs. Franklin Road Christian
26 - Michael Smutney (Saline) vs. Dearborn Fordson
21 - Jamal Poplar (Willow Run) vs. Detroit Allen
21 - T.J. O'Bryan (Lincoln) vs. Wayne Memorial
GIRLS
18 - Grace Sauers (Chelsea) vs. Flat Rock
15 - Emma Kill (Dexter) vs. Pinckney
14 - Rachel Ballantyne (Washtenaw Christian) vs. H.A.A.C.H.
The Whitmore Lake girls nearly let a signature win slip away in the fourth quarter, as well, against Morenci on Tuesday, but switched to a seldom-practiced 2-2-1 press at the end of the game to secure a 44-38 victory. The Trojans practiced the defensive formation for all of 15 minutes on Monday and it helped them to their first win since the 2008-2009 season.
Whitmore Lake celebrated a win on its home court, something the Skyline girls had never done until its 65-28 win over Dearborn Heights Robichaud on Tuesday. Anita Vandermeuelen had 16 points in the win, which was more than double the Pioneer girls’ point total in the second half of a 36-27 loss to Belleville.
Vandermeulen wasn’t the only individual outshining entire teams. Andrew Khouri’s 35 points in Greenhills’ 72-61 loss to Franklin Road Christian on Tuesday equaled his entire team’s total from the night before in a loss to East Jackson, and was more than the Washtenaw Christian boys scored in a 40-28 loss to Howell AACH.
The Wildcats’ point total was just slightly less than Calvary Christian’s shooting percentage (29.4) in a 48-36 loss to Rudolf Steiner. The Storm’s Shandy Hunter knew no such woes with a 4-of-7 (57.1 percent) night from beyond the 3-point arc for 12 of his 15 points.
Fifteen points was the same amount that Dexter’s Emma Kill scored in a 61-33 win over Pinckney to help the Dreadnaughts improve to 4-0.
Also still among the undefeated is Dexter’s SEC White division rival, Chelsea, which won 52-31 over Flat Rock behind 18 points, four rebounds and three steals from Grace Sauers.
Sauers’ line probably would have passed for the most balanced from Tuesday night had it not been for Willow Run’s Jamal Poplar having 21 points, eight rebounds and three blocks in a 74-59 loss to Detroit Allen Academy.
-- Jason Idalski and Matt Durr contributed to this article.