Saline lost a 13-point lead, but managed to still pull off a win. Pioneer's Jenny Fichera -- a guard -- had 17 points and 18 rebounds but her team still lost

These stories and more in the Thursday night Washtenaw County high school basketball roundup...

BOYS

SALINE 37, NOVI 35

Saline led 18-8 at halftime and stretched the lead to as much as 13 in the second half against the Wildcats on Thursday. But lat in the fourth quarter, that lead had vanished, with the score tied 32-32

The Hornets went on a 5-0 run and held on to win ints season opener.

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All five points during the late run came from free throws, including Garrett Stark and K.C. Borseth each contributing their only two points of the game.

"That was the most impressive thing," Saline coach Matt Seidl said of how his team kept its composure when things started to get away.

"I thought our kids did a good job taking them out of their sets," Seidl said of Novi, which played a very slow offense. "(Then) we took some bad shots, we lost some of their shooters for the first time all night."

Michael Smutney led the Hornets (1-0) with 11 points.

DEARBORN ADVANCED TECH 96, CENTRAL ACADEMY 92

Central Academy led at halftime 49-45 and held a four-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, but Advanced Tech's Grinnell College System, with a full court press, and constant 3-pointers wore on the Falcons (0-2).

The pace eventually wore down Central's seven-man roster, whose five starters each played about 90 percent of the game, according to Central coach Rushdi Issa.

Foul trouble to seniors Omar Hasan, who scored 32 points, and Luay Shalabi, who scored 18, didn't help.

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"If Omar and Luay had stayed in the whole game, we would've won easily," Issa said.

Issa estimated that Advanced Tech shot 40 3-pointers in the game, finishing with 15 made.

"It's basically just like outdoor basketball," Issa said. "The way you prepare to play this team is to run with them."

ADRIAN MADISON 86, MANCHESTER 69

Adrian Madison, which outscored Manchester 76-14 on two-pointers, used a 32-22 fourth quarter to seal the win.

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Nate Bossory led the Flying Dutchmen (0-2) with 15 points, with five of Manchester's 16 3-pointers. Josh Finley and Matt Kemner each scored 14.

"We played better than we did on Monday," Manchester coach Dave Arnold said. “With a team like Madison, you have to impart your will on them for the entire game, and we’re not there yet."

GIRLS
FATHER GABRIEL RICHARD 43, ANN ARBOR PIONEER 32

Taylor Hinkson scored 12 and Kora Dreffs had eight points and nine rebounds as Richard beat the Pioneers (0-3) for the first time in three years.

“They had a tough night shooting the ball, but any time you beat Pioneer … we’re very happy with the win,” Richard coach Matt Carroll said. “Pioneer’s a really good school, they’re well-coached.”

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Pioneer guard Jenny Fichera led all scorers with 17 points, but no other Pioneer player had more than five. Fichera also had 18 rebounds.

"For her size she does very well," Pioneer coach Crystal Westfield said of Fichera. As for her team's overall play, Westfield kept it simple: they need to shoot the ball better. "This is actually the most points we've scored just really struggling from the field."

Richard improved to 3-0 with the win, but Carroll said his team has been far from perfect.

“I was happy with the outcome, but we weren’t as sharp as we were in the first two games,” Carroll said.

DETROIT COUNTRY DAY 68, HURON 36

Huron’s home opener was a disappointing one, as the River Rats were outscored by at least seven points in each quarter.

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“We did expect to be competitive,” said Huron coach Steve Vinson, whose team’s previous loss was in overtime at defending Class A state champion Inkster. “We weren’t tonight.”

Huron (2-2) had two players score eight points each: Devin Talley and Auzhane King.

“When you lose like that, all phases, everybody from the coaching staff to the players has to accept accountability,” Vinson said.

DEXTER 58, DEARBORN 17

Olivia Volmers led the Dreadnaughts (3-0) with 12 points and ten other players were able to score in Dexter's third straight non-conference win.

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Dexter scored more points in the first quarter (24) than Dearborn did the entire game.

"We just tried to get everybody a lot of playing time tonight," said Dexter coach Mike Bavineau. "Any time you have an opportunity to play there are ways to get better and we didn't play down to the level of an opponent we were better than so that's a positive."

Courtney Wensley led Dearborn with 10 points.

NOVI 45, SALINE 30

Saline’s game was delayed because the referees didn’t show up and replacements needed to be found. Once they did, they made their presence felt.

Britten Clark scored 15 points, including 13-for-14 shooting from the free-throw line, for the Hornets (0-2), who led 21-19 at halftime.

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“Chauncey Billups, maybe,” was Saline coach Jeff Waltz’s reply when asked if he’d ever seen a player make 13 free throws in one game.

“We executed our game plan really flawlessly in the first half,” Waltz said. “For a half, we hung with a team that’s pretty good.”

Part of Saline’s plan included slowing star Novi sophomore Kerri McMahan, who caught fire in the second half and finished with 26.

“At the end of the night, I was proud of our girls for their effort,” Waltz said.

Saline finished 20 of 26 (77 percent) from the free-throw line.

ARBOR PREP 50, YPSILANTI CALVARY CHRISTIAN 8

Three players scored in double-figures for Arbor Prep (3-0), led by Julanna Dukes’ 14. Zakiya Wells had 10 points, six assists and five steals.

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“They really came out fired up,” Arbor Prep coach Rod Wells said of his team. “When they want to, they can play really solid defense.”

WEDNESDAY RESULTS

E.W.M.A. 32, DEARBORN STAR INTERNATIONAL 28

Cornelius Saxton led the Chargers (1-1) with 10 points. (Full stats not available)

-- Compiled by Jason Idalski and Pete Cunningham.