March 17, 2010
Danville Diary Day 3: Kieon Arkwright
St.Clair County Community College’s Journey to the NJCAA National Tournament
Day 3: Wednesday, March 17, 2010
With No game today it was just a team bonding and remembrance day for the Skippers (but we did have a nice smooth practice today). After our 9 am practice we went to get some fast food and just relaxed back at the hotel until dinner time.
For dinner we went to the best Steak restaurant in Indiana (five minutes away from our hotel in ILL). The food was good and everybody on the team enjoyed a steak. Theres nothing like having a FREE steak dinner! After dinner we came back to the hotel and played NCAA 10 in Brandon Thompson’s room on the XBOX. I think I was the only one who didn’t know how to play so I was the “Cinderella Story” as some might say lol. I got to give it to “B” he good though but he did hit some lucky stuff lol. I got a win under my belt though. We couldn’t play too many game because we had to be in our rooms at 10 pm because we got to get up at 6:15 am for our game against Bismarck St. at 9am.
March 17, 2010
CMU recruit Nate VanArendonck shatters backboard
Tonight, CMU recruit Nate VanArendonck shattered the backboard during Grand Haven’s game versus Rockford in Grandville.
March 17, 2010
Get with the program: MML tryouts set for March 29 in Flint
FLINT, Michigan — Tryouts for the Mid-Michigan Lakers will be held at 7 p.m. on Monday, March 29, at Mott Community College in Flint. The tryouts should last no more than two hours.
The tryouts are $10 and open to all student-athletes ages 14-18. This season, like last, we will be offering three teams: U-15, U-16 and U-17.
The cost for a roster spot is $400 again this season. The cost includes practice time, uniform and at least 6-7 tournaments. Small scholarships have been extended to players in the past who have demonstrated need.
For more information, visit mmlbasketball.com for more information or contact Jared Field at field.jared@gmail.com.
March 16, 2010
Danville Diary Day 2: Kieon Arkwright
St.Clair County Community College’s Journey to the NJCAA National Tournament
Day 2: Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Well, after the First Day of Games the NJCAA tournament was all I thought it would be: tons of scouts and plenty of excitement. All the ranked teams, however ended up losing including us. Monroe (No.1) ended up losing a tough one against Cincinnati State Tech. They had the early game which was 9 a.m., so we weren’t able to go to the game but we watched it on TV since all the games were on some Local channel. We lost our game to Lewis & Clark 70-78. We played great defense but gave up a lot of offensive rebounds and we shot horrible. I didn’t have my best performance today. I just couldn’t get anything going offensively and that hurt my team. Jake Stark however had a good all around game. He finished with 16 points and nine rebounds. Marquis Lee had 13 points, James Betha finished with 13 points and Alan Sharp had 11 points and five rebounds.
March 16, 2010
St. Clair falls in opening round at NJCAA nationals
DANVILLE, Illinois — The Skippers of St. Clair fell in the opening round of the NJCAA nationals this afternoon, 78-70, to Lewis and Clark Community College.
Freshman James Bethea led the Skippers with 15 points. Sophomores Jake Stark and Marquis Lee added 14 and 13 points, respectively.
The Skippers’ undoing was perimeter shooting. They shot 18 percent from 3-point range and their top scorer, Kieon Arkwright, was held to five points. The Skippers’ man in the middle, 6-6 freshman Terrance Keaton, picked up his third foul just 10 minutes in to the game.
The Skippers will play at least one more game in the losers’ bracket.
March 16, 2010
What’s a flagrant foul and what isn’t?
I read this after Saginaw Arthur Hill’s nine-point win over Flint Carman-Ainsworth.
What’s a flagrant and what isn’t?: In the first half, Demondre Chapman got the ball on a breakaway, looking to dunk. Arthur Hill’s Tyler Dwyer caught him from behind, giving a hard foul that sent Chapman sprawling into the wall, causing many in the crowd and on the court to look for a flagrant call. After conferring, the officials deemed it only a personal foul.
In the fourth quarter, Jones got by a defender and was going up for a layup when Chapman made contact trying to stop him. There appeared to be less contact than on the earlier foul on Dwyer, but the foul on Jones was deemed intentional, to the dismay of the Carman-Ainsworth crowd.
Both plays are judgment calls, but the intentional foul continues to be one of the more confusing calls to spectators.
Spectators, and I’m not exempt from this group, are often confused by what calls actually signify. Anyone want to clear this up?
March 15, 2010
Danville Diary Day 1: Kieon Arkwright
St.Clair County Community College’s Journey to the NJCAA National Tournament
Day 1: Monday, March 15, 2010
Leaving at 6 a.m. for Danville (Illinois) was really early and we were going to be on the bus for bout 7.5 hours. Everyone pretty much slept until we reached Indiana where we practiced at IPFW for about an hour. We just pretty much shot around so we could get off the bus and get our legs moving to get away from all the stiffness.
After that hour we headed back on the bus, got food and were on our way back down the road. On the way there we watched film on Lewis & Clark who we play Tuesday at 3 p.m. Everyone seemed so pumped and focused for the big game tomorrow. I was joking on the Bus with Alan Sharp and Marquis Lee about how hard we hard worked to be here and how at the beginning of the season no one really knew about us.
March 13, 2010
Hardwood Hardware: GLH’s 2009-10 Flint-area Awards
After every season, we try to give players around Mid-Michigan some love with our postseason awards. This year, we will hand out awards for the Flint area, the Tri-Cities and Lansing. Flint is first.
Hardwood Hardware: Flint Area Edition
Most Valuable Player: Cody Campbell, senior, Swartz Creek: Campbell led the Dragons in scoring, assists and 3-point shooting percentage (44%). He’s the best ballhandler I’ve ever seen in that league and among the best players. Campbell helped turn a .500 team into a league champion. He led the league in scoring at 17.6 points per game and played several games early on with a broken wrist.
Player of the Year: Demarco Sanders, senior, Flint Powers — This award came down to two players on the same team: Sanders and fellow senior Patrick O’Brien. Sanders gets the nod, however, for emerging as one of the state’s top shooting guards after playing second fiddle for the previous two seasons. The southpaw led the Big Nine in scoring at 19.1 ppg and shot nearly 55% from the floor.
March 13, 2010
Game notes: Buctown back on the March and the shame of fandom
BURTON, Michigan — Eight losses? More like eight good practices.
For Flint Beecher’s coach Mike Williams, the regular season is a dress rehearsal for the big production: The MHSAA class C tournament.
Here’s what he told the Flint Journal after Friday night’s thrilling 46-45 win over rival Flint Hamady:
“We use the regular season as preparation for the tournament,” said Williams. “Nobody remembers our record once we get into the tournament.”
Nope. I’ve already forgotten. This, after all, is Beecher. Williams’ program just wins. It doesn’t really matter who’s wearing the uniform — the Bucs get wins in big games. Color me impressed.
Game notes
– I’d be remiss were I to gloss over what I believe is the worst-case of bad behavior I’ve ever seen at a basketball game, and by an adult no less. No more than 30 seconds after Hamady had lost, in dramatic fashion, its biggest game of the year, a Hamady fan came charging at the team while it was in the hallway in front of the locker rooms. He entered screaming at the team about how they suck, choked and calling them losers. He did the same to the coaching staff. I heard one assistant coach for Hamady respond with “I didn’t choke.” As a basketball fan (and a man, for that matter), I was appalled that his response was in defense of himself and not the team. You don’t belong in coaching, brother. Go find something else to do with your time. And to that fan I have only this: You should be ashamed.
