West Bloomfield takes down sixth-ranked Renaissance to reach regional final
It’s not often you see a team that averages nearly 70 points a game exercising a four-corners-style offense throughout the fourth quarter of a regional semifinal.
But that’s exactly what No. 1 ranked West Bloomfield did Monday night in its game against sixth-ranked Detroit Renaissance. Carrying a 14-point advantage into the fourth quarter, coach Darrin McAllister’s team worked on execution in the half court, particularly as it pertained to possessing the ball.
And it worked to perfection, as West Bloomfield limited the Phoenix to just four points over the first seven minutes of the quarter in a 61-48 victory, helping the Lakers into Wednesday night’s regional final against Royal Oak.
“Every game, we’re trying to prepare for a (tight-game) situation,” said McAllister, whose team improved to 23-1 with the victory. “Even at the end of the game, where they were pressing us in the full court. It’s not something we face all the time, and we didn’t execute it very well, but those are the types of things we need to work on moving forward.”
West Bloomfield hasn’t played in all that many close games this season. It finished 10-0 in the Oakland Activities Association Red division and 17 of its wins have been by 40 points or more. Renaissance posed a challenge for the Lakers Monday night, keeping the game close early on and never completely falling out of contention.
Renaissance trailed just 20-16 after one quarter, with five different Phoenix scoring points. Senior Christian Sanders had five in the first and six more in the second, including a 3-pointer as the
first-half buzzer sounded. She finished with a gamehigh 21 points in the loss.
West Bloomfield senior Indya Davis led the way for the Lakers, scoring 18 points in the victory. She scored the first basket of the third quarter and then scored five straight during an 8-0 run over a 2:18 stretch late in the quarter to help her team bump its lead back to 15 points.
Senior Kendall Hendrix scored 10 of her 16 points in the second quarter, while senior Destiny Washington added 13 while hitting five free throws down the stretch to keep the Phoenix at bay. Washington was doing most of the ball handling for the Lakers in the fourth quarter, something she enjoys.
“We were just going with the flow,” Washington said. “We weren’t trying to get a shot, we were just trying to
keep the defense moving. Knowing the big picture, it’s not hard pulling it back out resetting. We were able to work on some things tonight.”
McAllister knows there are some good teams ahead for his Lakers, who won the Division 1 state title in 2022 before falling in the championship game last year.
“They’re a heck of a team,” McAllister said of the Phoenix. “They’re not one of the top five teams in the state for no reason. “We had our hands full, but we did what we needed to do and now it’s on to the next one.”
And next up is Royal Oak, which defeated Grosse Pointe North, 53-48, in the night’s first semifinal. The regional final will tip off at 7 p.m. Wednesday, back at Birmingham Marian High School.