Roundball in the NBA

Taking a look at the pre-season top ranked teams participating in the 21st Annual Motor City Roundball Classic.

Team Page (Team info, Schedule, Results, Stats)

WATERFORD OUR LADY OF THE LAKES (12-13) — The Lakers certainly aren’t here on the strength of their regular season, when they finished fourth (4-6) in the Catholic League’s East Division, and got bounced in the first round of the league playoff bracket.

Nope, the Lakers are here for what they did after that, making an amazing run all the way to MSU’s Breslin Center, before bowing out in the semifinals.

Even better? All five starters — Alex Troy, Megan Ross, Allison Maiorana, Tiffany Senerius and Lucille Kline — return to this season’s squad, which will be boosted by the addition of sophomore transfers Maddy Oshinsky (Walled Lake Central) and Catherine Weddle (Lakeland) and freshman center Sophia Hadash.

The still-young Lakers (three seniors, one junior) will be tested by a very competitive East Division this winter, but don’t count them out from repeating last year’s postseason run, no matter what the regular-season record looks like. - MIPrepZone

Taking a look at the pre-season top ranked teams participating in the 21st Annual Motor City Roundball Classic.

Team Page (Team info, Schedule, Results, Stats)

In 2014-15, Woodhaven was a force to be reckoned with, as it posted a 20-4 record and won both a Downriver League title and a district championship.

The good news for the Warriors, and bad news for everyone else, is that many of the same players are back on the court this winter.

Two of last year’s co-captains will lead the way again in seniors Hailey Leidel and Lyndsay Brennan.

Leidel, who is commited to University of Massachusetts, is one of the state’s best players. She averaged 22 points, 10 rebounds and four steals a game last season and has already surpassed the 1,000-point mark for her career.

Lyndsay Brennan averaged 10 points, five boards and five assists as a guard last season.

Sophomore guard Kennedy Johnson has returned after having played a key role last year, while fellow sophomore guard Breanne Campbell is also wearing purple and white again this year, along with senior guards Summer Patterson and Zatayha Washington, senior forward Alicia Smith and senior center Tahjai Sykes.

Newcomers who Coach Rodney Scharboneau could look to for contributions are sophomore guards Jillian Bonot and Alyssa Laurain, along with junior center Markayla Hickman and junior forward Chloe Watters.

“We’re working really hard, trying to get better every day,” Scharboneau said. “We play some great teams and we know the DRL is going to be very tough, so we are looking forward to the challenge to improve and grow.”

To kick off the new season, the Warriors were scheduled for a trip to Ypsilanti Arbor Prep on Dec. 1. Next up for the squad is a Dec. 8 home game against defending Huron League champion Flat Rock. - MIPrepZone

Taking a look at the pre-season top ranked teams participating in the 21st Annual Motor City Roundball Classic.

Team Page (Team info, Schedule, Results, Stats)

Outlook: The Lady Chargers, led by senior Antoinette Miller and junior Deja Church, are loaded. They can run, jump, defend and kill defenses with their incredible skills. Miller, headed to Cincinnati, averaged 16 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals per game and was all-state, all-area and All-OAA last season. She can get to the basket with ease and is a tenacious defender. Church is being courted by a ton of Division I schools after averaging 14 points, six rebounds, three assists and four steals a game last year. Then there are the twin towers: seniors Taiye and Kehinde Bello. Taiye is 6-feet-3 and averaged a double-double last season — 12 points and 10 rebounds — while chipping in two blocked shots. Kehinde, 6-4, chipped in three points, six rebounds, and four blocked shots and is a defensive stopper who protects the rim. Junior Benjanae Smith is expected to be the fifth starter, and the bench is loaded with Shawna Manning, Xavi Cobb and sophomore Kamryn Collier. - Detroit Free Press

Southfield-Lathrup (21-2, Class A): “We do feel that we’re good enough to get to the Breslin and win it, but we’re limited in numbers right now in terms of depth,” coach Michele Marshall said. “There are some kids I can work with to get that fixed. There is one thing we have to do and that is my big kids who are going somewhere (Church, Miller, Bello twins) have to learn to play this game hard from the very beginning of the ballgame. Slow starts will kill you. We need to have the execution and effort to the level that we expect.” - Detroit News

The Chargers might spend the whole season ranked No. 1, as they’re the odds-on favorites to win the Class A title this season.

“Pretty much, it’s the same thing as last year: Everyone wants to get to the Breslin. That’s just been the goal since preseason, and now the season’s finally started, that’s our main goal,” junior Deja Church said on the first day of practice.

Marian, the team that ousted the Chargers each of the last two seasons, is likely out of the way, but that might not have even mattered to the Chargers, who are still loaded, boasting three Division I signees — Antoinette Miller (Cincinnati) and twins Taiye and Kehinde Bello (Minnesota) — along with the next Division I star, Church.   - MiPrepZone

Taking a look at the pre-season top ranked teams participating in the 21st Annual Motor City Roundball Classic.

Team Page (Team info, Schedule, Results, Stats)

Outlook: The Lady Yellowjackets are the defending Class B champions. Destiny Pitts may be the best junior in the state. She averaged 17 points and five rebounds per game last season and can hurt teams inside and outside. The middle is covered by 6-4 Tyler Bennett, who averaged eight points and nine rebounds a game as a sophomore. If her offensive game expands, forget about it. Senior guard Arika Colbert is a solid defensive player, and 5-7 sophomore Kaela Webb scored a team-high 20 points in the championship game. Maxine Moore and Sheldon Bochenek, a 6-1 junior forward, will be in the rotation. - Detroit Free Press

“My freshman year we lost to Flint Powers in the state quarterfinals and I told Coach O (Frank Orlando) after that game we were going to get a state championship, so I got everybody together and we went at it three times a week during the summer,” said Pitts, a 6-foot junior guard. “We did the same thing this year to make sure we were ready. And, right before basketball season we spent some time in the weight room to make sure we were stronger, too.” - Detroit News

The Yellowjackets won the Class B title last season — maybe a year before everyone expected they’d challenge for one — and return essentially the same cast of players. That group’s led by juniors Destiny Pitts, Tylar Bennett and Sheldon Bochenek, along with sophomores Kaela Webb and Maxine Moore, and should only get better, as they continue to grow together.

The Yellowjackets have won 11 titles, so longtime coach Frank Orlando has some experience preparing a squad to defend a crown..  MiPrepZone