Morrice vs. Portland St. Patrick – – MHSAA Boys District – – First Round – – The Bleacher Denizen – – March 7, 2022 – – by Chuck Krafft

Tonight, after a productive early afternoon in the music studio, the Bleacher Denizen is off to Fowler to cover the first night of the Boys’ District Tournament in Fowler! While the videos we worked on today are not ready for You Tube, I hope you will enjoy this one!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ol3R-ZL9568

Tonight, in the first game, the Morrice Orioles will take on the Shamrocks from Portland St. Patrick.

The Orioles enter the game with a 4-13 record; they are a member of the Genesee Athletic Conference – – Blue Division. Coach Brad Long shared this information about his players.

Aaron Davis runs the point; he has a solid three point shot; he is also a threat to drive and finish at the basket. He rebounds and defends his position well. Todd Nanasy is a good three point shooter who defends and rebounds well at the shooting guard position. Travis Farrow is strong at slashing to the basket; he also defends and rebounds well. Brandon Buchanan is a fine rebounder who can score inside or out on the perimeter.

Jonah Mosher is a good defender and rebounder in the post. Drew McGowan is a strong rebounder and scores will in the paint. Brett McGowan is an athletic big guy who is very mobile and can score inside or from the three point line. Luke Dutcher is a fine perimeter defender who brings a lot of energy to the Orioles and slashes well to the basket. Travis Smith, Caden Binkley and C.J. Chapko have been promoted to the varsity for the tournament.

Portland St. Patrick has a 2-17 record as they faced many larger schools in the rugged Central Michigan Athletic Conference.

Shane Cook, the Shamrocks most experienced varsity player, is a fine athlete who is really versatile and can defend in the post or on the perimeter. He can score from the outside and he is difficult to stop when he slashes to the basket. Brayden Simon is a freshman, who is a fine athlete and plays varsity in at least three sports. In fact, he was on the Shamrock’s District-winning baseball team and started as an eight grader last year. He has an excellent three point shot, is a solid defender and can slash to the basket.

Cole Kinsman, who runs the point for the Shamrocks, is a strong defender and ball handler. Derec Fedewa is athletic and can score with an accurate jumper or on slashes to the basket. Alex Fedewa defends and rebounds well in the post. He can slash to the basket and can also get hot from the three point line. Braxton Teachworth is one of the finest jumpers and quickest jumpers I have seen this year. He is able to block a lot of shots and is able to rebound and get back up quickly for putbacks.

Payton Russman is a fine perimeter defender who attacks the basket with no fear. Landon Simpson handles the ball well and defends with energy on the perimeter. Kyle Edlund contributes in practice when he is not doing a stellar job for the Shamrock bowling team. He works on defense. Tyler Groothuis has been promoted to the varsity for the tournament.

It is now time to look at the events of this game through the grizzled lenses of a Bleacher Denizen, who does not scare many grizzly bears. (We will avoid the stories of the Bleacher Denizen wearing an improvised ghost costume to Yellowstone. – – – Let’s just say that at least some grizzlies aren’t as easy to scare as you might think!)

Morrice wins the opening tap. Shane Cook knocks the ball away from the Orioles, but they are able to recover. Todd Nanasy passes to Aaron Davis, who hits a three point shot from the wing to give Morrice the first three points of the game. St. Patrick misses a jump shot; Braxton Teachworth pulls down the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick (a player, not the saint, himself, is fouled on a layup, but misses two free throws.

Braxton Teachworth knocks the ball away from Morrice, but Jonah Mosher recovers the ball for the Orioles. Travis Farrow tosses the ball to Aaron Davis, who throws in a threeball from the corner to give the Orioles a 6-0 lead.

Jonah Mosher blocks a Shamrock layup. Derec Fedewa knocks the ball away from Morrice, but the Orioles are able to recover. Brayden Simon steals the ball for the Shamrocks. Brandon Buchanan blocks a St. Patrick shot. The Shamrocks recover and miss a layup. Braxton Teachworth gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick is fouled on a layup, but misses two free throws. With 5:29 to play in the first quarter, Morrice has a 6-0 lead.

Brayden Simon steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misfires on a threeball from the corner; Braxton Teachworth hits a putback to give St. Patrick its first two points. Morrice misses a three pointer from the corner. St. Patrick misfires on a jumper from the free throw elbow. Morrice misses a twelve foot shot in the lane. Todd Nanasy’s persistent defense causes a Shamrock traveling violation. Brayden Simon steals the ball for the Shamrocks; he passes to Alex Fedewa, who hits a three point shot from the corner to cut the Morrice lead to 6-5.

Shane Cook blocks an Oriole layup; the ball goes out of bounds and Morrice gets another opportunity. Morrice misses a threeball from the wing. Todd Nanasy pulls down the offensive rebound for the Orioles. Morrice travels with the ball. (Basketball cliches are interesting; I wonder how newsworthy it would be to travel without the ball.) Shane Cook gets into the lane and hits a fourteen foot jumper for St. Patrick. Brandon Buchanan passes to Brett McGowan, who hits a layup to give Morrice an 8-7 lead.

St. Patrick turns the ball over. Morrice reciprocates and turns the ball over. St. Patrick misses a twelve foot banked shot from the side. Morrice misfires on a threeball from the top of the key. St. Patrick misfires on a threeball from the wing; the rebound goes out of bounds and Morrice takes possession. Morrice misses a three point shot from the side. Brayden Simon and Shane Cook manage to save the rebound for the Shamrocks.

Aaron Davis steals the ball for Morrice. Morrice misses a fast break layup. Jonah Mosher knocks the ball away from St. Patrick and Luke Dutcher picks it up for Morrice. Morrice misses a twelve foot shot from the side of the lane. The rebound goes out of bounds and Morrice gets another opportunity. Aaron Davis passes to Luke Dutcher, who hits a layup for the Orioles; he is fouled on the play, but misses his free throw. With 14 seconds remaining in the quarter, Morrice has a 10-7 lead.

Brett McGowan gets the offensive rebound for Morrice. Morrice misses a three point shot from the side and fouls on the rebound. Brayden Simon passes to Braxton Teachworth, who slings in a three pointer from the corner at the buzzer to tie the game for St. Patrick.

After one quarter, the game is tied at 10-10.

St. Patrick inbounds the ball to open the second quarter. The Shamrocks miss a ten foot shot from the side. Morrice misses a sixteen footer from the wing. Todd Nanasy ties the ball up. The Possession Arrow consults its panel of fashion consults; because they like Morrice’s uniforms, the ball is awarded to the Orioles. Brandon Buchanan passes to Brett McGowan, who hits a layup to give Morrice a 12-10 lead.

Shane Cook passes to Derec Fedewa, who hits a three point shot from the side to give the Shamrocks a one point lead. Morrice misses a threeball from the corner. Luke Dutcher gets the offensive rebound for the Orioles. Morrice misses a threeball from the top of the key and St. Patrick fouls on the rebound. Braxton Teachworth blocks an Oriole shot. Alex Fedewa hits a turnaround six foot jumper from the baseline to give St. Patrick a 15-12 lead.

Morrice misses a ten footer from the baseline. St. Patrick misses a three point attempt from the wing. Braxton Teachworth steals the ball for the Shamrocks. Aaron Davis blocks a Shamrock fast break layup. The loose ball goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets the ball back. Cole Kinsman gets into the lane and hits an eight footer for the Shamrocks. Alex Fedewa steals the ball for the Shamrocks. Shane Cook drives the baseline and is fouled on a layup. He hits one of his two free throws to push the St. Patrick lead to 18-12 with 4:41 to play in the first half.

Drew McGowan passes to Aaron Davis, who throws in a threeball from near the top of the key for Morrice. St. Patrick misses a three pointer from the side. Morrice misses a three pointer from the wing and fouls on the rebound. Alex Fedewa passes to Shane Cook, who hits a three point shot from the top of the key to boost the Shamrock lead to 21-15.

Morrice misses a fifteen foot shot from the side. St. Patrick throws the outlet pass too far and loses the ball out of bounds on a too fast break. Morrice misses a jumper from the free throw elbow. St. Patrick misses a twelve footer from the side of the lane. Shane Cook knocks the ball away from Morrice and Cole Kinsman grabs it for St. Patrick. St. Patrick misses a twelve foot shot in the lane. Brayden Simon snares the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Drew McGowan steals the ball for Morrice. Todd Nanasy passes to Aaron Davis, who hits a layup to cut the Shamrock lead to 21-17.

Drew McGowan gets his hand on the ball and knocks it out of bounds; St. Patrick retains possession. It is now Brett McGowan’s turn to knock the ball out of bounds; St. Patrick again retains possession. The Shamrocks misfire on a threeball from the corner.

Morrice misses a reverse layup. Brett McGowan gets the offensive rebound for Morrice. The Orioles miss an eighteen footer from the side. Brandon Buchanan gets the offensive rebound for Morrice. Morrice misses a threeball from the side. Braxton Teachworth is fouled on the rebound and hits one of two free throws in a one and one opportunity to boost St. Patrick to a 22-17 lead with 13.7 seconds to play in the half.

Morrice misses a three point shot from the top of the key at the buzzer. St. Patrick heads into the locker room at halftime with a 22-17 lead. There is an excellent chance that they will continue to have this lead when the third quarter starts.

Aaron Davis leads the Oriole scoring with 11 first half points.

Shane Cook and Braxton Teachworth each have 6 points for St. Patrick. Derec Fedewa has 5 points.

The third quarter is starting and your Bleacher Denizen takes a furtive glance at the scoreboard! It looks like my prediction came through and St. Patrick does have a 22-17 lead at the start of the third quarter. (The Bleacher wonders if this new-found ability to predict the future will help the next time he buys a Powerball ticket.)

St. Patrick inbounds the ball to begin the third quarter. Travis Farrow knocks a Shamrock pass out of bounds; St. Patrick gets the ball back. The Shamrocks miss a three point shot from the corner. Brayden Simon hits a putback for St. Patrick to boost the Shamrock lead to 24-17.

Morrice misfires on a triple try from the side and fouls on the rebound. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the corner. Brayden Simon gets the offensive rebound for St. Patrick. The Shamrocks bounce a ball out of bounds. Morrice misses a three point shot from the corner. St. Patrick misses a three pointer from the wing. Cole Kinsman gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Cole Kinsman passes to Brayden Simon, who strokes a threeball from the corner to boost the Shamrock lead to 27-17.

Brayden Simon steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick commits a traveling violation. Shane Cook knocks the ball away from Morrice and Braxton Teachworth picks it up for St. Patrick. Shane Cook passes to Brayden Simon, who tosses in a three pointer from the side for St. Patrick. Brandon Buchanan is fouled on a layup and hits one of his two free throws to trim the Shamrock lead to 30-18 with 4:44 to play in the third quarter.

St. Patrick misses a ten foot shot from the side of the lane. Morrice misses a sixteen footer from the wing. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the wing and fouls on the rebound. Luke Dutcher passes to Aaron Davis, who hits a three point shot from the wing to cut the Shamrock lead to 30-21.

Aaron Davis knocks a pass out of bounds and prevents a St. Patrick layup. St. Patrick retains possession. St. Patrick misses a six foot shot from the side; Braxton Teachworth tips the ball in for the Shamrocks. Shane Cook steals a Morrice pass. Brayden Simon hits a ten foot shot off the dribble from the side for St. Patrick. Morrice misses a three point shot from the wing. Brayden Simon throws in a threeball from the side to boost the Shamrock lead to 37-21.

Braxton Teachworth steals the ball for St. Patrick and is fouled. A Shamrock offensive foul negates a layup. Drew McGowan hits a layup for Morrice. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Derec Fedewa steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the top of the key at the buzzer.

After three quarters, Portland St. Patrick has a 37-23 lead.

Morrice inbounds the ball to get the fourth quarter underway. Travis Farrow hits a twelve foot shot from the side. St. Patrick misses a scooping layup. Aaron Davis passes to Travis Farrow, who hits a layup for Morrice. Derec Fedewa drives and hits a layup for St. Patrick. He is fouled on the play, but misses his free throw. With 6:47 remaining in the game, St. Patrick has a 39-27 lead.

Morrice misses an eight foot shot from the side of the lane. St. Patrick misses a turnaround jumper from the free throw elbow. Morrice misses a driving ten foot shot from the side of the lane. Derec Fedewa passes to Brayden Simon, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of his two free throws to push the Shamrock lead to 40-27 with 5:17 to play in the game.

Todd Nanasy drives and hits a ten foot high arching teardrop shot from the side of the land for Morrice. Todd Nanasy steals the ball for the Orioles. Brandon Buchanan drives, stops, fakes and hits a layup for Morrice. Todd Nanasy steals a Shamrock pass. Travis Farrow is fouled and hits both free throws in a one and one opportunity for Morrice to chop the Shamrock lead to 40-33 with 3:48 left on the clock.

Travis Farrow knocks a pass out of bounds to prevent a Shamrock layup; St. Patrick gets the ball back. Brayden Simon drives and hits a six footer from the side of the lane for St. Patrick. Shane Cook steals the ball and hits a fast break left handed layup for the Shamrocks to give his team a 44-33 lead.

Morrice misses a driving layup and fouls on the rebound. St. Patrick misses a ten foot shot in the lane. Aaron Davis goes into the lane and hits a ten foot shot for Morrice. Shane Cook passes to Braxton Teachworth, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of his two free throws to give St. Patrick a 45-35 lead with 1:43 remaining.

Morrice is fouled, but misses the first shot of a one and one free throw opportunity. The rebound goes out of bounds and St. Patrick gets the ball. Cole Kinsman is fouled and hits both ends of a one and one opportunity for St. Patrick. Morrice misses a twelve foot shot in the lane. Derec Fedewa is fouled and hits one of two free throws in a one and one opportunity for St. Patrick. With 46.7 seconds to go, St. Patrick has a 50-35 lead.

Derec Fedewa steals the ball for St. Patrick and is fouled. He hits one of his two free throws for the Shamrocks. Aaron Davis is fouled and hits one of two free throws in a one and one opportunity for Morrice with 38.0 seconds to play. St. Patrick runs out the clock.

St. Patrick wins 51-36 and will advance to play Webberville in Wednesday’s district semifinal.

Morrice’s Aaron Davis led all scorers with 17 points. Travis Farrow chipped in with 6 points. Brett McGowan added 4 points. Brandon Buchanan scored 3 points. Luke Dutcher, Brett McGowan and Todd Nanasy each tallied 2 points.

Brayden Simon led the St. Patrick scoring with 16 points. Shane Cook joined his teammate in double figures with 10 points. Braxton Teachworth contributed 9 points. Derec Fedewa added 7 points and Alex Fedewa scored 5 points. Cole Kinsman had 4 points.

In the next game, it came down to the final seconds! Here is the play by play of the Lansing Christian/Fulton game!!

https://thebleacherdenizen.com/2022/03/08/lansing-christian-vs-fulton-first-round-mhsaa-district-tournament-the-bleacher-denizen-march-7-2022-by-chuck-krafft/