Williamston vs. Freeland – – MHSAA Division 2 Boys Basketball Semifinal – – The Bleacher Denizen – – March 25, 2022 – – by Chuck Krafft

It’s finals weekend, and your Bleacher Denizen is at the Breslin to watch Williamston and Freeland play the Division 2 semifinal. While I might discuss my drive here, the Breslin is only about five or six miles from my home in South Lansing, so I guess there is not much of an adventure to report. One of my favorite things about finals weekend is the banana yogurt smoothies that they sell. I’m happy to report that they are as good as ever.

I got a pleasant surprise when I got to my seat. Glen Dudasik from the Lansing Herald was assigned the seat next to mine. You can hear his audio podcast by going to Lansingherald.com and listening to the game! It’s great to have a chance to catch up with Glen!!

The Freeland Falcons enter this game with a 25-0 record. Josh Elliott is the leading scorer with 18.5 points per game. He has also made 70 three point baskets this year. Bryson Huckeby averages 14.7 points, 8.8 rebounds and 6.4 assists per game. Alex Duley holds down the middle for the Falcons. He scores 13.6 points per game to go along with 7.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists.

The Williamston Hornets also have a 25-0 record. Mason Docks is the leading scorer; he averages 16.2 points, 4.8 assists and 3.8 steals per game. Statistics don’t show his quickness and exquisite ball handling and creativity. Max Burton is 6’10 and averages 13.4 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. He defends really well inside. (This brings back memories of the tall people back in the ancient times who would heartlessly send the Bleacher Denizen’s layups to the Great Airball in the Sky.) Jacob Wallace scores 13.1 points and pulls down 5.3 rebounds per game. Spencer Feig is an incredibly determined defender who makes few mistakes on offense. He has a solid shot if you try to leave him open to concentrate on the other scorers as well.

It is now time to report on the events of this game through the cloudy lenses of an aging Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league in the days of yesteryear when some folks considered him to be young. Alas, my ingenious idea to use a medieval siege catapult to launch my three point shots was frowned upon; this was a major obstacle in my goal to escape church league.

Williamston wins the opening tp. Alex Duley gets his hand on the ball, but Williamston is able to recover. Williamston misses a layup. Freeland misses a three pointer from the side. Williamston misses three point shot from the wing. Mason Docks steals the ball and hits a quick layup to give the Hornets a 2-0 lead.

Jacob Kowalski passes to Jacob Kundinger, who hits a three point shot from the corner to give Freeland the lead. Williamston misfires on a three point launch from the corner. Jacob Wallace knocks the ball away from Freeland and Mason Docks picks it up for Williamston. Jacob Wallace hits a fast break layup to retake the lead for Williamston. Jacob Wallace steals the ball and hits a layup to give Williamston a 6-3 lead.

Jackson Newman blocks a Falcon layup. Williamston misses a threeball from the wing. Alex Duley passes to Bryson Huckeby, who drives and hits a baseline layup for the Falcons. Freeland kicks the ball; Williamston retains possession. The Hornets miss a layup. Spencer Feig knocks the ball to Mason Docks, who hits a fast break layup to give the Hornets an 8-5 lead.

Freeland misfires on a threeball from the side. Williamston misses a ten foot shot in the lane. Freeland misses a threeball from the side. Williamston misfires on a triple try from the top of the key. Freeland misses a three point shot from the wing. Jacob Wallace goes into the lane and hits a six foot jumper to boost the Hornet lead to 10-5.

Freeland misfires on a threeball from the corner. Williamston misses a layup. Jackson Newman hits a putback for the Hornets. Max Burton knocks a Falcon pass out of bounds; Freeland retains possession. In a deja vu moment, Jay Wallace knocks a Falcon pass out of bounds; Freeland retains possession. Bryson Huckeby hits a short jump for Freeland, but is fouled. He misses his free throw. With 42 seconds to play in the first quarter, Williamston’s lead is at 12-7.

Spencer Feig passes to Max Burton, who spins and hits a five foot shot from the baseline for the Hornets. Freeland misses a three point attempt from the side. Williamston misses a threeball from the wing at the buzzer.

After one quarter, Williamston has a 14-7 lead.

Freeland inbounds the ball to start the second quarter. Jacob Wallace steals the ball for Williamston and hits a fast break layup. Bryson Huckeby gets into the lane and banks in an eight foot hook shot for Freeland. Max Burton is fouled on a layup and hits one of his two free throws for Williamston. Freeland misses a six foot hook shot from the side of the lane. Jacob Wallace drives and is fouled on a six footer from the baseline. He makes one of his two free throws to boost the Hornet lead to 18-9 with 6:23 to play in the second quarter.

Jacob Wallace steals the ball for the Hornets. Alex Duley blocks a Williamston layup. Williamston recovers the ball, but misses a layup. Bryson Huckeby drives and uses an odd hesitation to create an opening; he bursts to the basket for a Falcon layup. Williamston misses a three point shot from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and Freeland gets the ball. Freeland misses a three point shot from the side. Jacob Wallace passes to Mason Docks, who hits a fast break layup, is fouled and makes his free throw to give the Hornets a 21-11 lead with 4:54 to play in the half.

Bryson Huckeby passes to Jacob Kundinger, who hits a long two point jumper from the baseline for Freeland. Williamston misses a jump shot from the free throw elbow. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Hornets get another opportunity. Williamston misses a fourteen footer off the dribble in the lane. Jacob Hammond either blocks or severely alters a Falcon layup. Mason Docks passes to Jackson Newman, who hits a layup to boost the Hornet lead to 23-13.

Mason Docks knocks the ball away from Freeland; Jacob Hammond taps the ball back to him. Mason Docks storms to the other basket to hit a layup for Williamston. Jackson Newman steals the ball for Williamston. Williamston loses the ball out of bounds on a fast break. Jackson Newman gets a hand on a Falcon pass; Freeland the ball out of bounds. Williamston misses a three pointer from the wing. Freeland turns the ball over. Mason Docks passes to Jackson Newman, who hits a short baby hook to give the Hornets a 27-13 lead.

Bryson Huckeby drives and hits a layup for Freeland. Spencer Feig passes to Mason Docks, who swishes a threeball from the top of the key as he is knocked to the floor. While your Bleacher Denizen would have nursed bruises for months after that fall, Mason Docks simply gets up, steps to the line and hits his free throw to give Williamston a 31-15 lead with 57.3 seconds to play in the second quarter.

Max Burton blocks a Freeland layup; the ball goes out of bounds and the Falcons get it back. Max Burton knocks the Freeland inbound pass out of bounds; Freeland retains possession. Jay Wallace steals the ball for Williamston. Gabe Blanchard knocks the ball to Jacob Kowalski, who picks the ball up for Freeland. Bryson Huckeby hits a three point shot for Freeland as the second quarter buzzer makes its presence known.

At halftime, Williamston has a 31-18 lead.

Bryson Huckeby has 13 points for Freeland at halftime; Jacob Kundinger has 5 points.

Mason Docks leads Williamston with 13 points. Jacob Wallace has 9 points and Jackson Newman has 6 points.

As there is no halftime music, I thought I’d present this one from my “Chuck Krafft” You Tube page. 1940s Boogie Woogie fans may appreciate this one where I play piano and John Rickert blows some great trumpet!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1MxOus8t44

It’s time to report the second half. The Bleacher Denizen is pleased to note that Williamston continues to hold a 31-18 lead as the second half commences. (Sometimes, your Bleacher Denizen likes to use high-falutin’ words like “commences” to try to give an impression that he may be literate. That he’s still amazed by the ability to start the third quarter with the correct score may cause other questions.)

Williamston inbounds the ball to get the third quarter underway. Jacob Kowalski steals the ball for the Falcons. Mason Docks steals the ball for Williamston and hits a fast break layup. Bryson Huckeby passes to Alex Duley, who drives and is fouled on a layup. Alex Duley hits two free throws to trim the Hornet lead to 33-20 with 7:16 remaining in the third quarter.

Max Burton passes to Jacob Wallace, who hits a layup for Williamston. Mason Docks steals the ball and hits a fast break layup for the Hornets. Alex Duley passes to Jacob Kowalski, who throws in a threeball from the corner for the Falcons. Jacob Wallace passes to Max Burton, who hits a layup to push the Hornet lead to 39-23.

Max Burton steals the ball for the Hornets. Williamston travels with the ball. (Basketball cliches can be interesting; I have my doubts that traveling without the ball will be newsworthy to most people.) Freeland is fouled on a layup, but misses two free throws. Jacob Wallace drives and dishes the ball to Jackson Newman, who throws in a threeball from the corner to give Williamston a 42-23 lead.

Alex Duley passes to Jacob Kowalski, who hits a layup for Freeland. Alex Duley draws a charging foul from the Hornets. Gabe Blanchard passes to Jacob Kundinger, who hits a three point shot from the corner for the Falcons. Williamston misses a driving layup. Jacob Wallace is fouled on a putback and hits one of his two free throws to extend the Williamston lead to 43-28 with 4:12 remaining in the third quarter.

Freeland misfires on a threeball from the corner. Max Burton passes to Isaac Hahnenberg, who hits a three point shot from the corner for Williamston. A Falcon pass receiver steps on the baseline. Williamston is whistled for an offensive foul. Jacob Wallace knocks a Freeland pass into the lane out of bounds. The Falcons retain possession. Jacob Wallace blocks a Falcon three point launch from the wing. Williamston is fouled on a fast break layup, but misses two free throws. With 2:18 left on the third quarter clock, the Williamston lead is at 46-28.

The Hornets foul on the rebound from the missed free throw. Mason Docks tips a Falcon pass out of bounds; Freeland retains possession. Bryson Huckeby passes to Josh Elliott, who hits a three point shot from the wing for Freeland. Williamston is assessed with a traveling violation. Freeland misses a three point shot from the wing. Mason Docks passes to Isaac Hahnenberg, who gets into the lane and hits an eight foot jumper to push the Hornet lead to 48-31.

Alex Duley passes to Jacob Kundinger, who hits a layup for Freeland. Williamston misses a three point shot from the top of the key. Jacob Kundinger dives to the floor to save the ball and prevent a Falcon turnover. Jacob Kowalski passes to Bryson Huckeby, who spins and hits a layup for Freeland. He is fouled on the play and hits his free throw to shave the Williamston lead to 48-36 with 36.1 seconds remaining in the quarter.

Alex Duley steals the ball for the Falcons. Freeland misses a rushed three point shot at the buzzer.

After three quarters, Williamston leads this battle of undefeated teams by a 48-36 score.

Freeland inbounds the ball to open the fourth quarter. Jacob Wallace knocks a Falcon pass out of bounds; Freeland gets the ball back. Jacob Wallace steals the ball for Williamston. The Hornets miss a driving layup; Max Burton hits a putback for Williamston. Alex Duley takes a pass from Bryson Huckeby makes a nice post move for a Freeland layup that shaves the Williamston lead to 50-38.

Max Burton passes to Spencer Feig, who throws in a threeball from the wing for Williamston. Jacob Wallace blocks a Freeland layup. Spencer Feig takes the ball coast to coast and is fouled on a layup. He splits his pair of free throws to extend the Hornet lead to 54-38 with 6:10 remaining in the contest.

Alex Duley is fouled and hits one of two free throws in a one and one opportunity for Freeland. Jacob Kowalski knocks the ball away from Williamston, but the Hornets are able to recover. Williamston misses a layup. Mason Docks gets the offensive rebound for the Hornets. Williamston misses a layup. Freeland is fouled, but misses the first shot of a one and one free throw opportunity. Spencer Feig passes to Isaac Hahnenberg, who hits a layup that gives the Hornets a 56-39 lead.

Freeland misses a layup and fouls on the rebound. Isaac Hahnenberg passes to Spencer Feig, who hits a fifteen foot jumper off the dribble from the wing for Williamston. Alex Duley passes to Josh Elliott, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of his two free throws for Freeland. With 3:56 to go, the Williamston lead is at 58-40.

Alex Duley steals a Hornet pass into the lane. Freeland misses a three point shot from the wing. The rebound goes out of bounds and Williamston gets the ball. Spencer Feig passes to Max Burton, who hits a layup for Williamston to give the Hornets a 60-40 lead.

Freeland is assessed with a traveling violation. Williamston reciprocates and is assessed with a traveling violation. Freeland misses a three point shot from the wing; the rebound goes out of bounds and the Falcons get another opportunity. Andrew Kowalski passes to Bryson Huckeby, who hits a layup for Freeland. Mason Docks hits a layup for Williamston. Bryson Huckeby is fouled and hits one of two free throws in a one and one opportunity. With 1:11 left on the clock, Williamston has a 62-43 lead.

Brooks Cline passes to Jacob Hammond, who is fouled on a layup and hits one of his two free throws for the Hornets. Freeland misses a three point shot from the side. Anthony Schellie passes to Brooks Cline, who makes a lifetime memory by making a dunk in the semifinal game for Williamston. Grant Bakos passes to Gabe Blanchard for a Freeland layup.

Garrett Pistro gets his hand on the ball for the Falcons, but the Hornets are able to recover. Tommy Melzo steals the ball for Hemlocks. Samuel Havey steals the ball for Williamston. Williamston misses a three point shot at the buzzer.

Williamston wins this game by a 65-45 score and will play Grand Rapids Catholic Central at 6:45 tomorrow night for the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 2 State Championship!! Congratulations to the Hornets!!

Bryson Huckeby led the Freeland scoring with 19 points. Jacob Kundinger joined his teammate in double figures with 10 points. Alex Duley and Jacob Kowalski each scored 5 points. Josh Elliott added 4 points. Gabe Blanchard tossed in 2 points.

Mason Docks led the Williamston scoring with 19 points. Jacob Wallace supported his teammate with 12 points. Jackson Newman and Max Burton each chipped in with 9 points. Isaac Hahnenberg scored 7 points. Spencer Feig added 6 points. Brooks Cline threw down a dunk for 2 points and Jacob Hammond had 1 point.