The Ile Camera
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Title winners
Grosse Ile wins first Huron crown since 1994-95 season
By Scott Held, The Ile Camera
PUBLISHED: March 2, 2007
The entire Huron League trophy is on its way to Grosse Ile.
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Thanks to Tuesday's 50-38 win at Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central, there's no need to worry about sharing or backing into the championship.
The Devils made sure of it by jumping out to a 12-1 lead to put a damper on the Falcons' senior night. They did it again in the third quarter when SMCC cut the lead to a point.
Grosse Ile made the last two baskets of the period, then allowed the Falcons just two more points until the closing seconds.
"We just locked down on defense," said Devils Coach Vic Bechard, whose team won the school's first league title since the 1994-95 season.
"We didn't want to worry about backing in to it or winning on Friday. We wanted to win it there."
The Devils made their first four shots to take the early lead and were ahead 27-16 at the half. SMCC cut it to 34-33 late in the third before Grosse Ile ran away.
The Devils (17-1, 13-0) picked up their 15th straight victory and can close out an unbeaten league season by winning tonight at Huron.
Pat Crowley was 6-for-8 from the floor and finished with 15 points to lead the Devils, who also got 11 points and 10 rebounds from Lonnie Pugh.
Jeremy Heyler added 10 points and Jake Radcliffe and Kevin Doyle scored six each.
The Devils cruised to an 80-53 win over visiting Milan Feb. 22 to secure a share of the league title.
It was business as usual for Grosse Ile, which sprinted to a 43-25 halftime lead. All five starters ended the night in double figures for the Devils, who made nine three-pointers.
"We did what we had to do tonight," Bechard said. "They sagged off us and we made a lot of shots."
Guards Crowley and Doyle had 19 and 15 points to lead Grosse Ile, which also got 13 and 12 from Pugh and Heyler.
Radcliffe, normally a dirty work specialist, got open several times and hit five field goals to finish with 10 points.
He said the players have kept after each other to avoid complacency during the winning streak.
"The coaches help out a lot," Radcliffe said, "but it's mostly the guys that motivate each other.
"We know we have to keep playing hard."
The Devils welcomed Inter-City last night. They'll be at Flat Rock on Monday to face Trenton in a Class B district first-round game.
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