Tag Archives: Lee Boys Basketball

Tri-unity buzzer-beater tops Lee Wednesday, 51-49

Citizen Journalism, City of Wyoming, Kent County, Local Sports, Sports, , ,
Tri-unity Christian at Lee Boys Basketball. (WKTV Friday Night Highlights/Jake Westbrook)


Bill Rohn — who served as a trial lawyer for 40 years at the Varnum law firm in Grand Rapids — calls himself a “newspaper junkie.“ Bill edited his high school and college newspapers. He also has covered sports for Midwestern newspapers such as The Grand Rapids Press, The South Bend Tribune, and The Niles Daily Star. He is a co-host of WKTV Friday Night Highlights. Bill holds a B.A. degree in Political Science from GVSU and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Notre Dame.

By Bill Rohn
WKTV Contributor
Friday Night Highlights Host
greer@wktv.org

Tri-unity’s Jake VanKlompenberg hit a 5-foot shot as the final buzzer sounded, then completely disappeared beneath a mob of screaming teammates as the Defenders beat Lee 51-49 Wednesday night.

The contest, played at Lee and delayed one night by cold weather, featured a battle of teams who were both unbeaten in the Alliance League when play began.

And a capacity crowd got its money’s worth. 

Facing a 49-49 tie, Tri-unity rebounded a missed Lee shot with 28 seconds to play, then moved down court before calling time out with 11 seconds left. When play resumed, a stingy Lee defense appeared to leave the Defenders with no room to shoot, but VanKlompenberg had other plans. The junior, who was held scoreless in the first half, wiggled free to the left of the basket, twisted in midair, and found the net as the horn sounded, triggering an 11-player Tri-unity pileup as the winners celebrated.

“Somebody was going to get the last shot, and fortunately it was us,” said an extremely pleased Defenders Coach Brent Voorhees following the game, adding, “Jake works very hard and he made an absolutely great shot to win it.”

Tri-Unity improved to 7-0 in Alliance League play and 11-1 overall. Lee, now 10-3 overall, fell to 5-1 in conference action.



Lee’s Braylon Huff and JR Metcalf defend against Tri-unity’s Cody Osbun and Caleb Hofmann. (WKTV/Bill Rohn)



The loss aside, the Legends were not without heroes of their own, including Dere’on Brown, who hit five three-point shots during the game. The teams were tied 11-11 at the end of the first quarter before Tri-unity took a 25-18 halftime lead. 

Not to be outdone, Lee’s big Lzekiel “Zeke“ Scott hit two three-pointers en route to a 12 point third quarter, cutting the Defenders’ margin to 42-40 when fourth quarter play began. Lee then took a 49-46 lead with less than a minute to play on Brown’s fifth three-pointer and a bucket by Scott before Nolan DeMots tied the score at 49 on a three pointer, setting the stage for VanKlompenberg’s heroics. 

“Wyoming Lee is very well coached and their kids made a ton of big shots in key moments,” said Voorhees, whose team will seek a third straight state championship when tournament play begins in March. “This game was a good confidence builder for our group, to be able to win a tough conference game on the road.”

Tri-unity got 15 points apiece from Caleb Hoffman and Clayton Rowlader, plus solid rebounding from Cody Osborne and Brayden Nelson, who had 10 and eight rebounds, respectively.

Lee’s Zeke Scott led all scorers with 19 points. Dere’on Brown finished with 16 for Coach Gerard Oray’s Legends. 

The two teams will go at it again in a February 13 game to be played at Tri-Unity.

Host Lee boys defeat Holland at inaugural Be Legendary Showcase Saturday at Grace Christian

Citizen Journalism, City of Wyoming, Kent County, Kentwood Public Schools, Local Sports, Sports, , , , , , , , ,
Lee senior guard Junior Metcalf (1) led the Legends in scoring against Holland with 17 points. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)



By Greg Chrapek
WKTV Contributor
greer@wktv.org


Grace Christian University was home to some outstanding high school basketball Saturday and the host Lee Legends capped off the inaugural tournament with a strong defensive effort in defeating Holland 59-42.

The win capped off a big day of basketball for local teams. In games preceding the Lee finale, Kelloggsville dropped a 55-46 decision to Grand Rapids West Catholic in overtime, Cedar Springs edged Godwin Heights 52-49 and Grant defeated Kentwood Grand River Prep 62-33.

In the finale, Lee utilized some strong defensive play and timely offense to improve its record to 6-1 on the season.

The host Legends, whose lone loss this season was to West Catholic, established their strong defensive presence right from the opening tip. The Legends held Holland to 10 points in the first quarter en route to building a 20-10 lead.

Defense was all the rage in the second quarter as both teams found scoring points a challenge. The two squads combined for just six points in the second quarter with Lee taking a 22-14 lead into the locker room at halftime. 



Lee freshman forward Cash Anscomb (24) pulls down a rebound during the game with Holland at the Be Legendary Showcase at Grace Christian University. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)



Both squads picked up the pace in the third quarter. Lee senior guard Junior Metcalf led the Legends with six points in the third quarter as Lee outscored Holland 17-13 to take a 39-27 lead into the final stanza.

Lee began to pull away from Holland in the early moments of the fourth quarter as a 10-5 run upped the lead to 49-32. The Legends finished the game on an 8-4 run to exit with a 16-point win.

“We played pretty well,” said Lee Coach Gerard Oray. “We had a scoring drought in the second quarter when we had two points. We went away from our defensive pressure. I feel our defensive pressure was the main reason why we got out to an early lead.”

Metcalf led Lee with 17 points, while senior Dere’on Brown also reached double figures with 13. Lzekiel Scott added nine points, followed by Kapone Applewhite with six. Keegan Hulst led Holland in scoring with 23 points.

The play of Lee’s guards not only led the way on the offensive side of the floor, but also played a key role in the success of the defense.



Lee senior guard Martez Jackson (0) looks for an opening during the game with Holland at the Be Legendary Showcase at Grace Christian University. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)



“Our guards are really fast offensively and defensively,” Oray said. “They change the game for us. The ball pressure that they put on other teams kind of disrupts their offense. We go as they go.”

Legends enjoy strong start to season

With six wins in the first seven games, the season has started well for the Legends. Not only are the Legends playing winning basketball, but they are playing exciting basketball and also are getting the job done off the basketball court. 

“We have scored 75 points in four of the seven games,” Oray said. “It’s been exciting basketball. The guys have bought in not only on the court, but in the classroom and in the community. This season has gone pretty well.”

Oray also likes the way the team has jelled and points to team chemistry as being a strong point of this year’s squad.

“We have a strong brotherhood,” Oray said. “The guys spend a lot of time together on and off the court. We did some things in the summer and in the fall. Things like study table, community service, volunteer events, weight room, all of that is starting to come together to build team chemistry.”   

Oray also was pleased with the first-year tournament that the Legends and Grace Christian University hosted. The tournament was even more special for Oray, who played his college basketball for Grace Christian.

“The tournament was pretty good,” Oray said. “I played college basketball here so it was great to see the community come out. A lot of different teams were here from a lot of different areas which was the purpose of the tournament so I feel it was a success for year one.”


Long list of coaches played and coached at Grace Christian

Oray was not the only coach at the tournament who had ties to Grace Christian which was another reason the teams were brought together for the tournament. Grant Coach Daniel George is a former varsity assistant coach at Grace Christian, and Cedar Springs Coach Lee Ash also is a former assistant coach.


Former players included Grand River Prep Coach Jashawn Bailey, while Kelloggsville Coach Austin Jackson earned national player of the year honors and led Grace Christian to a national championship in 2019 during his time as a college basketball player at the school. West Catholic assistant coach Melvin Frazier played his college basketball at Grace Christian as well.  

Lee boys basketball program completes major turnaround season; 19-2 overall, 8-0 atop Alliance League

City of Wyoming, Sports, West Michigan, , ,
Coach Dominic Shannon huddles up his team during a game earlier this season with Potter’s House. (WKTV/Greg Chrapek)


By Cris Greer

WKTV Managing Editor

greer@wktv.org



After a successful basketball season, Lee Coach Dominic Shannon said it’s an understatement to say he’s proud of the boys.

“Words truly can’t express the love and respect we have for this special group of boys,” said Lee, whose team finished 19-2 overall and 8-0 in the Alliance League. “We accomplished the first conference championship in 43 years and lost by a total of four points all season. In my second year as head coach, we are well on our way to revitalizing a program which once upon a time had rich basketball history.

“The goal coming into this season was to continue to reshape the culture and for the student-athletes to understand what must be accepted or received in order to have a memorable season. I’m not surprised that we were successful, but I did not expect us to win 19 games this year. My staff and I, once fall league started, we began to see the team form and we all believed we would have the first winning season since 2010-2011, in which that Lee team finished 12-11.”


Last year, the Legends were 5-16 overall and 2-6 in the League.

Shannon’s highlight this season?

“Seeing the boys accept accountability and holding their brothers accountable,” Shannon said. “The 19 wins and two losses are impressive, the first conference championship in 43 years is extremely impressive, but as a coach I understand that the ball stops bouncing after so much time has passed.

“Once that ball stops bouncing all they’ll have left is their character and values and principles that they’ll stand on. We definitely want to win and compete, but the growth and maturity of the boys is essentially the driving force behind the success. This season was a success on several levels.”

Overtime loss to Godwin Heights in the districts

Shannon said the overtime loss to Godwin was and still is tough to swallow.

“We executed the game plan as we were up five points with under 40 seconds left in regulation and not to mention we missed 16 total free throws while being in position to win the game in regulation,” Shannon explained. “Execution late in the game was not what we’re capable of, essentially leading to an early playoff exit. I am already preparing for next season as I see where I can sharpen as preparation is key.

“The environment was very fun and I hope this game has restored the rivalry between Lee and Godwin.”

Scoring leader junior Marc Whitfield

Whitfield averaged 20 points, 5 assists and 3 steals this season. He had three 30-point games with a season high of 36 points against Lansing Eastern.

Lee guard Marc Whitfield. (Courtesy, Lee High School)



“Marc came into the season as our best player and I believe he exited the season as a more well-rounded player,” Shannon said. “The challenge for Marc this season was leading vocally the correct way. Marc’s energy and passion is felt each day in practice. So as coaches we evaluate what a student-athlete can do to improve themselves on and off the court, and for Marc it was communication.

“We’ve seen him accept ownership in not so pleasant times, lift up his teammates when they get down on themselves and show full maturity in the Godwin game. We believe he is a special athlete and his senior year is going to be fun to watch.”



Lone senior starter Joe Russau

“We sincerely appreciate the example he set as a senior by maintaining a 3.5 GPA all season and the presence he had as a captain,” Shannon said. “As a captain, there’s certain expectations the coaches have and he absolutely met them and it’ll be tough to see him go. He has yet to make a decision on where he’ll be playing college basketball next year, but whichever school he commits to will be receiving an awesome young man.”

Expectations for next year? 

Shannon said they will keep building upon the foundation laid two years ago.

“We are only losing one starter and three seniors total entering next season which provides comfort for the coaching staff as our senior class will be strong and understanding of expectations,” he explained. “We are expecting next season to be a battle in our conference and we’ll likely have a target on our back as defending conference champions.

“It would definitely be sweet to repeat as conference champs, but to meet those expectations, the work begins now.”