Northview Boys Basketball

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
greer@wktv.org

Whoever thought that one player can’t single-handedly beat five opponents probably missed the artistry of Northview’s Cam Ryans in Thursday’s regional basketball final against East Kentwood.

Ryans, a 6-4 senior and Mr. Basketball candidate was spectacular, nailing a three-point buzzer-beater to cap a 30-point performance as the Wildcats defeated the Falcons 52-50 before a sellout crowd Thursday at Caledonia.

Spectacular? Absolutely.

Just ask hundreds of Northview fans who stormed the court after Cam’s game winner. The victory sends the winners to a March 10 Division 1 quarterfinal matchup against Rockford.

Scoring only two points in the first half — after which Northview trailed 24-15 — Ryans owned the ball and personally outscored the Falcons 28-26 following intermission.

Ryans completed his masterpiece, grabbing an inbound pass with four seconds remaining, then dribbling twice before sinking a three-pointer from 10 feet beyond the free throw line as time expired.

Spectacular? 30 total points. 28 in the second half. 19 in the fourth quarter. And three steals in a game that Northview never led until a Ryans’ bucket put the winners ahead 49-48 with 28 seconds left. EK responded with a bucket by Andrew Kenyi to recapture the lead with 16 seconds remaining, setting the stage for Ryans’ game ending heroics.

It was a sold out crowd Thursday night at Caledonia as Northview beat East Kentwood 52-50 to win a Division 1 regional title. (WKTV/Bill Rohn)

So what did Northview’s sharpshooter, who has committed to play at Western Michigan University following graduation, think of his performance?

“I couldn’t let my teammates down,” Ryans said. “This is what I practice for and I put in long hours getting ready for that. Every day — day after day — I get ready for that. I dream of it.“

Noting Ryans’ low scoring during the first half, Wildcat Coach Brandoen Guyton evidently knew just what to say during the break.

“I just told him at halftime to go out there in the second half and ‘just be Cam,’ said Guyton in the middle of a celebrating mob following the final buzzer. “I told him to just be who he is. And that’s just what he did.”

Guyton also praised his team’s defense.

“We knew we needed defense to win it, and the kids came through in the second half,” Guyton explained. “Northview clogged the middle of the lane throughout the third and fourth quarters. The Wildcats also produced numerous turnovers, blunting a balanced EK scoring attack that led to Falcon leads of 19-10 after the first quarter, 24-15 at halftime, and 37-31 entering the final eight minutes.

EK’s early success was led by CJ Reynolds, Jeremiah Cook and Jaxon Tabor, whose combined 16 points led the Falcons’ first half effort.

East Kentwood’s Jaxon Tabor stretches for a rebound. (WKTV/Bill Rohn)

Ryans simply took over in the second half. Occasionally dishing off to teammates, he led the winners on a 13-2 scoring run in the middle of the third, cutting EK’s margin to 32-29 with 1:52 to play in the quarter.

East Kentwood hung onto its shrinking lead with solid guard play from CJ Reynolds and two buckets by 6-8 Andrew Kenyi, but Ryans was dominant in the fourth quarter, scoring again and again while also grabbing two steals to cut the Falcon lead to 46-43 with 90 seconds to play.

Northview got help on the scoreboard from Izzy Haitbu, with 10 points, plus five more from Brayden Williams.

East Kentwood, which finished a great season at 22-3, got 13 points from Reynolds, nine from Jeremiah Cook, and eight from Kenyi. The team had only one senior on its roster, so Coach Mike Thomas’ squad may be poised for another outstanding season next year.