By John Raffel
MaxPreps.com
Frankenmuth's dream of an undefeated season came to an end Friday night, Feb. 15, in a 72-58 loss to Birch Run.
But with an 18-1 record and with one of the top scorers in the state, Frankenmuth still harbors hopes of a state title with the Class B state playoffs all set to start on Feb. 25.
"It's been an odd year," Frankenmuth coach Tim Crawford said. "We don't start one starter who is over six feet. We thought a 13 or 14-win season would be a good season. But we've played better than anyone could imagine."
Brad Redford, a senior, is averaging 39 points a game. He's had 52 points in one game. His lowest single game total has been 24. At one point, he drained 102 free throws in a row to set a state and national record.
"He's picked up some great individual success," Crawford said. "We won 22 games his freshman and sophomore years and 16 games last year."
The 6-0 senior guard will head to Xavier next year. He said Xavier recruited him since his freshman year.
"I felt very comfortable with the coaching staff at Xavier," Redford said.
Right now, he feels very comfortable with the coaching staff and his fellow teammates at Frankenmuth.
"We've beaten some good teams like Flint Southwestern and Saginaw Buena Vista," Crawford said. "We have good chemistry on this team. We're averaging 11 three-pointers a game. We want to play disciplined basketball. But if we don't shoot well, anyone can beat us."
Redford averaged 25 points a game last season.
"I've been working on different parts of my game," Redford said. "I've been able to hit the deep threes. I feel more comfortable shooting from deep."
Redford has been forced to shoot against double and triple coverage.
"Every game, I face box-and-ones and triangle-and-twos," Redford said. "I always have two or three guys in my face. But I've been able to find a place to score."
Redford is also hopeful that his team can be state title contenders.
"We have some tough teams coming up," Redford said. "When we play together, we can beat anybody."
Especially with Redford on the roster.
"I've always been a good scorer," he said. "I've always been able to shoot the ball well. This year, everything is coming together and paying off."
Girls Basketball
Watervliet enters the postseason as one of the girls basketball teams to beat in Class C.
Coach Jim Winter's team has a 19-0 record after coming off two straight wins last week over previously unbeaten Bangor.
"They're a pressing team," Winter said. "We took the advantage and beat their press."
Top players for Watervliet have included All-State junior Rachel Sheffer, who is averaging 20.9 points and six blocks a game.
Ironically, Watervliet met Bangor again on Thursday in the conference title game. The first game during the week was a regularly-scheduled affair. The second game matched up the two teams because they finished as their respective divisional champions.
"We've been 19-1 before, but this is our best start overall," Winter said. "I never thought we'd start out 19-0."
Hockey
The state playoffs for hockey start Feb. 25 and despite getting off to a horrendous 0-11 start, East Grand Rapids figures it could be a Division 3 state contender.
That's what happens when a hockey team follows an 11-game losing streak with a seven-game win string. Coach Joe Day's East Grand Rapids squad lost 3-2 in overtime recently to Big Rapids, to end the seven-game streak.
"I'd be lying if I'd say I wasn't disappointed the way we played when our seven-game losing streak ended. We had a chance to score on a power play,” Day said.
Despite having a record below .500, Day likes his team's hopes of a championship postseason.
"Even after going 0-11, we had a bunch of guys who have stuck together," Day said. "We want to go up to the next level."
East Grand Rapids was in the 2002 state title game and has made frequent appearances in the state Final Four. Day wouldn't be surprised if it happens again.