Jackson Lumen Christi cruises into girls basketball Division 3 title game
· Yahoo Sports
East Lansing — Jackson Lumen Christi certainly didn’t play like a team nervous about its first ever state semifinal game Thursday.
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On the contrary, Lumen Christi looked beyond comfortable from the start in a Division 3 semifinal against Niles Brandywine.
In matchup of two of the state’s top-three teams, Lumen Christi turned the game into a surprising rout from the opening tip, cruising to a 51-33 win at Michigan State’s Breslin Center.
A storied athletic program, Lumen Christi (24-3) will play for its first ever state title in girls basketball when it meets Pewamo-Westphalia at 4 p.m. Saturday in the championship game.
Lumen Christi led 18-3 after the first quarter and 29-10 at halftime, stifling Brandywine defensively with full-court pressure and a stout zone in the halfcourt.
“The first 10 minutes of the game, we played lights-out,” Lumen Christi head coach Scott Stine in a vast understatement.
The numbers weren’t pretty for Brandywine, which at one point in the second quarter had 10 more turnovers (13) than points (three).
Lumen Christi led 29-10 at halftime and was never threatened in what was a fairly evenly played second half.
But by that point, the damage had already been done by Lumen Christi.
Lumen Christi was led by one of the country’s top players in the sophomore class, Kenna Hunt, who had 16 points, eight assists and seven rebounds.
“We still have one more game, and we’re going to lock in on that game,” Hunt said. “But it’s truly a blessing to be able to be in this position and get an opportunity to play at the amazing place we are playing right now.”
Senior Lily Ganton added 13 points for Lumen Christi, and it was her performance that really drew praise from Stine.
“We’re more than just two players,” said Stine, referring to Hunt and the team’s second-leading scorer, sophomore Lucy Wrozek. “We had a conversation prior that if they came out and try to do a triangle (defense) or something similar, I let Lily know that I got all the confidence in the world with her and to let it fly. She really came out there and showed she’s a great basketball player.”
Freshman Zaya Price had 18 points and nine rebounds for Brandywine (26-2), which was making its third straight trip to the state’s Final Four. All three losses have been to teams coached by Stine.
Two years ago in the championship game and last year in the semifinals, Brandywine lost to Ypsilanti Arbor Prep, which was coached by Stine until he left that program for Lumen Christi last offseason.
Brandywine graduated seven seniors but managed to reload and still get back to the Final Four.
“You try to put these girls in situations (during the season), but you can’t put them in the situation of walking into the Breslin Center, with the big lights,” Brandywine coach Josh Hood said, referring to his team’s bad start. “It’s hard to simulate that. But you saw the battle. It’s hard to get here and we’ve done it three times in a row.”
Pewamo-Westphalia 44, Roscommon 35: In the first Division 3 semifinal, senior Elly Bengel scored 20 points for Pewamo-Westphalia (26-2), which advanced to the state championship game for the first time since winning it all in 2019. Zoey Kauffman scored 14 points to lead Roscommon (21-4), which was playing in its first semifinal since 1996.
Division 3
THURSDAY'S SEMIFINALS
Pewamo-Westphalia 44, Roscommon 35
Jackson Lumen Christi 51, Niles Brandywine 33
SATURDAY'S FINAL
Pewamo-Westphalia (26-2) vs. Jackson Lumen Christi (24-3), 4 p.m.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Jackson Lumen Christi cruises into girls basketball Division 3 title game