Detroit University Prep peters out vs Hudsonville Unity Christian
· Yahoo Sports
EAST LANSING — It got ugly quick for Detroit University Prep in the program's first trip to the Breslin Center for the MHSAA boys basketball state semifinals.
The Panthers (17-10) were no match for a veteran-laden Hudsonville Unity Christian (25-3) team in a 59-44 loss. The Crusaders had size, shooting, passing and hustle as they cruised to their first state title appearance since 2019.
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"They are a very good team," UPrep coach Brandon Barrett said. "It was better than I thought. I knew they were good, but, man, they are huge. They are a very big team. They were very aggressive."
Unity Christian jumped on UPrep to build a 14-5 advantage after the first quarter. The Crusaders missed their first eight 3-point attempts, but still found ways to score thanks to their offensive rebounding, led by 6-foot-6 forward Owen VanderWaal. Unity Christian pulled down 10 offensive rebounds and had a 36-21 rebounding advantage overall.
Things went from bad to worse for the Panthers in the second quarter. Unity Christian outscored UPrep, 20-6, in the second quarter to enjoy a 34-11 lead at halftime.
"They've got college size out there," Barrett said. "It's very difficult. Even when they were in man-to-man, they were like a zone. That's how long they are."
VanderWaal and 6-8 center Luke Tubergen shut down the paint on most of UPrep's drives to the bucket. The 3-pointers weren't falling either, with the Panthers going just 5-for-16 from long range.
UPrep staged a faux comeback late in the third quarter into the fourth quarter. Unity Christian coach Scott Soodsma, fourth all-time in state history in coaching wins, emptied his bench to give every player on his roster a chance to play at Breslin since they built such a large advantage.
UPrep started knocking down some shots against some of the backups, trimming the lead to 13 points late in the fourth quarter, but the deficit was too much to overcome.
"That's probably my mistake, but they have earned the right to be in the game," Soodsma said.
UPrep had one of the most thrilling playoff runs of any team that reached the final weekend of the season. The Panthers reached the state semifinals for the first time ever by winning their first five playoff games by 10 points or less, including a buzzer-beater to force overtime with defending state champion Warren Lincoln, and eventually winning, 53-51.
But the run ended two wins short of UPrep's ultimate goal with a strong senior class. Senior Mo Jackson, their best player all season, finished with eight points and seven rebounds. Senior Chris Byrd had a game-high 18 points with four made 3s.
"It's always going to be a learning experience," Barrett said. "And I expect to be here. The standard has been set at UPrep and its going to stay like that."
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Jared Ramsey covers high school sports for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at [email protected]; Follow Jared on X or Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit University Prep out of gas vs Hudsonville Unity Christian