Oakland Christian rolls rival Parkway Christian for share of MIAC title

BY TIMOTHY PONTZER

STUDENT CORRESPONDENT

STERLING HEIGHTS — At the beginning of every season, teams set goals.

Usually, several goals are set, each one being a step that leads to the next. On Thursday night, Auburn Hills Oakland Christian achieved one of its preseason goals, by winning a share of the Michigan Independent Athletic Conference Blue Division title.

The Lancers did so with a convincing 51-32 victory over host Sterling Heights Parkway Christian.

Oakland Christian (19-1, 14-1) share the MIAC-Blue crown with Grosse Pointe Woods University-Liggett, as both only had one loss to each this season. The Lancers hope that this title is one of many this season, as they look to make a deep run in the Class D state tournament.

In order to earn a share of the conference title, Oakland Christian had to beat one of its bitter rivals in the Parkway Christian, which is only three years removed from a Final Four appearance. With the title in mind, the Lancers opened the first quarter with a 14-0 run, fueled by 10 points by junior Nathan Piasecki.

Holding a 14-6 advantage after one, Oakland Christian blew the game open with a 9-0 spurt, this time with junior Charles Hayden draining a trio of three-pointers to push the lead to 23-6.

The Lancers led 23-14 at the break.

Despite the impressive strings of unanswered points, Oakland Christian head coach Dennis Hopkins wanted more balance from his team. “In transition we struggled to finish, our guys were pressing too much. Everybody was trying to do it individually, and not as a group, Hopkins said, “We need to take our time and get the ball around to get better looks.”

Parkway Christian responded with a strong third quarter, outscoring the Lancers 8-6 to close the gap down to 29-22, aided by a buzzer-beater basket as time expired in the frame.

However, Oakland Christian put the nail in the coffin with an impressive 22 points in the fourth quarter. The Lancers committed only one turnover in the fourth quarter, making every trip to the basket count. Senior Andrew Kern had six points in the fourth and

freshman D.J. Stevens had nine points in the final quarter to help the Lancers pull away for the 19-point win

Hopkins attributed the strong fourth to a mindset he tried to instill in his team.

“I preached to the team, it is not about I, it is about us, which leads to better shots, and that’s what happened in the fourth.”

Kocik led Parkway’s attack with 11 and Delicata added six points. For the Lancers, Hayden led all scorers with 12, Piasecki and Stevens dropped 11 points each and Kern and junior Josh Peterson had six apiece.

Hopkins pointed to Hayden’s play as key to the victory, and remarking that he is the eighth different player to lead the Lancers in scoring for a game.

“He simply made baskets when they needed to be made,” concluded Hopkins.

Tags: boys basketball, MIAC

Category: Auburn Hills Christian Acadamy, Auburn Hills Oakland Christian, High School, Prep Wraps