AOTW: Taylor-made: Rochester senior Taylor Perry helping Falcons back to prominence

BY DAN STICKRADT

SENIOR EDITOR

dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com

ROCHESTER HILLS — Every time Taylor Perry walks into the gymnasium at Rochester High, he’s given a brief history lesson.

The standout basketball player can plainly see the school’s championships over nearly 100 years of high school basketball. But there is something unsettling about those banners on the east wall of the gym.

Under the district titles list, Perry can again see a gaping hole. Rochester has not won a district in over 20 years. For the record, it’s been 24 years since the Falcons escaped with a district crown

“I know it’s been a very long time since we’ve won a district here,” smiled Perry, a 6-foot-4 wing player with exceptional athleticism. “I think we need to add something up there this year. That is our goal this season.”

Rochester entered the season with high hopes. The defending OAA Blue Division champion Falcons have lived up to their billing as one of the better teams in Oakland County.

After a disappointing season-opening loss to Detroit Loyola, Rochester has reeled off 19 straight wins, the second longest streak in school history only to the 1988-89 squad, which won 21 in a row.

TAKING FLIGHT: Rochester's Taylor Perry hopes to help the Falcons soar to their first district title in 24 years this week. File Photo | Dan Stickradt

Rochester defended its OAA Blue Division title with a perfect 10-0 record — the Falcons last won back-to-back league crowns in 1987-88 and 1988-89 when they captured the old Metro Suburban Activities Association — and  carry plenty of optimism and momentum into the postseason.

And Perry is one of the center pieces of the resurgence. There are nine seniors on the Falcons’ roster this season and Perry is a bona fide All-State player.

Along with classmate Paris Pereira, Perry is a fourth-year varsity veteran. He moved into the starting lineup along with Pereira in 2009-10 and has been a consistent force ever since.

Last year, Perry provided 19 points, seven rebounds and two steals and earned multiple postseason honors along the way, including All-North Oakland First Team. He entered the season well inside the top 20 in multiple school records lists and should be in the top five in scoring before season’s end. He eclipsed the 1,000 points barrier in December.

Perry committed to Western Michigan before his junior season, after starring at multiple AAU tournaments and has continued to progress on the court each year.

“I knew he was good in the eighth grade,” said Rochester coach John Pleasant.
“We kept him on varsity his freshman year and he gained some valuable minutes off the bench. He has started virtually every game since his sophomore year and has become a very good player for us.”

Rochester is ranked in the top 20 in the Associated Press Class A polls for the first time since 1999-2000. Before that, the Falcons were ranked in 1993-94, reaching as high as No. 7 before a late-season stumble. Both of those teams captured league crowns, but neither could win a district.

The Falcons last claimed a district title in 1987-88, where they advanced all the way to the regional finals before falling to Port Huron, 62-48. There were a handful of league and district champion teams before that, including the 1949-50 squad that reached the Class B Final Four — the only Falcons’ squad to reach that destination in boys basketball.

Rochester’s girls team advanced to the final Four in the fall 1985 season.

Since the 1988 district championship, several years before Perry was even born, Rochester has only made the district title game three times and each time they fell short. The Falcons lost to Romeo in their last district title shot in 2008.

It’s not that the Falcons haven’t had talent. There has been a long line of Division I and Division II college players and several small-college players. But the Falcons could never get over the hump against teams such as Pontiac Northern, Pontiac Central and Romeo, plus several district losses to Rochester Adams.

The 1988-89 team was perhaps the most talented squad of them all, but were upset by Pontiac Northern, 71-68, in a district semifinal despite being ranked fifth in Class A and winning 21 straight at that time.

The Falcons have even produced two players that have played in the NBA — Michigan State product Paul Davis was Mr. Basketball in 2002 at Rochester and spent three years playing for the Los Angeles Clippers. Walker Russell Jr., a 2001 grad, recently broke through and was signed by the Detroit Pistons. He Jacksonville State in college.

Neither of those two players, the top two all-time leading scorers in school history, were ever able to lead their team to a district.

“It’s amazing when you think about it, that those guys never won a district,” said Perry.

“I’ve heard a little bit about those teams (and players),” added Perry in a practice before the season opener. “But I think our goal is to make some history.”

With a senior-heavy squad, Rochester is 19-1 heading into postseason play, the second -best regular season mark in school history. It has taken plenty of building blocks and sacrifice by Perry and his teammates to have this kind of season.

Perry has worked hard to improve his game over the years and says he’s still has plenty to work on after the high school season is complete.

“I’ve really worked on my ball-handling and my three-point shooting,” he said. “Those were areas I feel like I have come a long ways with the past couple years. I need to get better in those areas if I plan on (cracking the lineup) at Western Michigan. They have a lot of talent coming in next year and a lot of good players coming back.”

Still, Perry and Co. have some unfinished business to attend to: Enjoy some long-awaited postseason success.

“It won’t be easy, because there are always good teams in our district,” offered Perry, whose team was upset by Rochester Stoney Creek in the district semifinals last season. “But our goal is to win the district. I think we’re overdue.”

Twenty-four years…If the Falcons can pull off the feat and break the hex, it will be Taylor-made.

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