BEVERYLY HILLS — Central Michigan-bound Jessica Green took over late in the game Thursday afternoon and helped lead Belleville to a 59-45 victory over previously undefeated Brandywine at the Motor City Roundball Classic. 

The Bobcats, who struggled shooting the ball in the second half, had cut the lead to just two points with four minutes to play. From that point on it was all Green, who scored nine of her game-high 29 points in the final quarter. 

“Our girls battled, but we just couldn’t finish,” Brandywine coach Josh Hood said. “We cut the lead to two with four minutes to play and kind of ran out of steam.” 

Belleville (5-1) led 12-11 after one quarter and 24-23 at halftime. Brandywine found itself down 34-28 heading into the final eight minutes of play. 

Carlie Newman led the Bobcats (6-1) with 23 points. Lauren Leonard added 12. 

Kamila Price had nine points for Belleville. 

“We can learn a lot more from this type of game than we can by winning by a lot,” Hood said. “We’ve got some glaring weaknesses that we have to work on in order to get better. Now we know what we have to do to get to where we want to be at the state level.” 

BRANDYWINE 45 

Carlie Newman 23, Lauren Leonard 12, Morgan Smallwood 4, Madison Pellow 3, Kelsey Prestly 2, Tia Hollinger 1. TOTALS: 17 8-13 45 

BELLEVILLE 59 

Jessica Green 29, Kamila Price 9, Diajah Ruffin 7, Angel Ward 6, Kaylin Count 5, Kira Doshon 2, Judah Frazier 1. TOTALS: 22 13-25 59 

Brandywine 11 23 28 45 

Belleville 12 24 34 59 

3-pointers: Brandywine 3 (Newman 3), Belleville 2 (Green 2). Totals fouls: Brandywine 13, Belleville 16. Fouled out: None. Varsity Brandywine 6-1, Belleville 5-1 

Niles…55 

Mumford…50 

The Niles Vikings nearly let a big lead slip away Thursday afternoon at the Motor City Roundball Classic. 

The Vikings were able to hold off a late charge by previously undefeated Detroit Mumford to win 55-50 to go 1-1 at the tournament hosted by Detroit Country Day. 

Niles’ Michelle Briand came off the bench and gave the Vikings a big spark with 11 points and eight rebounds. 

“We got a very good performance from Michelle Briand, who just missed a double-double,” Niles coach Patrick Touhey said. “She came off the bench and really was a spark for us. 

Senior point guard Nichole Sly was named the Most Valuable Player of the game as she scored 17 points, grabbed seven rebounds, handed out three assists and had two steals. 

Niles held a 15-point lead during the game, but Mumford made a run and cut the lead to four points in the final three minutes. 

Mumford’s comeback bid in the final quarter was headed by Raven Bankston who scored 16 of her game-high 29 points.

The Vikings were able to spread the floor and ran time off the clock to preserve the victory. Clutch free throw shooting down the stretch by Alexis McIntee and Savannah Wolnik, who were a combined 7-of-11, also aided in the victory. 

“I was ready pleased with how we represented ourselves over there,” Touhey said. “The teams over there are very strong teams. Our first game we really started flat and were down 11 at halftime. But we came out in the second half with a  lot more energy and a lot more focus. We kind of saw what we were in for. We came out today with much more focus and were prepared.” 

Raine Bankston added 12 points for Mumford.

Niles also got 12 points from McIntee, seven points from Wolnik and six points from Maureen Craig.

NILES 55

Alexis McIntee 12, Savannah Wolnik 7, Maureen Craig 6, Nichole sly 17, Whitney Ellis 2, Lexie Arnold 0, Michelle Briand 11. TOTALS: 17 17-33 55.

MUMFORD 50

Raven Bankston 29 Raine Bankston 12, Alicia Wells 3, Ciera Ward 2, Alexis Milliner 1, Dayze Winston 0, Brionna Grimes 3. TOTALS: 17 11-18 50

 

Niles 16 29 41 55

Mumford 8 17 28 50

3-point baskets: Niles 4 (McIntee, Craig 2, Sly), Mumford 5 (Raven Bankston 4, Grimes). Total fouls: Niles 16, Mumford 23. Fouled out: Briand (N), Raine Bankston (M), Wells (M). Varsity record: Niles 5-3, Mumford 7-1

Brandywine freshmen

CENTREVILLE — The Brandywine freshmen boys’ basketball team was defeated by host Centreville 42-35 in the championship game of its Holiday Tournament on Wednesday afternoon. 

Alex Nichols led the Bobcats with 17 points and earned a spot on the All-Tournament team along with teammate Brock Hartline.