Finally

Ellis, Duby and company break through against 'Muth

15 February 2008

greatlakeshoops.com

Frankenmuth-- Friday night was the culmination of a high school career full of ups and downs for Birch Run senior Jordan Duby. But it's a ride that's not over yet after the Panthers' stunning 72-58 win over previously unbeaten Frankenmuth.

What should have been a promising junior season for the 6-2 point guard was marked by dissension and defeat, leaving Duby distraught over what could have been and what never was.

But, as of 9:15 p.m. on February 15th, 2008, none of that matters.

Duby and the Birch Run Panthers did the almost unthinkable, shutting down the state's best basketball player and the no.3-ranked team in class B.

"I can't really describe how I feel right now," said Duby, who had the unenviable task of guarding Brad Redford. "I've been waiting four years for this moment, and it finally came together. We came together and played as a team. I'm just extremely happy."

The victory over Frankenmuth was the first in nine tries for Birch Run's seniors; it was a win that was enough to make former players, family members and friends wispy.

Don't blame the high humidity--those were tears.

The game was closer than the score indicates, but by no means were the Panthers ever on the ropes against the heavily-favored Eagles.

Birch Run led by two after the first quarter and sprinted into halftime up one after a 3-pointer by senior guard Chris Fogg hit nothing but net.

The Panthers had succeeded in slowing down the tempo of the game, holding the run-and-gun Eagles under 30 points in the first 16 minutes.

Duby played a tremendous half of defense, forcing Redford into difficult shots from the perimeter and leaning on his teammates on the help side.

Redford missed his first seven shot attempts in the game, and never got into rhythm all evening.

"The game plan was to stop Brad and to stop those other guys from making 3-pointers," said Duby, who sacrificed his own offensive productivity to concentrate on Redford, who came into the game averaging more than 39 points per game. "We just had to play defense. That is what we pride ourselves on, playing defense. I took it as a personal challenge. I've been waiting four years to guard him. But it wasn't just me, I mean it was the whole team. Brandon Belill played excellent defense. And, I mean, (Brad) had an off-night. Everyone knows he had an off-night.

"But we played our hearts out."

Up nine with one minute left in the third, the Panthers appeared to be ripe for the picking as Redford almost single-handedly willed his team back into the game with six points in 90 seconds to cut the lead to three. A minute later, another triple from Mr. Basketball cut the Panthers' lead to two points. But Frankenmuth would get no closer.

Dakotah Ellis saw to that.

The 6-5 junior (pictured left) played the game of his life, scoring 12 of his game-high 34 points over a four-minute span in the final quarter to put the game away.

"I was whooped the whole game from playing defense, but I trust him," said Duby of Ellis, who also ripped down 15 rebounds. "He has six inches on everybody on that team, and we knew we just had to feed him the ball."

Walking to the bus fully 30 minutes after the final buzzer sounded, Ellis was still at a loss for all the right words.

"It's just an amazing feeling," he said. "We had been thinking all week that we could beat these guys. We felt like we were the better team and we just came out and played like it. We matched up, one-on-one, and we knew we could win. We said our defense was going to win us this game."

Game notes

--Dakotah Ellis is Eli Redmond (future teammate of Jordan Duby at SVSU) with a better perimeter game. Ellis knocked down a 3-pointer with less than four minutes in the game to put Birch Run up nine. That shot was the one that broke Frankenmuth. For him to have the confidence just to take that shot tells me he is a real deal player. Nobody can ever take this away from you, Dakotah: You scored 34 points in the biggest game of your career. His is a name to remember for the future.

--Every single time Frankenmuth appeared poised to make a run, Birch Run responded with a big shot. Time after time a Panther, usually Ellis or Fogg, would step up and hit a big shot right when Birch Run had to have it. As long as we are talking about big-time performances, Fogg has to be in the conversation. He finished with 15 points and was out cold in the clutch. Great game, Chris! Junior Logan Gaines added 10 points including a couple of clutch baskets in the second half.

--Perhaps never before has an MVP award been granted to someone who scored only six points in a game. But were there ever a time when just such a performance would merit it, tonight is the night. Jordan Duby finished with six points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. His biggest stat of the game, however, is this: 18. That is the number of points Redford scored below his average. Stopping Redford was Duby's job, and he managed to do what no one else this season has. (Redford "only" scored 24 in their first meeting.)

--Redford did have an off-night, but only for a player of his ability. 21 points, six assists, three rebounds and three steals is a good game for most any player in Michigan--just not Redford. Unfortunately for the Eagles, Birch Run played defense like they had seven men on the floor at all times. The Panthers matched him up without any gimmicks and always seemed to have someone in the right place at the right time.

--One problem for Frankenmuth heading into the playoffs, where they will undoubtedly run into bigger and more athletic teams than Birch Run, is their inability to slash to the basket. Outside of Redford, the only other player who can attack the basket with consistency is Ryan Keith, who finished with 15 points. In fairness, I saw a flash of brilliance in the second half on a dribble-drive and finish by junior Tyler Gray. Your team needs more of that, TG. Senior guard Jeremy Warnemeunde finished with 12 point on four triples, but is simply not equipped to challenge a defense outside of spotting up. But, he is good at what he does.

--Coaches and player on both sides were all class tonight. Kudos to the Birch Run players, Duby included among them, who stood and applauded as Frankenmuth's seniors left the floor at their last home game.

--There's no place like Frankenmuth during basketball season. I've never seen more people packed into a gym in all my life. In fact, a couple fans who didn't get tickets (like the one pictured on the left) stood outside of the gym and watched the entire game. The wind chill, just for the record, was in the single-digits. They are lucky I was there to wipe the condensation off the windows for them. I wanted to let them in at halftime, but they declined. Apparently they are more upright and honest than yours truly. But, what could I expect from the best basketball fans in Michigan?