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Leading off the All-County team is a pair of Cros-Lex Pioneers - Karl Kaufman and Garrett Grundman. Kaufman, the Blue Water area Player of the Year, and Grundman, a two-time BWAC MVP, led their team to a 20-0 regular season.

A 5'10" senior guard, Kaufman was at the core of everything Cros-Lex did, offensively and defensively. He was dazzling with his moves to the basket and a main spark in C-L's pressure defense. For the season, Kaufman averaged 13.8 points, 3.6 steals and 2.7 assists per game. He also shot 55% from the floor overall and 44% from three-point range.

"He's a very well-rounded basketball player. He played both ends of the floor with great tenacity," lauded Don Roberts, Cros-Lex coach. "Defensively, he has quick hands and quick feet. Offensively, he was very tough to defend going to the basket with his variation of circus moves that he pulls off, and if you backed off, he could hit the triple."

A three-year varsity player, Grundman, a 6'5" senior, made a full-time move to the post this season, but he could still slide out and use his three-point capability. He also improved his defensive game. Grundman averaged 12.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 1.5 assists per contest, and also shot 61% from the floor.

Coach Roberts commented, "We asked him to play more inside and he was unselfish about doing that. He adjusted to it well and the rest of the kids adjusted to him. He's a great leaper - he rebounds well and he has a nice touch inside."

A natural wing player on offense, Sandusky's Matt Loding was called upon to do a lot of duty at the point guard this season. The 6'2" senior is a remarkable slasher to the basket but also likes to pull up and hit the short jumper. Loding often led the fast-break and could find the open man. For the season, he averaged 17.3 points a game, shooting 52% from two-point and 71% from the stripe. He also totaled 13 triples, 120 assists, 134 rebounds, 44 steals and 23 blocks.

"He had a good junior year, but there was no pressure on him. This year, he really came on, more than I expected," said Sandusky coach Kurt Long. "He's one of the toughest players to stop when he goes to the basket. He was fun to coach, especially since when one of your top producers is one of your hardest workers, too."

Although he could be temperamental at times, there is no question about what Justin McPhail has done for the Brown City basketball program the last four seasons. The 6' senior guard, now a three-time All-County selection and honoree on three Class C All-State teams this season. McPhail, in his career, became the Devils' all-time leading scorer, breaking the record set by Eric Smiley (Ô90-93) with 1,503 points. His scoring average, 15.7, was down this year, but he also was making a transition to point guard from the No. 2 guard slot. McPhail finished with 4.7 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game and led the team in steals with 50.

Coach Tony Burton of Brown City talked about McPhail: "He's played in 92 games for us and 71 of those were wins. He was involved in a lot of victories. We won a lot of games with him and a lot of championships." Burton added, "His shooting percentage was down, but we moved himÉto the point. We just thought it was better to move him thereÉ. he's always had great vision on the court."

In a season's time, Deckerville's Seth McVittie went from a great athlete to a very good basketball player. It is rare, at any level, that a player averages a double-double for the season. But, that's what the 6'3" senior did this winter, clicking at 14.3 points and 12 rebounds per game. He also had 33 assists and 51 steals for the season. McVittie was an All-State player in football this past fall and is also an outstanding track athlete.

Coach Dave Bitzer of the Eagles said there was a huge difference in McVittie's play from the start of the season to the end, and there was one reason. "In my estimation, he's the hardest working player I've ever coached, and I've coached a lot of athletes. And, I'm talking all of the time, practice and games. That's what has made him as good as he is," lauded Bitzer.

Kevin Mroczek has always played out at the point guard spot ever since getting pulled up from JV's three years ago, but he's never had to carry as much responsibility all the way around. The 6' senior, named the team MVP this winter, helped make the Marlette Red Raiders a very dangerous team on the court. He averaged an area-leading 5.4 assists a game but he also was counted on to provide some scoring and averaged 11.4 points.

Raider coach Chris Storm remarked on Mroczek's play. "He played with emotion every night and came ready to play. He was the glue that held everything together for us, and we found that out right away. His senior leadership and experience was a big key for us."

It was a remarkable season for the Cros-Lex Pioneers and it revolves around the direction of Don Roberts, the County News' choice for Coach of the Year. Around the midway point of the season, he collected his 300th career coaching victory. The Pioneers then went on to go 20-0 in the regular-season and adding their fourth consecutive BWAC hoops title. They also won a Class B District championship for the second year in a row and finished at 23-1 overall.

Roberts, always thoughtful in his words, reflected, "Guys go their whole career and do not have the opportunity to be associated with the type of team we had here.

"Nothing gets accomplished without the self-sacrifice by the players," he added. "I don't deserve credit for how talented these kids areÉall through the system they've been that way

"Mark Grundman (assistant coach) and I can take credit for selling the team chemistry philosophy and the sharing," continued Roberts.

The 21-year veteran of varsity campaigns went on to laud his coaching staff.

"I've got to give credit to Mark - he's been with me for three years and he's come up with some great suggestions - and always to Don Harbour (JV coach) and his wealth of knowledge. Roberts also credited other long-time coaches in the boys program such as Randy Simmons and Bruce Strachan. "The coaching staff has been here 20 years, with the exception of the freshmen level. It's how you keep a program strong. Everybody is on the same page."

Then, he concluded, "It's been a dream season. I just enjoyed the season immensely."

Second Team

Another player that bloomed on the hardwood this season is Brown City's Donovan Ogboh. The 6'1" junior forward became a scoring force in the middle and was the Green Devils' top rebounder. Ogboh scored at a 12.0 clip per game and averaged 7.0 rebounds. He also finished with 20 steals.

"Game-by-game, he was our most consistent player on both ends of the floor," spoke Burton. "He made tremendous improvement in his junior year from his sophomore year. When he was on, he was very good at finishing to the basket. He was much more assertive this season."

Not only did Sandusky's Chad Schmidt provide an additional scoring threat for the Redskins this year but he also provided some important leadership. The 6'2" senior forward particularly came up big late in the season. Schmidt averaged 12.1 points a game, shooting 50% from two-point. He also sank 25 triples this season and shot 71% from the line. Schmidt led the team in rebounding with 147 for the season and added 27 blocks.

Coach Long commented, "He really came on at the end of the season. He was our emotional leader in the locker room and on the floor. In the big games, he really showed up. He got us pumped up and that was fun to watch."

The Cros-Lex Pioneers were a team with many role players that all did their job. Gabe Lazurka not only played his role, but stepped up beyond that many times, offensively and defensively. The 5'10" senior guard averaged 7.6 points a contest, shooting 46% from the floor and 72% from the free throw line. He also was third on the team in assists and another defensive force.

"He was another well-rounded player that played both ends of the floor," said Coach Roberts. "He's capable of shooting from beyond the arc and he had games that he carried us, and others that he was a very good complimentary player. On most other teams, he could have been a go-to guy."

Think of a high-energy boost and then put Justin Taylor's name beside it. The 5'10" junior forward from CPS is a furious non-stop defender that turned into a scorer in the second half of the season. Taylor netted 9.1 scoring and 6.0 rebounding averages for the season. He led the Tigers tenacious defensive pressure by averaging 3.4 steals and helping create other turnovers.

"When we're in our press or our trap, he's the catalyst there. He's the one that creates opportunities - his own steals or for the team. When we go to man, anyone that we know can hurt us, that's the one he defends," said Jeremy Macejewski, CPS coach. "And, for his sizeÉhe found a way to score for us inside."

By nature, Chais Fleming is laid back away from the basketball court, but can turn on his athleticism and quickness when he's there. Fleming, a 6'3" senior, was an undersized post-player against bigger teams like Kingston and North Huron, but still performed well. For the year, he averaged 14 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.0 steals a contest.

Coach Macejewski commented, "He's talented. He's another guy that when he wants to work on defense that creates a lot of opportunities. He's at the point of our pressÉwith his long arms and his quickness. Also, when we needed a rebound, he was the guy that physically can go get it."

Before the season started, Peck coach Mike McLaughlin had no plans on bringing sophomore Billy Burns up to the varsity. By the time the first game came around, though, he was on it. As the season went on, the 6'2" guard/forward found more and more playing time and became a force to be reckoned with. Burns led the Pirates in scoring with an 11.0 average and also had 112 rebounds, 28 steals and 26 assists on the season.

"He's going to be a great player some day," remarked McLaughlin. "By the end of this year, he was our best player, by far. He's an outstanding athlete, but he still has a few things to work on."