East Lansing — Arts and Technology Academy of Pontiac, behind sophomore guard Lewis Lovejoy’s incredible individual effort, came up just short in the Division 3 title game, falling to Pewamo-Westphalia 61-57 Saturday evening at Breslin Center.
Lovejoy impressed by scoring 41 with six made 3-pointers, the seventh highest point total in state title game history, making shots off the bounce all game to keep ATAP in the game.
“What can you say about Mr. Lovejoy out there,” PW coach Dominic Schneider said. “That guy is a stud, scoring at all three levels.”
PW was led by its all-time scoring leader, senior Grady Eklund, who eclipsed 2,000 career points in the Division 3 semifinal. Eklund had 29 points, nine rebounds and four assists and shot 11 for 18 from the field in the final.
Sophomore Logan Farmer was also clutch with 14 points on 6-for-10 shooting, including two free throws with nine seconds remaining to seal the game for PW. Farmer also drew the assignment of guarding Lovejoy in the fourth quarter, holding him to six points.
“Once we switched Logan onto (Lovejoy) … throwing a different look at him helped out a lot,” Schneider said. “Logan’s length and giving him a third defender that he had to go against, I think helped a lot.”
ATAP struggled to find a rhythm in the first three minutes, missing seven of its first eight shots to fall behind 8-2 early.
Eklund, coming off of a 29-point showing in the semifinal, scored six early points, including a thunderous dunk to help PW build early momentum.
A tough mid-range jumper from Lovejoy settled ATAP’s nerves. Senior captain Devonte Grandison added a layup through traffic after an offensive rebound, followed by a block on Eklund.
ATAP struggled to contend with PW’s size early. Six-foot-6 center Trent Piggott imposed his will inside to help grow the lead to 17-7 after the first quarter. Piggott finished with 11 points and a game-high 12 rebounds, leading PW to a 38-21 advantage on the boards.
The ATAP offense continued to run through Lovejoy, who scored 18 of the team’s first 23 points, hitting difficult jumpers to cut the halftime deficit to single digits.
The team’s defense and rebounding also improved in the second quarter, with Grandison and forward Aiden Reeves grabbing several key rebounds to end PW possessions and give ATAP second chances. With the improved effort on the boards, ATAP shrunk the lead to 28-23 entering the break.
The second half saw the teams trade buckets, with Lovejoy opening the half with a 3-pointer and a mid-range basket. Ekland answered by scoring inside, before hitting his only 3-point shot of the game to put PW up 39-32.
Switching ends at halftime did nothing to slow down Lovejoy, who continued to make difficult shots from three, midrange and inside on his way to another 17 points in the third.
Grandison also led a strong third-quarter defensive effort as the team continued to cut PW’s lead. Grandison added his second block of the game, before immediately assisting Lovejoy on a breakaway layup to cut the lead to two. Two possessions later, Grandison intercepted a bad PW pass and took it all the way to tie the score.
A Lovejoy made free throw followed by a layup to beat the third-quarter buzzer gave ATAP its first lead of the game at 46-45 entering the final quarter.
PW had an answer, opening the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run to regain a six-point advantage, with Eklund dominating inside to create several second-chance points for himself and teammates.
Senior guard Jaiden Price ended the run with a huge 3-point shot for ATAP, cutting the lead to 52-49. Lovejoy added a layup, but Eklund and Farmer responded with back-to-back scores to rebuild the PW advantage to five with less than two minutes to play.
PW fouled Lovejoy on a mid-range jumper, but Ekland answered again with an and-one layup.
ATAP junior Sherrod Magee hit a shot with his toe on the line, before a Lovejoy steal gave his team an opportunity to tie the score.
Lovejoy came up short on a tying 3-pointer with 24 seconds to go, with Ekland grabbing his ninth rebound and getting fouled. His only struggles came from the free-throw line, where he shot 3 for 10 on the evening, but he was able to go 1 for 2 to extend the lead to four.
Lovejoy went the length of the floor in just seven seconds to hit yet another mid-range jumper, his final bucket of the game, before Farmer’s two clutch free throws.
Despite its disappointment in coming up short, ATAP is proud of its accomplishments. The program is in the midst of the best run in its history, making its first two state title game appearances in the last two seasons.
“We came in, changed the program around,” assistant coach Zachary Kelso said. “We gave the Pontiac city some pride, we gave notoriety to ATAP. That was the main part, to just do what we were supposed to do, build a program and start a legacy there.”
Nathan Korp is a freelance writer.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Pewamo-Westphalia boys hoops weathers Lewis Lovejoy’s 41 points to win D3 state title
Reporting by Nathan Korp, Special to The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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