- Michigan
BEST OF MICHIGAN: Defending D4 champ, No. 10 Lenawee Christian rolls past No. 7 Kalamazoo Central
BELLEVILLE — When you’re independent of any league affiliations, it gives you the luxury of being able to play anyone, anywhere at any time.
Until, of course, you routinely beat teams, and they stop wanting to play you.
For Adrian Lenawee Christian, the two-time defending champions of the smallest division in Michigan, they haven’t quite reached the latter stage yet, allowing them to pretty much play a packed schedule.
Ranked No. 10 in the STATE CHAMPS! Initial top 25, the Cougars continued their December roll call of who’s who opponents, facing off against the No. 7 ranked Maroon Giants of Kalamazoo Central at the Best of Michigan Holiday Classic, rolling to a 61-40 win.
Junior Bree Salenbien outdueled arguably the top player in Michigan’s Class of 2021, KC’s Morasha Wiggins, scoring 24 points on 10-for-17 shooting, pulling down nine rebounds and adding five blocks. Senior sister Dani Salenbien had a near triple-double with 15 points, seven rebounds and nine assists.
Wiggins finished with 21 points on 7-for-14 shooting, but the Maroon Giants (2-2) shot just 27.5 percent as a team — compared with 49 percent shooting for Lenawee Christian. The task of guarding Wiggins primarily fell on Cara Anderson and Lizzy Scharer, freeing up Bree Salenbien to roam the middle.
Lenawee Christian (3-1) outscored Kalamazoo Central in each quarter, starting with a 21-14 margin in the first, and a 27-14 bulge in the second half.
