Canton surging at right time, runs past Rocks 61-43
Justice Tramble powers in two of her 19 points.
Gritty, highly skilled and fearless, Canton’s girls basketball has all the tools necessary for a memorable run in the MHSAA post-season tournament.
The Chiefs’ journey has already gotten off to a rousing start thanks to a resounding 24-point victory over Plymouth and Wednesday’s 61-43 no-doubter over Salem.
While Head Coach Kayla Bridges’ team has earned an unofficial Plymouth-Canton Educational Park title this week with wins over its campus neighbors, its eyes are on the biggest prize: a district championship crown, which will be up for grabs 7 p.m. Friday at Salem against suddenly surging Northville.
Although Canton earned the most victories heading into this week’s tournament, it was relegated to playing on Monday, unlike top two seeds South Lyon East and Salem, who received byes.
Wire-to-wire win
The Chiefs played as if they had a chip on their shoulder, running to a 12-6 first quarter lead that they stretched to 26-15 at the half.
The Rocks never really threatened in the second half, but it did play well in spurts behind All-State senior guard Madison Morson, who finished her high school career with a game-high 23 points. Salem’s next-highest scorer was Leilah Howard, who scored eight.
Canton’s offensive attack was balanced, to say the least. Seniors Justice Tramble and Marisa Cribari scored 19 and 15 points, respectively, while freshman post player McKinsey Berlin scored 14 in a reserve role.
Senior Maya Joiner scored five points for the winners, but provided baseline-to-baseline hustle to provide invaluable energy.
Second-half surge
The Chiefs finished strong with a 35-point second half.
Tramble was an offensive-rebounding machine. She turned many boards into successful put-backs — or was fouled, resulting in a stellar 13-for-16 night at the free throw line. Altogether, Canton was 23-for-28 from the stripe.
Salem, on the other hand, relied more on perimeter shots. Morson, who was blanketed by layers of Chiefs most of the night, made 7 of her 9 freebies.
Ed Wright can be reached at 734-664-4657 or edwright@socialhousenews.com.
