THE FINAL HORN: YOUTUBE
HIGHLIGHTS: YOUTUBE
POSTGAME CEREMONY: YOUTUBE
LANSING, Mich. – For the first time in program history, Macomb Men's Basketball has won the MCCAA Championship! The Monarchs (24-4), Eastern Conference Champions, visited Western Conference Champion Lansing Community College for the MCCAA title game Monday (Feb. 28) and came out victorious, winning a thriller by an 88-82 final.
The historic win, coming three days after the Monarchs captured the program's second outright MCCAA Eastern Conference Championship, marked the latest achievement for the Blue & White under the direction of first-year head coach Hassan Nizam.
One of the youngest college coaches in the country, Nizam, 27, led the Monarchs to the program's first MCCAA Championship just nine months after being hired in late May 2021. After leading the Monarchs to the historic title, Nizam was named MCCAA Coach of the Year.
Monday's title win didn't come easy as Lansing's star, Drew Lowder, paced the host Stars to an early 13-4 lead as part of his 21-point first half. The Monarchs didn't back down and battled back from a 10-point deficit to regain the lead at the half, 38-36. Elijah Belle (Detroit, Mich./Davenport) attacked the basket to record 14 first-half points to help give the Monarchs the one-possession edge heading into the locker room.
In the second half, the Monarchs went in front by five, 59-54, before the Stars went on a 14-2 run to take a 68-61 lead with 8:41 remaining. The Stars lead would grow to as many as eight in the latter half, but the Monarchs put their championship mettle on display once again and amassed a 16-6 run of their own to regain the lead at 77-76 with just over three minutes remaining. Team defense, along with title-clinching baskets by Belle and clutch free throws by Jiovanni Miles (Novi, Mich./Wisconsin-Green Bay), took over late to secure an 88-82 victory in a hostile environment.
Belle paced the Monarchs with 32 points on 11-of-19 shooting overall and added six rebounds, while Miles and John Ukomadu (Bloomfield, Mich./Vincennes) followed with 16 points each. Ukomadu pulled down 11 rebounds to accompany his 16-point effort and Jaylen Daughtery (Detroit, Mich./Mott CC) recorded yet another double-double with 12 points and 12 boards in the championship victory.
Tariq Humes (Farmington, Mich./Elevation Prep) followed with 10 points, while defensive-stopper Delano Williams (Mt. Clemens, Mich./Mt. Clemens) tallied two points and prevented a host of points by the opposition.
