Wildcats finish in second place in Michigan AAU league

The Chatham-Kent Midget Wildcats came in second place in Motor City Fall AAU League.

The 2011 Wildcats started their season across the border, playing in the Motor City Grizzlies Fall AAU league in Pontiac, Michigan. It’s a 10-team league drawing some of the top middle school and AAU programs in the Detroit area.

It took a few weeks to adapt to the different “first to contact” style of basketball. After four weeks of league play, the Wildcats finished in sixth place, which included notable wins over the host Grizzlies and the Lindsay Hunter Elite.

In the playoff weekend, the Wildcats saved their best for last. In the quarterfinals, they had a rematch with Bates Fundamentals. The Wildcats effectively deployed their diamond press to win 58-47.

In the semi-finals, the Wildcats faced the top ranked team in the league, D’Nix out of Rochester Hills. Despite a first half where nothing was falling and they faced a 12-point deficit, the boys maintained their discipline and turned it around it around in the last minute to win 36-35.

In the finals, the boys played the Believers, a regional AAU team in the Detroit area, who had previously beat the Wildcats by 20 in league play. The boys played outstanding team defense to neutralize the 1-man and 2-man game played by their opponents and took good care of the ball on offense. Trailing all game, the boys grabbed the lead with 30 seconds to go but couldn’t hold it, losing 47-46.

It was an excellent start to the year, and now the boys will dial back game play as they head into their school season.