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March 4, 2003Leland clobbers Buckley WildcatsBuddy Kenney, Ben Schlueter spark 74-48 winByRecord-Eagle staff writer NORTHPORT - The past few days have been quite productive for the Leland Comets. On Friday, they defeated Buckley for the first time in seven years and earned a share of the Cherryland Conference basketball title, their first since 1971. On Monday, they played a strong all-around game and tipped off the Class D district tournament with an impressive 74-48 victory over league rival Northport. "Leland played a great game. They did everything they wanted to do," said Northport coach Chris Stannard. "We tried everything we could to stop them, but they hit their shots." The Comets, who will play Traverse City Christian on Wednesday, were particularly hot in the first half, nailing six of their first eight attempts in the opening quarter and eight of their first 10 in the second while building a 40-21 lead. It was 40-28 at halftime. "The last two weeks we've been talking about tournament time and what it means to make a run," said Leland coach Jason Stowe, who was a key member of Northport's state title team in 1988. "These seniors have really given us great leadership. They aren't ready for the season to end." The Comets (16-3) had four players score in double figures, dominated the boards and held the Wildcats to 31-percent shooting. "We've been playing great team basketball," Stowe said. "Whoever I put out there on the floor, I can count on to do their job. I can go 9-10 deep and feel comfortable." Buddy Kenney and Ben Schlueter led the way with 22 points apiece. Kenney, a 6-foot-4 junior, also had a team-high 14 rebounds. But it was the performance of Schlueter, a 5-9 senior, that left Stowe smiling and Stannard shaking his head. "The difference this time was Schlueter," Stannard said. "He didn't play like that before (in the teams' previous two meetings). We had trouble with his quickness tonight. "When you have Kenney and Schlueter both playing well you're going to have some real trouble with the match-ups." Schlueter, whose offensive output was a career high, said Kenney's presence inside helped him find room to shoot from the outside. "Once Buddy gets rolling it opens things up for the rest of us," Schlueter said. Ian Maures got hot at the end of the second quarter and early in the third, scoring nine points in a 13-0 run that cut Leland's lead to 40-34 with 6:22 remaining in the period. But Schlueter caught fire with three three-pointers in a 18-7 run to finish out the third quarter. "It was fun," Schlueter said. "I haven't shot like that all season. I've been waiting for that for a long time." Nick Griggs and Derek Telgard contributed 11 points apiece for Leland. Telgard also had nine rebounds, while Logan Suttman added eight. Maures, a 6-3 senior playing in his final game, finished with 20 points. He was the only Northport player in double figures. "I thought Logan and Nich (Weinheimer) played great defense on Ian, and he still scored 20 points," Stowe said. "That shows you the kind of player he is. Does he have the nicest shot in northern Michigan or what? It's beautiful." Stannard, whose team finished 9-12, said Maures and Clayton Kolarik will be missed. "It's been great coaching those two," he said. "They're so competitive. "In a lot of respects, Ian didn't have as successful of a season as he'd have liked because I asked him to do everything. "But this team made tremendous progress this season," Stannard said. "I wish we could start again tomorrow." Leland will play TC Christian in second-round action on Wednesday at 8 p.m. Lake Leelanau St. Mary's and Leelanau School square off at 6 o'clock. The district title game is set for Friday at 7 p.m.
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