Grosse Pointe South boys basketball is all grown up, atop MAC-Red division

GROSSE POINTE FARMS — After an 11-11 season and a last-place finish in the Macomb Area Conference-Red division in 2022, Grosse Pointe South boys basketball has flipped the script this season.

Starting a freshman, a sophomore and three juniors last season, and earning wins over Detroit Renaissance, Warren Michigan Collegiate, and Macomb Dakota before the end of the season, South was all grown up entering this year.

“Last season, we were just really young; I only lost one player last year,” South coach Steve Benard said. “These guys had never played at the varsity level before, and we really struggled. We started the season something crazy like 0-4 and then 2-7.”

South started 2-6 in 2022, and started this season in similar fashion with an 0-2 start. Granted, South was missing two starters in its first two matchups against Detroit Loyola and Ferndale, and the team quickly shifted the season back on the right path with seven straight wins.

Now back at full strength, South holds a 9-3 record and sits atop the MAC-Red division.

“When I put the schedule together, I thought, ‘Gosh, I just can’t wait to get out and play so everyone can see my team play,’ because they play so well together, they defend well, they bang threes, and they’re athletic,” Benard said. “They may not look uber-athletic, but my team is fast.”

Led by one of the top backcourts in the state, featuring senior Anthony Benard, a Mercer University commit, and junior Karter Richards, South’s balanced attack on both ends of the floor has put Division 1 teams on notice.

While the trials and tribulations of the 2022 season offered enough maturity for the team, summer National Collegiate Athletic Association events at Grand Valley State University and Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio, solidified the team’s confidence.

Playing against some of the best teams in both Michigan and Ohio, including Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice and Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, Anthony Benard said South came into the season with a new mindset.

“It was just getting our chemistry down and working in the offseason,” Benard said. “We had a great summer and a great fall with all the guys playing together and just getting the chemistry down. We’re all on the same page about what we wanted to do and what everyone’s goals were coming into the season.”

Benard, a first team all-state selection last season, has continued his impressive display of scoring, but what teams didn’t account for was Richards to be right beside him.

Richards displayed his defensive ability last season, asserting himself as the team’s top defender, but his offensive progression has made him one of the best two-way juniors in the state.

“Last year, he was probably our top defender,” Steve Benard said. “He just kept growing and growing; he’s in the gym all the time, and he’s got a high IQ. His game is dynamic because he can post a guy up, shoot off the dribble, shoot from threes, and on the defensive end, he can guard a guy 5-foot-8 or 6-foot-4, so he’s very versatile defensively. His improvement has been a big part of our success for sure.”

Alongside Richards in the progress department are seniors Noah Stiyer and Alex English, junior Nate Davey, and sophomore Vincent Vachon.

Stiyer, a 5-foot-9 power forward, is tenacious on the defensive side, and Benard said he’s played a key role in South’s success.

“He’s in the right place all the time; he’s a tough kid,” Benard said.

The 6-foot-8 stretch center, Alex English, has been reliable on both ends of the floor for South. While South follows the John Beilein style of offense where everyone is a perimeter threat, the defensive side is where South’s roots reside.

“I have a group that wants to do it; they really get after it,” Benard said. “They’re assignment strong, and they know what they need to do.”

A tight-knit group on the defensive side and off the court, South’s potential this season is unmeasurable with the way the group is playing together.

If South has shown anything this season, it’s that this isn’t the team that stepped onto the floor last season, and Anthony Benard said there’s one main reason behind that

“Last year was just growing pains,” Anthony Benard said. “Last year was basically a whole prepping season, and then in the summer and fall we put everything together.”