Durral Brooks, Merritt Alderink are finalists for Mr. Basketball
Durral Brooks, left, of Grand Rapids Catholic Central, and Merritt Alderink of Zeeland West are finalists for the 2023-24 Michigan Mr. Basketball Award. (Photos | Lenny Padilla).
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Durral Brooks and Merritt Alderink have been teammates on travel-ball teams since they were in middle school.
Now they are on the ultimate team: Both are finalists for the Hank Schram Michigan Mr. Basketball Award.
Brooks, a senior at Grand Rapids Catholic Central High School, and Alderink, a senior at Zeeland West High School, are among four finalists named by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan and the Detroit Free Press.
“When you think of what Mr. Basketball represents in the 2024 class, you think of Durral Brooks,” Catholic Central coach T.J. Meerman said. “He's an incredible person and leader, on and off the court. He was one assist shy of a triple double in our school's only state championship (in 2021). He's having the best of years, leading our very young team to another (O-K Gold) Conference title averaging 26 points per game, all while playing with a small tear in his patella tendon.”
Brooks, a 6-foot-2 guard, has signed to play at the University of Michigan. He is averaging 26 points, 7.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game for the Cougars (14-5).
“It means a lot,” Brooks said. “But none of it could've happened without my team so all the thanks goes to them and my coaches.”
Meerman coached both Brooks and Alderink on the same Swish travel team last summer.
“Having had the privilege of coaching them both, there are so many similarities,” Meerman said. “Both are incredibly skilled players and high-level athletes, but what I think separates both of them is their competitive edge. While in hotels on road trips, they both were begging to watch film of their games on Saturday nights to see where they could gain an advantage or what they needed to work on. This bled over onto the court as they both do whatever it takes - defend, rebound, or dive on a loose ball if it means helping the team to a win. I love the fight and drive they both play with.”
Alderink, a 6-foot-6 power forward, is 13.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.4 steals per game for Zeeland West (15-6). He has signed to play at Indiana State University.
“It's awesome,” Alderink said of the nomination. “I've put a lot of time into the game and seeing a result like this means everything. I was pretty surprised, but it really is a blessing.”
Brooks and Alderink were in 8th grade when they first met. They were teammates on the Bates travel team for two years together. Then they reconnected on a few more teams, including Swish.
“I think that it's really special that we are both being recognized for this award,” Alderink said. “We have been playing with each other for over five years and it's really cool to see us both up there.”
The other two finalists for the Mr. Basketball Award are Ayden Davis, a 6-foot-10 center from Onsted and Tyler Ode, a 6-foot-6 guard from Saginaw Heritage.
Members of BCAM will vote on the four finalists and the winner will be announced on Sunday, March 11.
