Notes this week: Rockford’s Caden Pokorzynski plays hurt
Rockford’s Caden Pokorzynski drives to the basket while defended by Catholic Central’s Durral Brooks on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022. Rockford won 68-84. (Photo | Lenny Padilla).
Notes for the week of Dec. 12, 2022. Check back daily as this will be updated as news occurs.
GRAND RAPIDS - Caden Pokorzynski has been a pain in the side of opponents for the past two seasons.
Now the Rockford senior big man has an actual pain in his side.
Pokorzynski, a 6-foot-6 forward, will play this season with a torn labrum in his hip.
“He’s amazing,” Rockford coach Kyle Clough said. “He’s playing on a torn labrum. Most people don’t know that. He’s got a completely torn labrum and he’s out there fighting in pain every day. He’s such a tough kid.
Pokorzynski had 14 points in Rockford’s 68-84 win over Grand Rapids Catholic Central last Saturday.
“He means so much to our team and the guys love him,” Clough said. “He puts a lot of pressure on other teams, attention-wise, (Saturday) he made some big finishes.”
Surprisingly, Pokorzynski does not have a college offer yet.
Teammate Andrew Landis, who scored 32 points on Saturday, credited the size of Pokorzynski and Charlie Deutsch.
“Having Charlie and Pok in the paint really opened up things for me,” Landis said.
South Christian guard Nate Brinks also is playing with a torn labrum. The senior played the entire football season with the injury.
CALEDONIA: Jaiden Googins had 31 points as Caledonia had a strong win over Covenant Christian. They beat the Chargers 74-68 on Tuesday night. Googins, a junior forward, played his travel ball with the West Michigan Future.
CALVIN CHRISTIAN: Carson DeHaan scored 30 points in a 73-62 win over Covenant Christian on Friday. Jack Agema added 25 points.
CATHOLIC CENTRAL: Nate VanTimmeren had his last day of high school on Wednesday. The 6-foot-7 senior is leaving school early to enroll at Central Michigan University to play football. He played basketball up until this summer.
COMSTOCK PARK: Nate Schaub hit a buzzer-beater as Comstock Park beat Morley Stanwood on Tuesday.
FRUITPORT: Senior guard Bode Anspach scored a career-high 32 points on Friday in a win over Muskegon Western Michigan Christian.
FRUITPORT CALVARY: Sophomore forward Bradley Richards had 25 points and 20 rebounds in a 77-42 win over Pentwater on Monday. The 6-foot-5 Richards averaged more than 20 points per game as a freshman.
GODWIN HEIGHTS: Jakhary Towns had 30 points as the Wolverines beat West Catholic 59-55 on Tuesday. Last season, Towns, a senior guard, had five 30-point games.
GRAND HAVEN: A coach from the Air Force Academy was at Grand Haven’s game on Tuesday to see senior guard Senior Harrison Sorrelle. They have asked Sorrelle to make a campus visit. Sorrelle already has an offer from Army. Both service academies are Division I basketball schools.
NORTHPOINTE CHRISTIAN: Kayden Bird, a senior shooting guard, had 30 points in a 64-53 win over Potter’s House on Friday.
SPARTA: Jax Wilson had a monster game with 44 points in a 81-68 win over Whitehall on Tuesday. The senior guard was 12-for-12 from the free-throw line. “They face guarded me so I didn’t get any open looks,” Wilson said. “But sometimes the basket just looks huge.” It was a rematch of the regional semifinal game from last spring when Whitehall eliminated Sparta. This was the season opener for the Spartans.
WEST CATHOLIC: Senior Bernie Varnesdeel had a career-high 30 points in a loss to Godwin Heights on Tuesday. Varnesdeel transferred from Wyoming and then went on to be the quarterback of the Falcons football team that won the state title this fall.
ZEELAND: The Zeeland Holiday Tournament will be held on Wednesday Dec. 28 and Thursday Dec. 29. The first day will be held at Zeeland East High School and the second day will be at Zeeland West. On Day 1, Whitehall plays Zeeland East and Coopersville plays Zeeland West.
