GRAND RAPIDS — People beyond Whitehall have been aware of Camden Thompson for a while now.
Friday night at Cornerstone University’s Mol Arena, Kal Koehler put everybody on alert: Don’t forget about me.
Same can be said for the Vikings as a team when it comes to statewide notice: Keep an eye on us.
Koehler scored 10 first-quarter points and rolled in a shot at the halftime horn with his off-hand as Whitehall built a 20-point lead and coasted to a 70-52 victory over East Grand Rapids in a Cornerstone Holiday Classic matchup.
The 6-foot-4 junior forward finished with 17 points on 8-of-12 shooting, plus he grabbed six rebounds in 19 minutes of action en route to being named by tournament staff as team MVP for the game.
Koehler has hit his stride in recent games, which has only made the deep Vikings stronger in their impressive 7-0 start to the season.
Photos by Scott DeCamp | CatchMark
Here are more details and notables from the game:
- Camden Thompson led all scorers with 18 points to go along with 14 rebounds, four assists, three blocks, and two steals.
- Thompson, a 6-5 junior wing, is 20 points from reaching the 1,000-point milestone in his three-year varsity career. He’ll have a chance to do that when Whitehall takes on Fruitport in the Muskegon Area Sports Hall of Fame Holiday Classic opener at 3 p.m. next Wednesday at Reeths-Puffer. The Vikings will be looking for a little redemption after losing to the Trojans in a district semifinal overtime thriller last season.
- It was the second head-turning win in as many Cornerstone Holiday Classic games for Whitehall. On Wednesday night, the Vikings passed a big test against Hamtramck with a 61-51 win.
- Whitehall is in the middle of a busy and challenging stretch. After the Vikings play Fruitport next week, they’ll travel to Ludington on Jan. 5 for the first of two West Michigan Conference Lakes Division matchups between the defending co-champions. On Jan. 11, Whitehall hosts an Oakridge team that is currently 8-1 overall.
- Like Koehler, Whitehall junior guard Brock Morningstar continues to provide a big lift. Against EGR, he hit three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points off the bench.
- Whitehall senior Trannon Aylor also gave his team a big boost off the bench with six points, seven rebounds, two assists, and one block.
- Whitehall junior Cy Black drilled a pair of 3-pointers off the bench, illustrating the aforementioned depth for the Vikings.
- Whitehall senior DJ Jamison added five points.
- Whitehall senior Camar Ready started, but he played only eight minutes because he was not feeling well.
- East Grand Rapids’ Tommy Cavanaugh led his team with 15 points and was named the Pioneers’ MVP for the game.
- East Grand Rapids’ Carson Thornton hit three 3-pointers en route to nine points.
- East Grand Rapids slips to 3-4 on the season.
Photos by Shayla Hardy for CatchMark
