Boys basketball: Renaissance 76, Henry Ford 68

Renaissance rolls by Ford

Player's triple-double keys the victory, which avenges earlier loss and forges a first-place tie.

Rod Beard / The Detroit News

DETROIT -- With first place on the line, Detroit Renaissance coach Cameron Nichols didn't want to let the opportunity slip away. Nichols said he emphasized that message in practice with his players all week.

Renaissance responded with a 76-68 victory over visiting Henry Ford on Friday afternoon in a Public School League showdown.

With the win, Renaissance (11-2, 7-1) moves into a tie for first with Henry Ford with two division games remaining.

"This was a must-win for us, if we wanted to win the league," Nichols said. "We've been looking forward to this game since we lost at Henry Ford (Jan. 9)."

Daniel Sutherlin finished with 20 points, 18 rebounds and 10 blocks, and Delano Collins scored 17.

"Midway through the game, I knew I had more blocks than I usually have and I was being more aggressive," Sutherlin said. "We definitely came out with more energy than last time when we played them. We knew it was an important game."

Renaissance led the entire game and jumped to an early 7-1 lead before D'Ante Thompson's 3-pointer -- Ford's first field goal -- at the 5:32 mark. Renaissance's Brandyn Mungo scored seven of his 15 points in the period and helped build a 22-14 lead.

Ford (11-2, 7-1) closed the lead to five after Victor Edge's three-point play, but Sutherlin responded with a 3-pointer on the next possession. Midway through the second quarter, Demario Prince hit a triple to cut it to 30-25, but Sutherlin hit another 3-pointer to push the lead back to eight. Renaissance led, 38-31 at halftime.

"Danny was so focused on this game because he knew this was a big one," Nichols said. "He had to come with his best game for us to win and he did that."

Renaissance opened the third quarter on a 6-0 run after three free throws by Sutherlin and a 3-pointer by Chene Phillips (11 points). Collins got his fourth foul midway through the period and had to sit, but Ford could not cut into the lead and trailed, 52-41, entering the fourth.

Prince rallied Ford with 14 of his 24 points in the final period, including three 3-pointers. Ford cut the lead to 67-61 with 1:14 left after Jaisaun Holt's layup, but Renaissance's Durrell Carter (10 points) made consecutive layups to push the lead back to 10.

"We played with no emotion, no fight," Ford coach Ken Flowers said. "It's been 12 games, but we're still dealing with a young team that hasn't played a game of this magnitude."

Edge finished with 15 points and Matthew Hunter 13 for Ford.

You can reach Rod Beard at (313) 222-2578 or rod.beard@detnews.com.

***click here for game highlights***

PHOENIX BOX SCORE