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From Detroit Free Press:
PLAYING IT KOOL: Guard's back and ready to defend South Christian's
Class B title
BY MICK McCABE
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
"I'm in therapy right now because of him." -- Renaissance coach MARK
WHITE on South Christian's David Kool, who dominated the Phoenix in
last year's state semifinals.
HUDSONVILLE -- The usually reliable three-point shot just isn't falling for
David Kool on this night.
So the 6-foot-2 guard decides to become a post player.
He takes his defender inside, muscles the ball up to the basket and
scores at will. When a 6-6 defender switches to guard him, Kool moves to
the top of the key, uses a quick crossover dribble to streak past the
defender and gently lays the ball in the basket.
While he may have only been 2-of-7 on three-point attempts, Kool was
9-of-11 inside the arc and finished off Hudsonville Unity Christian with a
quiet 29 points -- if it is possible to score 29 points quietly.
"He'll get 25, 26 or 27 points and you'd walk out swearing he got 12,"
said Western Michigan coach Steve Hawkins, who signed Kool to a
national letter of intent in November. "He's not flashy, but he gets three
or four threes and he gets eight to 10 free throws."
In the locker room after the game, Kool seems a bit disappointed. He
shrugs when told he played a good game.
Kool played a fine game, scoring his season average, but he expects
perfection. He expects to play every night the way he played in the final
week of last season. This unassuming kid from the west side of the state
was the best high school basketball player in state history and made
himself a front-runner for this year's Hal Schram Mr. Basketball Award.
As the 80th annual boys basketball state tournament begins Monday,
Kool will attempt to win state championship No. 3. He was a support
player when Grand Rapids South Christian won the title in his freshman
year. A year ago he was the whole show.
Kool carried South Christian to the Class B state title with an awe-
inspiring performance.
"The basket looked huge," Kool said. "It felt like everything I threw up was
going in. You don't think about it, you just let it fly. I made some shots
and had great screens. Sometimes you get in a zone."
He was the Twilight Zone.
"It was just amazing," said his mother, Jan. "We still look back on it and
can't believe what he did. We kept asking ourselves: 'Is that our kid?' "
The ironic aspect of Kool's final week is that South Christian needed him
to hit both ends of a one-and-one free throw situation to win the
regional title by a point over Lake Odessa Lakewood just to reach a
quarterfinal game against Hillsdale.
"I remember him real well," said Hillsdale coach Brad Felix. "He got 32
points, nine rebounds and nine assists. He shredded our press single-
handedly.
"But I feel good about it now. He did better things after playing us. We felt
we shut him down."
Felix was kidding, but he was right. Kool was even better against Detroit
Renaissance in the semifinals.
"I'm in therapy right now because of him," Renaissance coach Mark White
said. "Are you going to charge me to talk about it like my doctor does?"
Kool was 15-of-22 from the field, 3-of-4 from three-point range, for 37
points in a 72-64 upset of Renaissance. Even more impressive, he didn't
commit one turnover against Renaissance's speedy guards, including 5-6
Tajuan Porter.
"The thing I remember most is how efficient he was," White said. "He
didn't make a lot of flashy moves, but he did everything with a purpose.
And he never missed a shot! I wake up in the middle of the night thinking
about him."
The next night Kool was still hitting shots, going 10-of-15 from the field
and 3-of-4 from three-point range. He also made every one of his 20
free throw attempts in a 67-60 win over Muskegon Heights.
"He was shooting so well and the momentum carried over to the next
day," said Heights coach Keith Guy. "He's smart and efficient. He knows
how to create his shot."
The most amazing aspect of his final week was his perfection at the free
throw line.
"I knew I was making a lot of them, but I didn't think I was 20-for-20,"
Kool said. "In the press room, somebody told me it was a state record. It
was unbelievable to think I did that."
For the week, Kool scored 112 points (37.3 points), and shot 37-of-54
from the field (68.5%) and 31-of-32 from the free throw line (96.9%).
Making it even more astonishing was that Kool accomplished all of that
without his biggest fan -- his grandfather. Anderson Slotsema, 81, died
the day before the quarterfinal and was buried the day before the
semifinal.
Kool's performance the final weekend brought college coaches out of the
woodwork. Suddenly, he was on everyone's radar screen -- until an AAU
game at Indiana University's Assembly Hall in early May.
"There was a loose ball and I was bending over to pick it up," Kool said.
"This guy came and hit the back of my left knee directly. I heard the pop. I
knew something was wrong."
Because he was in such good shape, medical people thought he had a
hamstring problem. It took almost a month for a torn anterior cruciate
ligament diagnosis.
Surgery was performed on June 1 -- and Kool was destroyed.
"The thought that my career could be over crossed my mind, but I heard
enough success stories about guys in the NFL bouncing back," he said. "I
knew it was a long road. It was hard to take, because at that point, I was
playing great in AAU. I was talking to Georgia Tech, Michigan and
Michigan State. They all kind of backed off.
"Those kinds of schools were out of reach for me."
Playing again could have been out of reach for Kool. But he attacked his
rehab process like a madman.
Under the watchful eyes of his sister, Candace Bonnema, a certified
athletic trainer, and Jason Doubleday, a certified strength and
conditioning coach, Kool worked up to six hours a day.
"He had the surgery on Friday, and by Monday, he was shooting free
throws," Bonnema said. "By Wednesday, he was spot shooting. It's a
testament he is out there now with no knee brace. He's finally getting
back to where he was."
While coaches from bigger schools backed off, Western's Hawkins never
wavered.
"I don't feel bad at all, it's going to be a great fit," Kool said of Western. "It
all worked out perfect. I'm going to play for a great coach and learn a lot."
Kool has had another terrific season and recently broke the school career
scoring record set by Matt Steigenga (1,725 points), the 1988 Mr.
Basketball winner.
Hawkins said he believes Kool is the kind of leader who can help take the
Broncos back to the NCAA tournament.
"Besides his scoring and everything, he's constantly shifting the praise to
others," Hawkins said. "He was close to breaking the school scoring
record and we'd mention it and he's like: 'Yeah, whatever.' He talks about
how well everybody else is playing. You put all that together and he's a
dream come true."
Kool knows all about dreams coming true. It happened to him last March.
He has the video to prove it.
"When I'm feeling a little bit down or my shot's not going down I'll watch
it," he said. "It makes me remember I can do it."
Oh, Kool can do it, but the question is can he do it again?
Kool is the only returning starter from last year's team, and although the
Sailors are unbeaten and ranked No. 2 in Class B, they aren't even a lock
to get out of their difficult district.
But Kool has an added motivation this month. He wants to win a state title
with the guys in his class -- Kool and his gang.
"It's been fun playing with my friends for the first time ever," he said. "We
hang out on and off the floor. It's a long road to go, but it would be
sweet, especially because these are your guys.
"If we can just get to the semis, anything can happen, just like it did last
year."
PLAYING IT KOOL: Guard's back and ready to defend South Christian's
Class B title
BY MICK McCABE
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
"I'm in therapy right now because of him." -- Renaissance coach MARK
WHITE on South Christian's David Kool, who dominated the Phoenix in
last year's state semifinals.
HUDSONVILLE -- The usually reliable three-point shot just isn't falling for
David Kool on this night.
So the 6-foot-2 guard decides to become a post player.
He takes his defender inside, muscles the ball up to the basket and
scores at will. When a 6-6 defender switches to guard him, Kool moves to
the top of the key, uses a quick crossover dribble to streak past the
defender and gently lays the ball in the basket.
While he may have only been 2-of-7 on three-point attempts, Kool was
9-of-11 inside the arc and finished off Hudsonville Unity Christian with a
quiet 29 points -- if it is possible to score 29 points quietly.
"He'll get 25, 26 or 27 points and you'd walk out swearing he got 12,"
said Western Michigan coach Steve Hawkins, who signed Kool to a
national letter of intent in November. "He's not flashy, but he gets three
or four threes and he gets eight to 10 free throws."
In the locker room after the game, Kool seems a bit disappointed. He
shrugs when told he played a good game.
Kool played a fine game, scoring his season average, but he expects
perfection. He expects to play every night the way he played in the final
week of last season. This unassuming kid from the west side of the state
was the best high school basketball player in state history and made
himself a front-runner for this year's Hal Schram Mr. Basketball Award.
As the 80th annual boys basketball state tournament begins Monday,
Kool will attempt to win state championship No. 3. He was a support
player when Grand Rapids South Christian won the title in his freshman
year. A year ago he was the whole show.
Kool carried South Christian to the Class B state title with an awe-
inspiring performance.
"The basket looked huge," Kool said. "It felt like everything I threw up was
going in. You don't think about it, you just let it fly. I made some shots
and had great screens. Sometimes you get in a zone."
He was the Twilight Zone.
"It was just amazing," said his mother, Jan. "We still look back on it and
can't believe what he did. We kept asking ourselves: 'Is that our kid?' "
The ironic aspect of Kool's final week is that South Christian needed him
to hit both ends of a one-and-one free throw situation to win the
regional title by a point over Lake Odessa Lakewood just to reach a
quarterfinal game against Hillsdale.
"I remember him real well," said Hillsdale coach Brad Felix. "He got 32
points, nine rebounds and nine assists. He shredded our press single-
handedly.
"But I feel good about it now. He did better things after playing us. We felt
we shut him down."
Felix was kidding, but he was right. Kool was even better against Detroit
Renaissance in the semifinals.
"I'm in therapy right now because of him," Renaissance coach Mark White
said. "Are you going to charge me to talk about it like my doctor does?"
Kool was 15-of-22 from the field, 3-of-4 from three-point range, for 37
points in a 72-64 upset of Renaissance. Even more impressive, he didn't
commit one turnover against Renaissance's speedy guards, including 5-6
Tajuan Porter.
"The thing I remember most is how efficient he was," White said. "He
didn't make a lot of flashy moves, but he did everything with a purpose.
And he never missed a shot! I wake up in the middle of the night thinking
about him."
The next night Kool was still hitting shots, going 10-of-15 from the field
and 3-of-4 from three-point range. He also made every one of his 20
free throw attempts in a 67-60 win over Muskegon Heights.
"He was shooting so well and the momentum carried over to the next
day," said Heights coach Keith Guy. "He's smart and efficient. He knows
how to create his shot."
The most amazing aspect of his final week was his perfection at the free
throw line.
"I knew I was making a lot of them, but I didn't think I was 20-for-20,"
Kool said. "In the press room, somebody told me it was a state record. It
was unbelievable to think I did that."
For the week, Kool scored 112 points (37.3 points), and shot 37-of-54
from the field (68.5%) and 31-of-32 from the free throw line (96.9%).
Making it even more astonishing was that Kool accomplished all of that
without his biggest fan -- his grandfather. Anderson Slotsema, 81, died
the day before the quarterfinal and was buried the day before the
semifinal.
Kool's performance the final weekend brought college coaches out of the
woodwork. Suddenly, he was on everyone's radar screen -- until an AAU
game at Indiana University's Assembly Hall in early May.
"There was a loose ball and I was bending over to pick it up," Kool said.
"This guy came and hit the back of my left knee directly. I heard the pop. I
knew something was wrong."
Because he was in such good shape, medical people thought he had a
hamstring problem. It took almost a month for a torn anterior cruciate
ligament diagnosis.
Surgery was performed on June 1 -- and Kool was destroyed.
"The thought that my career could be over crossed my mind, but I heard
enough success stories about guys in the NFL bouncing back," he said. "I
knew it was a long road. It was hard to take, because at that point, I was
playing great in AAU. I was talking to Georgia Tech, Michigan and
Michigan State. They all kind of backed off.
"Those kinds of schools were out of reach for me."
Playing again could have been out of reach for Kool. But he attacked his
rehab process like a madman.
Under the watchful eyes of his sister, Candace Bonnema, a certified
athletic trainer, and Jason Doubleday, a certified strength and
conditioning coach, Kool worked up to six hours a day.
"He had the surgery on Friday, and by Monday, he was shooting free
throws," Bonnema said. "By Wednesday, he was spot shooting. It's a
testament he is out there now with no knee brace. He's finally getting
back to where he was."
While coaches from bigger schools backed off, Western's Hawkins never
wavered.
"I don't feel bad at all, it's going to be a great fit," Kool said of Western. "It
all worked out perfect. I'm going to play for a great coach and learn a lot."
Kool has had another terrific season and recently broke the school career
scoring record set by Matt Steigenga (1,725 points), the 1988 Mr.
Basketball winner.
Hawkins said he believes Kool is the kind of leader who can help take the
Broncos back to the NCAA tournament.
"Besides his scoring and everything, he's constantly shifting the praise to
others," Hawkins said. "He was close to breaking the school scoring
record and we'd mention it and he's like: 'Yeah, whatever.' He talks about
how well everybody else is playing. You put all that together and he's a
dream come true."
Kool knows all about dreams coming true. It happened to him last March.
He has the video to prove it.
"When I'm feeling a little bit down or my shot's not going down I'll watch
it," he said. "It makes me remember I can do it."
Oh, Kool can do it, but the question is can he do it again?
Kool is the only returning starter from last year's team, and although the
Sailors are unbeaten and ranked No. 2 in Class B, they aren't even a lock
to get out of their difficult district.
But Kool has an added motivation this month. He wants to win a state title
with the guys in his class -- Kool and his gang.
"It's been fun playing with my friends for the first time ever," he said. "We
hang out on and off the floor. It's a long road to go, but it would be
sweet, especially because these are your guys.
"If we can just get to the semis, anything can happen, just like it did last
year."