Aizlyn Albanese returns from injury, Farmington Mercy girls basketball routs Regina
By Brandon Folsom - Hometownlife.com
The one thing that couldn't happen to the Farmington Hills Mercy girls basketball team this winter actually happened.
Aizlyn Albanese, arguably one of the top juniors in Michigan, went down with an injury.
She was off to a hot start, too, scoring well over 30 points per game. But following her team's win on Dec. 22 at South Lyon East, she went to the doctor and was diagnosed with a minor knee injury.
Losing a star player would be rough for any team, but it was especially challenging for the Marlins, who have no seniors in the program and are relying on nine underclassmen to help rebuild their roster.
Sure, Mercy still had Emily Walker in the lineup, but what an unfair situation to put that junior in. A year ago, she was a role player who was asked to knock down open shots and play tough defense. She's since been promoted to captain and has been proven to be a reliable Luigi to Albanese's Super Mario. She's truly a standout now.
But to force Walker to carry the load while a bunch of freshmen and sophomores are still learning the ropes? That's not a recipe to win games, especially in the always-tough Catholic League-Central.
That's why it was unsurprising to see the Marlins lose to Northville in their first game without Albanese.
Fortunately for Mercy, Albanese was not gone long. At first, it looked as if she'd miss a month or more of action. In reality, she missed two weeks of practice and just two games. The other outing she sat out was a 42-24 victory on Jan. 3 at 1-8 Dearborn Divine Child in her team's first game back from the New Year break.
She made her return two days later against Goodrich, but it wasn't exactly pretty. The 5-foot-10 shooting guard looked a bit rusty and it took a while for her to get back into a rhythm during the 56-36 loss.
"I was short on my layups and shots weren't really falling," she said. "You could tell I hadn't played in two weeks."
More:PHOTOS: Northville girls basketball at Farmington Hills Mercy
But right there is where the injury worries end for Albanese and the Marlins.
Judging by her effort in Wednesday's 52-35 win at Warren Regina, it's safe to say she's back to being her old self.
Walker paced Mercy (5-3, 4-0 CHSL) with 19 points, but Albanese was right behind her with 15.
She made four free throws early in the opening quarter to get herself going and then she capped off the period by nailing a jumper before the buzzer to give Mercy a 13-8 advantage.
She continued to find her groove throughout the rest of the game.
Some highlights include her flashing to the basket for a tough two points to ignite an 8-2 run Mercy used to close out the first half, her scoring off a back cut to open the third quarter and her knocking down a 3-pointer and making another pair of free throws as part of an 11-3 run the Marlins needed to run away from the Saddlelites.
"I feel like I'm 100% back. I feel like my knee doesn't hurt anymore. I feel good," Albanese said. "But it was really hard (missing two weeks of action). I hated not being out there, but it was a good learning experience for our team, and I think it helped the freshmen grow, and Emily got to take on some leadership, so I think it was really helpful (for the team to try and compete without me on the floor)."
The most Albanese could do during practices while she was hurt was get up some shots. She spent the rest of the time being a bigger sister to the other girls and helping coach them as best as she could.
She also made sure to make herself available for Walker to lean on.
But to have her back on the floor? That makes a world of a difference.
More:PHOTOS: South Lyon East girls basketball vs. Farmington Hills Mercy
Not only does having her healthy give the Marlins their leading scorer back but it helps her teammates have a little more confidence knowing that she's out there when they need her in times of need.
"Obviously, her presence just really helps us," coach Gary Morris said. "She's a calming presence when we're taking the ball out against pressure. I would say that calming presence is huge for us again because we're just so young and inexperienced. It's no excuse. It's our reality. But when that's the case, ideally you'd like to have some seniors to rely on, but we don't. We do have one very experienced junior (Albanese) and one pretty experienced junior (Walker), and that's who we look to for that calming presence."
Albanese has returned just in time.
While it stinks Mercy went 1-2 while she was battling her injury, two of those losses were non-conference games. They didn't mean anything in the grand scheme of things.
Getting her back just before an eight-game stretch of CHSL play will be key as they attempt to return to the league tournament championship game. Especially with two of those matchups coming against top-ranked Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard and another two against rival Bloomfield Hills Marian.
More:Emily Walker's growth will be key to success of Farmington Hills Mercy girls basketball
Hopefully, they can put her injury behind them and look competitive again in the CHSL.
"It takes a while to come back no matter if you're an elite player or a very good player, whatever you want to say about her," Morris said. "She's still working her way back. She was off for two weeks. She's had like three practices, so it's going to take some time for her to get back into her rhythm."
Brandon Folsom covers high school sports in metro Detroit for Hometown Life. Follow him on Twitter @folsombrandonj.