State champion lacrosse player at forefront of Brighton's girls basketball surge
NORTHVILLE — While everyone else was building toward the start of basketball season in early December, Brighton junior Sophia Heady was still shaking off the rust.
Her summers weren’t spent in team camps or open gyms honing her basketball skills in preparation for her first varsity season.
Instead, she was traveling out of state nearly every weekend playing lacrosse, a routine that began almost immediately after helping Brighton win its second straight state championship in that sport.
“Going from J.V. to varsity was a big adjustment, especially not playing over the summer,” Heady said. “I just got my rhythm back starting in January. I started hitting my shots more often.”
The moment everything began to click for Heady happens to coincide with Brighton’s turnaround from what appeared to be a lost season.
Heady scored 18 points and grabbed 15 rebounds Tuesday night in the Bulldogs’ 48-43 victory over Northville.
After averaging 5.2 points during Brighton’s 0-5 start, Heady has averaged 11.8 points during a 7-4 run that has the Bulldogs contending for the KLAA West championship. Brighton, Canton and Howell are tied for first place with 7-3 division records.
It took time to get reacclimated to basketball, especially while trying to play catch-up with her teammates and opponents.
“It’s a little difficult, especially switching from a stick to just your hands shooting,” Heady said. “I get reps in. I try to when I’m not practicing. I’ll get extra shots up, which I try to do more. That’s probably a big thing. My teammates cheering me on, especially when I miss a shot, it helps, too, just because I know this isn’t my main sport.”
An athlete is an athlete, so many of Heady’s qualities transfer perfectly from lacrosse to basketball.
RELATED: Howell sets up girls basketball showdown with Brighton; Hartland routs a KLAA West co-leader
RELATED: Livingston Christian's Audrey Johnson scores 41 points: Is it a Livingston County record?
“She’s getting stronger and stronger as we go,” Brighton coach Bob Wellman said. “It’s exciting to see, because she’s got a lot of talent. Her No. 1 is lacrosse, and she plays tough lacrosse, so it helps in the game of basketball as well.”
Heady brings some perspective to her basketball teammates about how to overcome a tough start.
Coming off a state lacrosse championship in 2022, Brighton started last season 8-8-1 before winning its last nine games.
“We started off a little rough, but our coach always pushes us, just like Wellman pushes us this season,” Heady said. “We have great coaches to push us. They believe in us a lot, so it really helps.”
Brighton was in danger of being upset by a young Northville team that is 4-13 with a six-game losing streak, but a big fourth-quarter performance by Heady saved the Bulldogs.
After trailing 40-36 midway through the fourth quarter, Brighton tied the game on a basket by freshman Gracyn Houck with 2:01 remaining and took a 44-42 lead on two free throws by Heady with 1:45 left.
Heady hit two more big free throws with 16.9 seconds left, extending the lead to 47-43. She finished with 10 fourth-quarter points.
“We’re just getting to understand how to win and finish games,” Wellman said. “We didn’t do that early. Our defense has continually done things to keep us in games. Now we’re learning how to finish games.”
Brighton’s rivalry game with Howell will take on added meaning as a battle for first place when the Bulldogs host the Highlanders at 7 p.m. Friday.
Noelle Ebel had seven points, Sophia Moir had six points and four steals, and Houck had six points for Brighton.
Contact Bill Khan at wkhan@gannett.com. Follow him on X @BillKhan
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Sophia Heady's big finish leads Brighton girls basketball past Northville
