Remembering Wes: Never forgotten

FENNVILLE, Mich. (WOOD) - In the Fennville boys basketball team's final game of the regular season, the Blackhawks were gunning for a perfect 20-0 record.

Fennville battled back from a double-digit deficit, and forced overtime with 20 seconds left.

Wes Leonard got the ball near the top of the key. And what happened moments later changed a team, a community and a family forever.

Leonard, 16, collapsed after hitting the game-winning shot March 3. Celebration turned to shock and devastation -- that a teenager; an athletic kid could just die, hours after the game.

Fennville's population is 1,400. Christ Memorial Church estimates 1,700 people attended Leonard's funeral. National media flocked to Fennville to cover the story, including Sports Illustrated and Sporting News. ESPN staffed Fennville's entire tournament run with a documentary crew, as well.

Leonard's winning shot has been viewed on YouTube nearly seven million times.

"This is what Wes wanted," said Leonard's mother, Jocelyn Leonard. "(This is) what he dreamed of -- (but) not like this."

Forever an athlete

Wes certainly won't be forgotten in Fennville.

His name had been mentioned on 24 Hour News 8 Sports a handful of times over the years. In October 2010, Leonard and his teammates earned a playoff-clinching win over Bloomingdale in football. Wes, also the Blackhawks' quarterback, threw seven touchdown passes in that game.

In February, back on the court, he put up 30 points against NorthPointe Christian. It was clear he was the best player in whatever sport he played.

Leonard was a great athlete from a small school. And still, his sudden death -- of cardiac arrest from an enlarged heart -- managed to capture the attention of the nation.

Taking the court -- again

Just several days after Leonard's death at Holland Hospital, his teammates walked arm in arm into an at-capacity DeVos Fieldhouse, to play a district opener against Lawrence. The Blackhawks were led by Leonard's 13-year-old brother, Mitchell.

No one knew what to expect when Fennville took the court, except that tears would be shed -- and Leonard was on everyone's minds.

"I threw up the number 35 because that's my main man," said Xavier Grigg, Leonard's teammate and backup. "I miss him -- wish we was still here with us today."

Grigg's love for his friend showed when he came to the bench in the first half, and had to be consoled by head coach Ryan Klingler.

How does one play with a broken heart? How does a parent come to the game, knowing a son won't be there?

"It was really hard to get Jocelyn and Gary to come," Leonard's uncle said. "Until now, they had been sheltered from all of this."

The emotion in the gym was overwhelming; the sportsmanship was uplifting. Lawrence and Fennville played against each other, but grieved together. Before the game, players from both teams wore shirts honoring Leonard. They shared a pregame meal, and on the advice from Michigan State coach Tom Izzo -- who spoke at the meal -- exchanged hugs instead of handshakes when the game was over.

Somehow, Fennville won, even without its leader.

"They have shown me that you can rise up," Klingler said after the game. "And my gosh, the strength they showed -- and the Leonards showed -- to be here tonight, just blows my mind. That exemplifies Wes Leonard."

The Blackhawks would need to draw on that strength in the coming days, because one day after Leonard's funeral, they had to play another game; this time against Bangor.

Winning and losing

They played hard -- focused and inspired, thrashing Bangor 79-50, also at DeVos Fieldhouse before a packed crowd of about 3,500.

Grigg scored a career-high 25 points. As he walked off the court, he exchanged smiles with Klingler.

"Honestly, with all my heart, I think it was six against five tonight," Bangor coach Rocky Johnson said after the game.

Said Klingler: "I know (Wes is) around. He's going to be an angel to us for a long time."

The win moved Fennville into the district championship game, where the Blackhawks took on Covert. They weren't about to be denied, and despite being down at the half, battled back to beat the Bulldogs, 51-48.

They were district champions.

Mitchell Leonard was sent to the court to accept the trophy.

"It meant a lot," he said. "(It was) an emotional moment."

Added Klingler: "I thought it was something he deserved -- and the Leonard family deserves. These guys have played the last two games with Wes in their hearts."

The victory put Fennville into the regionals; three wins from an improbable trip to the state finals at Breslin Center.

But the Blackhawks' run came to an end against No. 2-ranked Schoolcraft. In a battle of the unbeatens, the Eagles topped Fennville, 86-62 at Vicksburg High School.

Fennville may have lost the game, but the team's effort and resolve did more than honor a fallen friend.

"People have an idea of who he was," Klingler said. "Outside of his passion to compete. ... I don't think they understand, or