Sports
Man
in the
Middle
Harley Marks
has made
an impact
for West
Bloomfield High.
MIKE ROSENBAUM
SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
est Bloomfield High
School basketball
coach Tim Domke
says "a lot of big
men want to be
guards" and show
off their ballhan-
dling skills. But
Domke doesn't have
that problem with
his big man ; Harley
Marks.
"Harley enjoys
being a big guy,"
Domke says. "He
loves to bang under the
boards."
Marks is that rare
breed, someone who's
happy with who he is. On
the court, the 6-foot-7,
255-pounds-and-still-
growing Marks says he
does enjoy the physical
brand of basketball that
suits his physique.
"I like to get in there
and be physical," says
Marks. "Not too many peo-
ple really enjoy that, but I
like it. It's my game. I'm
not going to be able to get
in there and beat everyone
because of my quickness
or my great athletic skills,
so I might as well throw a
Harley Marks: Having a fine senior year.
body on them, push them
around a little bit."
But don't get the idea
that Marks, a senior and a
third-year varsity starter,
is all brawn and no brain.
Domke noted that Marks,
along with point guard
Matt Domke, are the
Lakers' leaders.
"Matt's more a quiet
leader," Marks says. "He'll
run the point guard, run
the show. Me, they expect
me to be more vocal, 'OK
let's do this, get on this.' I
talk more on defense."
That means that West
Bloomfield relies on
Marks to recognize situa-
tions on the court, partic-
ularly on defense, and to
then give quick instruc-
tions to his teammates.
He also takes younger
players aside during prac-
tice to help them correct
mistakes or just to give
advice.
Marks enjoys his new
role as the team's on-court
voice. If no one else does it
you've got to step up and
do it. In the past, I really
didn't have to do it as
much because we had a lot
of guys who'd step up and
talk. But this team's a lit-
tle more quiet and not as
experienced."
Offensively, Marks can
score inside, but he can
also hit the jump shot.
"He's got soft hands," Tom
Domke says. "He's gifted
— that's very important."
In his first two years as
a starter, he and West
Bloomfield enjoyed plenty
of success. As a sopho-
more, Marks averaged
seven points and seven
rebounds per game. Last
season, he improved to
14.1 points, 10.4 rebounds
and 2.5 assists per contest
and earned second team
All-County honors.
The Lakers posted 20-4
and 23-2 records and won
back-to-back Metro
Suburban Activities
Association champi-
onships, finishing 14-
0 in league play last
season. West Bloom-
field has also been a
Class A regional final-
ist the past two years.
Marks started this
season slowly, but
back-to-back games of
24 and 22 points
boosted his scoring
average. The Lakers,
who entered this sea-
son with high expecta-
tions even though
they boasted fewer
experienced players,
are second in the
MSAA.
Marks says it's been
"a little frustrating"
as the young Lakers
attempt to mature
into a championship
team. But he enjoys
playing with this
group.
"We've got no jerks
on the team. We've
got a few little argu-
ments on the court
but that's just compet-
ing. Everyone's pretty
good friends."
Basketball has always
been Marks' number one
sport. But he didn't devel-
op a strong interest in the
game until fairly recently.
Although he played on
his middle school teams in
7th and 8th grade, "I
never really liked it," he
admits. "I was just play-
ing because everyone said,
`You have to play, you're
6-1 and 13 years old.' But
I've come a long way.
Great coaches and good
people around me have
helped me a lot."
Marks became serious
about basketball in 9th
grade. Now, he plays the
game year-round. After
the high school season
ends, he plays on an AAU
team, traveling around
the country to match up
with some of the nation's
best young players. And
when he's not playing or