DETROIT — Romeo Weems made Macomb County basketball history.
Again.
The New Haven senior on Monday became the first county player to win the Hal Schram Mr. Basketball award, the latest honor for the highly decorated DePaul recruit.
The award is presented by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan, whose members’ votes determine the winner. Weems tallied 3,689 points in the voting. Runner-up B. Artis White of Canton had 1,798, Chandler Turner of Detroit Renaissance 1,520 and Joe Moon IV of Westland Glenn 1,372.
"Its' exciting. I'm overjoyed," Weems said. "It's a blessing. I don't have many words right now."
Weems is averaging 27.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 4.3 steals and 2.1 blocked shots per contest for New Haven, which takes a 24-1 record into a state Division 2 quarterfinal game against Harper Woods Chandler Park at Ortonville Brandon on Tuesday.
He was introduced at the Mr. Basketball news conference by BCAM official Al Snyder, a former coach at Mount Clemens.
“Romeo is having his best season of his career, and I wouldn't expect anything less from a kid that commits himself to excellence every day in the classroom, gym, weight room and film sessions,” New Haven coach Tedaro France II said. “He is one of the hardest working and most talented kids I have had the opportunity of coaching.
“He wants to get better every day, he wants to be better than he was the day before, better the next repetition, better the next game and he wants to be coached hard.”
Weems is the unofficial career scoring leader in county history with more than 2,000 points. He’s the only county player who has topped that milestone, according to a list compiled by the Michigan High School Athletic Association.
As a junior, Weems was named the state Class B Player of the Year by The Associated Press and the county Player of the Year by The Macomb Daily.
“He is up before school at 5 a.m. to do shooting and skill work, then he is at practice after school diving on the floor for loose balls, taking charges and leading, encouraging and motivating his teammates in drills that are so intense and competitive that you would think the championship was on the line,” France said.
“Great leadership, hard work, accountability and competing every day are some of the things he has brought to our program. Romeo has the unique ability to bring out the best in everyone around him and it translates into a culture of hard work and accountability that translates into success on and off the basketball court.”
The 6-foot-7 Weems has been the centerpiece of unprecedented success at New Haven.
The Rockets in 2017 became only the second county boys team to win a state championship when they captured the Class B crown.
New Haven went undefeated in Macomb Area Conference division games (42-0), unbeaten in district (11-0) and regional (10-0) tournament contests and lost only two home games in Weems’ four seasons.
The Rockets, who are riding a 23-game winning streak, have won a county-record five consecutive regional championships, including four with Weems in the lineup.
Their cumulative record in Weems’ four seasons -- he missed a handful of games -- is 99-6.
Weems helped the Rockets win a county-record 56 consecutive games during a streak that bridged his sophomore and junior seasons.
They made a second appearance in the state semifinals last year, becoming only the second county team to reach a final four in back-to-back years.
Lake Shore won the 1994 state Class B championship after reaching the state semifinals in 1993.
Weems picked DePaul from a short list of suitors that included Michigan and Michigan State.
New Haven won the final 26 games of its state-championship season and 26 straight the next season.
“Romeo has improved in every area of his game every year and right now he is the complete player that can do everything on the basketball court,” France said. “But what sets him apart is that he is a great leader and teammate.
His teammates love playing with him and he has been one of the most coachable kids I have had the pleasure to coach.”
Two county players were runners-up in Mr. Basketball voting.
Mike Peplowski of De La Salle finished second to Matt Steigenga of Grand Rapids South Christian in 1988, and Travis Conlan of Lake Shore was second to Willie Mitchell of Detroit Pershing in 1994.
Sam Vincent of Lansing Eastern was the first Mr. Basketball winner in 1981.
Pershing has had five winners, more than any other school.