Krosschell gives South Christian another weapon on offense
South Christian senior Caleb Krosschell competes against Forest Hills Central on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. He scored a game-high 20 points in a 58-49 win. (Photo | Lenny Padilla).
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - South Christian basketball coach Taylor Johnson found a new scoring weapon sitting on his bench.
Caleb Krosschell, a senior guard, didn’t start until midway through this season, and he’s making the most of it.
He had a game-high 20 points on Friday night in a 58-49 win over Forest Hills Central. With the Sailors (12-2) holding a slim 25-19 lead at halftime, Krosschell scored his team’s first eight points of the third quarter.
“Our offense wasn’t really there,” Krosschell said. “They scouted us pretty good. Props to them. But we came together as a team. Our defense, all around, was good.”
Krosschell’s career high was 11 points. But he’s averaged 14.8 points in his past five games, including two 20-point games.
“He’s come into his own a little bit,” Johnson said. “The reason he’s scoring so much, it’s his rebounding and his effort. He lets his game come to him.”
Krosschell, a 6-foot-2, 165-pound guard, said it has less to do with him and more to do with the overall talent on the South Christian roster.
“Every night it’s a different guy who is scoring a lot of points,” he said. “JJ (Modderman) just scored a bunch and Max (Zichterman) just had a big game and so did Owen (Burgess). Anyone can score. It’s not just one guy going off.”
Johnson agrees.
“We’re a tough scout,” he said. “We’ve had four different guys score 20 points in a game this year. Today was Caleb’s night.”
South Christian JV coach Jeff Krosschell and sons Caleb (2) and Tyler (21) pose on Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025 at the Cornerstone Holiday Tournament. (Photo | Lenny Padilla).
Johnson said he had Krosschell come off the bench to start the year, but things changed since the calendar turned to January.
“That comes with experience,” Johnson said. “He’s stayed the course. Last year he fought for minutes. This year, we had him coming off the bench to start. Then we felt he was the best option to start and he’s proven it.”
Krosschell’s dad, Jeff Krosschell, is the South Christian JV boys basketball coach and is on the bench for the varsity games, too.
“It’s really cool,” Caleb said. “He’s coached me since third grade. We have our ups and downs. But it’s really fun knowing - if I’m struggling or having a big moment - I know he’s there for me.”
Caleb also got to play in a couple of games with his little brother Tyler, who is a freshman. He’s a starter on the JV team, but got called up for a couple of fifth-quarter games.
“To be honest, this summer looking at the season, I didn’t think there was any chance to play in a game with him. It’s pretty cool that we got to play together.”