Two familiars met at Groves High School on a recent afternoon in Arts & Tech Academy of Pontiac and Detroit University Prep Science & Math.

It was further evidence that no team wants to be familiar to ATAP at the present.

Opposing guards had trouble all last winter keeping in front of 5-foot-9 freshman Lewis Lovejoy. He averaged 21 points, seven rebounds and eight assists as the orchestrator of a powerful offense that filled it up all the way to the Breslin Center, and was named Michigan Sports Writers Division 3 All-State for his efforts.

With a season of varsity ball under his belt, he looked just as unstoppable against UPSM in Birmingham. After UPrep had made a go-ahead 3-pointer with just over 50 seconds left in the summer league game, Lewis was isolated with his defender at the top of the arc, turned and used a right-handed floater that hit nothing but net with 26 seconds left, the game-winning shot for the Lions.

Lovejoy, and a pair of to-be seniors in De’Vontae Grandison and Dontrail Grandison, are the lone holdovers from last year’s D3 finalists.

The early reviews on the new-look Lions are good from head coach Orlando Lovejoy Sr. “They’re young,” he said. “Once they understand how I need them to ply, and what’s required from them as far as being a part of ATAP, I think they’re going to do a great job.

“We’re just looking for a group of kids that’s looking to be the best every day, all day. We don’t wanna be trying to find guys or recruiting guys that aren’t taking it serious enough. We’re looking to take this thing to the maximum output as we possibly can.”

When asked what the focus this offseason is for Lewis, Orlando said it’s to be a coach on the floor. “It’s being a leader, (working on) leadership skills, being able to be a coach to his teammates (and help) them get a lot better.”

He talked about the continued fulfilling feeling it is to be able to coach Lewis, and expressed his happiness that Orlando Jr. elected to stay with Detroit Mercy after leading the Titans in points (16.3), rebounds (4.6), assists (3.8) and steals (1.7) last season, meaning he’ll get to watch ATAP in action more again next winter.

Lewis announced on Thursday that the Titans were his first official D1 offer, and, as Orlando put it, “They love (Lewis). He’s been there before he was even born. We were always down there with my oldest son — we used to stay right down the street from there on Fairfield, so it’s always been like a (second) home.”

Orlando doesn’t want the recruiting situation to take on too much life too soon, but by his own account, “more than a couple” offers for Lewis should follow the one out of Calihan Hall.

More offers for backcourt stars

Lovejoy hasn’t been the only local hooper collecting big looks in June.

Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice’s Greg Grays, playing his AAU ball with D. Rice Elite (along with West Bloomfield’s Curtis Britton), has had some great showings to follow up a junior year in which he had some explosive passages, including the Warriors’ district championship win against Groves.

After tweeting that he had collected an offer from Saginaw Valley State over a week ago, the high-scoring guard revealed that Oakland University on Thursday. It’s the second D1 offer for Grays, who had his first put on the table by University of Detroit Mercy back in January. In addition, Grays tweeted late Sunday night that he received an offer from Drexel as well.

Elsewhere, 2027 guard Peyton Kemp, who came off the bench last year for Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, has had good performances this summer running the offense and getting buckets with his AAU team, Indy Heat, and it’s resulted in a variety of offers the past few weeks. Kemp tweeted out he has received offers from Xavier, Jacksonville, Arkansas State, Toledo, Detroit Mercy and Bowling Green all in recent weeks.