(CNN) — Hundreds filled a small-town Michigan church on a chilly and overcast Tuesday to say a final goodbye to a teenage hero who died just after scoring a winning shot that lifted his high school’s basketball team to a perfect winning season.
Friends and family paid their last respects at a funeral for 16-year-old Wes Leonard of Fennville.
The night before, his teammates charged into a gym, wearing T-shirts emblazoned with his number — 35 — and the phrase, “Never forgotten.” Fans erupted in a standing ovation and wiped away tears during a moment of silence before the tipoff of Fennville High School’s first game without Leonard as the point guard.
The Blackhawks won their first state playoff game, 65-54, before a crowd of thousands.
“This was a game he would like to watch. There’s no doubt his eyes were upon us,” Fennville coach Ryan Klingler told reporters, choking back tears.
