Breslin Bound: 2021-22 Boys Report Week 12
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 28, 2022
We're hours from the beginning of March and less than a week from the start of the MHSAA Boys Basketball Tournament.
Although District seeds have been determined and brackets posted, there are still plenty of teams with plenty on the line as we finish up the regular season. We highlight some of those below, plus take a look at a few more contenders before switching into "Breslin Bound" playoff mode next week.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com. Send corrections or missing scores to [email protected].
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 65, Detroit U-D Jesuit 43 The Eaglets’ win over Detroit Catholic League Central champ Jesuit (12-5) in the Bishop Tournament semifinal set St. Mary’s (15-4) up to go on and down Detroit Catholic Central in the final.
2. Onaway 84, Mancelona 50 Onaway (18-1) clinched its first league title in this sport since 1963, defeating runner-up Mancelona (13-6) in the Ski Valley Conference.
3. Detroit Martin Luther King 66, Detroit Western 38 The Crusaders added the Detroit Public School League Tournament title to their PSL Blue championship with this win over PSL Gold winner Western (15-4).
4. Flint Beecher 63, Flint Carman-Ainsworth 60 The Bucs (17-1) appear ready for another Division 3 title run, that assumption backed up again by this close win over the Division 1 Cavaliers (13-5).
5. Macomb Dakota 65, Clinton Township Chippewa Valley 45 These two shared the Macomb Area Conference Red title, but Dakota (14-5) claimed the MAC Red/White Tournament championship with its second win over the Big Reds (13-6) in three meetings this season.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
Division 1
Canton (15-4) The Chiefs opened this season with four consecutive losses (all to teams that have won at least 11 games). Canton has not lost since and will take on Hartland on Tuesday in hopes of adding the Kensington Lakes Activities Association Tournament title to the KLAA West championship clinched two weeks ago against the Eagles (15-4). The division title was the team’s first since 2018-19, and Canton then defeated Dearborn (15-4) in a KLAA Tournament semifinal.
Detroit Cass Tech (15-3) Although Cass Tech missed out on playing in the PSL Tournament final, having lost to Western in a semifinal, there is still plenty of reason to believe the Technicians could emerge as champs of one of the state’s strongest Districts next week. Cass lost to Western 57-51, and its other defeats to King and Clarkston (11-7) were both by five or fewer points. Meanwhile, the Technicians have downed Carman-Ainsworth, Detroit Southeastern (12-5), Detroit Edison (12-6), and Detroit Renaissance (11-7) twice, among others.
Division 2
Carrollton (17-2) The Cavaliers have guaranteed themselves a share of the Tri-Valley Conference 10 title, and their two losses this season were by a combined seven points including by six to league rival Standish-Sterling (18-1). Carrollton also has a win over Standish and two apiece over Ithaca (15-5) and Hemlock (13-6). The Cavaliers were a one-point loss from making the Division 2 Quarterfinals last season and could be on the verge of a similar run.
Romulus Summit Academy (16-2) The Dragons have won 14 straight, including a perfect run through the Charter School Conference West and league tournament. Total, nine of their wins are over teams with at least 10 victories, with last week’s by 19 points over Romulus (11-4) sticking out recently along with victories over Warren Michigan Collegiate (13-2) by 22 and Edison by five during the league playoffs. Summit reached the Division 2 Quarterfinals a year ago after similar regular-season success.
Division 3
Benzie Central (17-1) The Huskies downed Maple City Glen Lake 58-45 on Friday to win the Northwest Conference title, its first since 2011-12. It’s been a solid jump from finishing fourth and 10-9 overall last season, with the only loss this winter 64-56 in the first meeting against Glen Lake (15-5) on Jan. 25. All but two of Benzie’s wins have been by double digits and have included a pair over Buckley (14-4) and another over Lake Leelanau St. Mary (14-4).
Pewamo-Westphalia (14-4) Second-year coach Dominic Schneider has picked up where longtime coach Luke Pohl left off, leading the Pirates to a combined 26-7 record over the last two seasons. P-W clinched a share of the Central Michigan Athletic Conference title Friday and can claim it outright with a win in either of two games this week against teams at the bottom of the standings. The Pirates started the season 2-3, then won 12 straight before falling to undefeated Freeland (19-0) by six Saturday.
Division 4
Southfield Christian (15-3) The Eagles are annual Finals contenders and reached the Quarterfinals last season before falling to eventual champion Detroit Douglass. Two of their three losses this winter were to Division 2 teams, Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard (13-4) and Detroit Country Day (11-7), with the third to Plymouth Christian Academy (11-7) resulting in their shared Michigan Independent Athletic Conference Blue title. Tuesday’s matchup with Clarkston Everest Collegiate (13-5) will provide more prep for the postseason.
Ubly (14-3) The Bearcats clinched their second-straight Greater Thumb Conference East championship outright last week and also posted an impressive win over Deckerville (14-5). Ubly’s losses were to GTC East third-place Memphis (13-6) twice, by a combined five points, and GTC West runner-up Bad Axe (17-2). The Bearcats could see Deckerville again next week as they pursue a repeat District title as well.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Hartland (15-4) at Canton (15-4) – As noted above, these two will meet for the KLAA Tournament championship after finishing second and first, respectively, in the West.
Tuesday – Menominee (17-2) at Ewen-Trout Creek (15-3) – Two of the Upper Peninsula’s best offer each other a final regular-season test heading into the playoffs.
Tuesday – Waterford Mott (14-3) at White Lake Lakeland (16-3) – Mott also must play South Lyon on Thursday, but has a half-game lead on Lakeland at the top of the Lakes Valley Conference standings after winning the first meeting 44-35 on Jan. 25.
Thursday – Flint Beecher (17-1) at Grand Blanc (13-5) – The Bobcats are not taking it easy during the last week of the regular season, taking on the Bucs after opening the week against River Rouge.
Thursday – Blanchard Montabella (17-1) at Carson City Crystal (16-3) – Montabella has a one-game lead in the Mid-State Activities Conference heading into this season finale, but the Eagles won the first meeting 45-42 on Jan. 26.
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PHOTO Flint Metro League Stripes champion Flushing downed Corunna 63-45 in nonleague play last week. (Photo by Terry Lyons.)
Muskegon Pairs Fast Start with Stellar D to Advance to Championship Day
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
March 24, 2023
EAST LANSING – Muskegon boys basketball coach Keith Guy had concerns about how his team would start in Friday’s Division 1 Semifinal.
It turned out he had little cause for worry.
The Big Reds knocked down a trio of 3-pointers in the first quarter to build a double-digit lead and were never seriously threatened in a 65-42 win over Orchard Lake St. Mary’s at Breslin Center.
Muskegon (26-2) will face Detroit Cass Tech in Saturday’s Division 1 Final at 12:15 p.m. The Technicians defeated Grand Blanc 63-56 in overtime in the day’s first Semifinal.
It will be the Big Reds’ first appearance in the championship game since 2014, when they won the Class A title.
“They make 500 jumpshots a day, and they had to trust their work on this stage.” Guy said. “The basket is still 10 feet and the basketball court is still 94 feet, so we just couldn't make the moment bigger than who we are.
“I thought our kids did a great job of handling the moment to start this game because I was worried about us being a little tight, and we were loose.”
St. Mary’s opened the game with a 3-pointer from sophomore Trey McKenney, but that would be the Eaglets’ only lead.
The Big Reds raced to a 15-4 advantage and never looked back.
“I feel like we were ready to go,” said Muskegon senior guard Jordan Briggs, who had a team-high 19 points and added seven rebounds and five assists.
“We've played in games like this with big crowds throughout the whole season, so we were kind of prepared for it. We played a tougher schedule with tougher teams. We just wanted to play loose and play our game, and we did that and were able to come out with the victory.”
The Big Reds were up 28-20 at the half and took a 39-27 lead into the fourth quarter before pulling away over the final eight minutes.
“That’s a tough team we just beat, and we really respect what they do,” Guy said. “They are a tough team to defend and we are blessed to come out on top, and I’m blessed to be around these guys for another day.”
The Big Reds also clamped down defensively, holding the Eaglets to one of their lowest-scoring outputs of the season.
“We are committed to defense, and we try to make everything tough,” Guy said. “If we were going to get beat tonight, it was because Trey or one of their players had an unbelievable night.”
Muskegon’s David Day III made 5 of 6 shots and finished with 16 points, while Anthony Sydnor III added 11 points and was tasked with the job of defending McKenney, who finished with 20 points on 5 of 13 shooting and had 10 rebounds.
“I just took pride in my defense, and every shot he made I didn’t react,” Sydnor III said. “I just kept going, and my teammates helped me a lot. We just kept fighting the whole way.”
The Eaglets’ 42 points tied a season-low as they shot only 26 percent (11-42) from the field and 19 percent (4-21) from behind the 3-point line.
They also were outrebounded 36-25.
“Muskegon is a very good team, and they are very well-coached,” Orchard Lake St. Mary’s coach Todd Covert said. “They do a lot of things very simple, but do them very well, and we got hurt on the boards pretty good and missed some shots early.
“But it was a pretty historic run we just went on, and a pretty tough road we had to get here.”
The Eaglets (16-11) upset top-ranked Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice en route to their first trip to the Semifinals since 2006.
Sharod Barnes, a sophomore, chipped in 13 points for St. Mary’s.
PHOTOS (Top) Muskegon’s Anthony Sydnor III (4) elevates for a jumper during his team’s Division 1 Semifinal against Orchard Lake St. Mary’s on Friday. (Middle) The Big Reds’ Jordan Briggs (2) gets to the basket.