Breslin Bound: Boys Report Week 1
December 12, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The storm that rolled through the state Saturday and Sunday seemed to say welcome to winter. But a snow day can’t get in the way of introducing our revamped “Breslin Bound” report, powered by MI Student Aid.
Over the last few seasons, we’ve weekly posted looks at teams to watch in each class with an eye on the end-of-season MHSAA Tournament. We’re changing things up and expanding a little too to make sure you know about all of the most significant scores from the week that was, plus what games coming up are most likely to have our attention.
Results and schedules are based on what’s published for each school at MHSAA.com. To offer corrections or missing scores, please contact me at [email protected].
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Benton Harbor 57, Dowagiac 36 – Benton Harbor finished last season 15-6 but with three losses over its final four games; with this win, the Tigers avenged that final defeat, a 68-60 loss to Dowagiac.
2. Detroit East English 84, Flint Beecher 74 – Coming off a 17-5 record and league title last winter, East English picked right back up with a solid win over the reigning Class C champion.
3. Belleville 54, Canton 31 – The Tigers are off to a 2-0 start after winning 19 a year ago, and dropped Canton to 0-2 after the Chiefs were undefeated last regular season.
4. North Muskegon 44, Muskegon Oakridge 29 – The Norsemen finished fourth in the West Michigan Conference last season due in part to 14 and 16-point losses to Oakridge, which ended 16-6 overall.
5. Romulus 70, Chicago Bogan (Ill.) 67 – For a Romulus team coming off a 12-8 finish, beating a frequent Illinois contender was a great way to start climbing back to elite.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each class making sparks:
CLASS A
Ann Arbor Pioneer (2-0) – The Pioneers are looking to build on last season’s District title, and avenged one of their five losses from last winter by downing Southfield Christian 66-62 in their opener.
Coldwater (2-0) – Coming off 11-10 a year ago, the Cardinals might be in line for a jump after opening with two close wins, including 56-54 over reigning Interstate 8 Athletic Conference champion Marshall.
CLASS B
Coopersville (2-0) – Lost among some of the other Grand Rapids-area powers, Coopersville has won at least 15 games the last two seasons, and opened with another strong step downing Kent City 54-47 and East Grand Rapids 65-51; Kent City won its league last season.
River Rouge (2-0) – A Class B quarterfinalist last season, Rouge opened with a couple of nice wins over West Bloomfield (57-52) and Detroit Renaissance (45-36), which went a combined 30-14 last winter.
CLASS C
Manton (2-0) – The Rangers are coming off a 17-5 season that started with losses to Class A Traverse City West and Petoskey; Manton opened this season beating West 76-72 and Petoskey 52-48, so it should be lined up well to chase McBain (below) again in the Highland Conference.
McBain (2-0) – A Class C semifinalist last season that opened with 26 straight wins (including the only two losses Manton received in league play), the Ramblers surged out of the gate again beating Benzie Central 58-35 and Traverse City St. Francis – 16-8 last winter – 73-39.
CLASS D
Martin (2-0) – The reigning Southwestern Athletic Conference Central champion seems primed for a repeat run after opening with a 66-63 win over Saugatuck, last year’s SAC Lakeshore runner-up (and 16-5 overall).
Powers North Central (2-0) – Let’s get the start to “Jets Watch” out of the way, right away; North Central’s wins last week over Stephenson (87-19) and Rapid River (92-39) pushed their winning streak to 57 straight, going back to Dec. 8, 2014, and they sit eight short of tying Chassell’s record from 1956-58.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Thursday: Powers North Central (2-0) at Carney-Nadeau (2-0) – The Wolves get next shot at breaking North Central’s winning streak; they finished 14-8 last season with two defeats to the Jets.
Thursday: Frankenmuth (0-0) at Millington (1-0) – The football rivalry carries over to basketball, with the Cardinals (14-10 last season) looking to get an early edge on the reigning Tri-Valley Conference East co-champion.
Friday: Hudsonville Unity Christian (2-0) at Hudsonville (0-2) – Both made Quarterfinals last season, Unity in Class B and Hudsonville in Class A, with the Eagles claiming their early-season matchup by nine points.
Friday: East Lansing (2-0) at Lansing Everett (1-0) – East Lansing won the Capital Area Activities Conference Blue last season, but Everett reached the Class A Semifinals by handing the Trojans their first and only loss in a Regional Final.
Friday: Wyoming Godwin Heights (1-0) at Lowell (0-0) – These were two of the best from the Grand Rapids area last season as both won District titles, Lowell in Class A and Godwin Heights in Class B.
Second Half’s weekly “Breslin Bound” reports are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Student Financial Services Bureau located within the Michigan Department of Treasury. MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information, including various student financial assistance programs to help make college more affordable for Michigan students. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 savings programs (MET/MESP) and eight additional aid programs within its Student Scholarships and Grants division. Click for more information and connect with MI Student Aid on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
PHOTO: Flint Beecher (in red) downed Corunna 60-19 in posting a 2-1 record during the first week of this season. (Click for more from Varsity Monthly.)
Tri-unity Endures Ingalls' Scoring Surge, Earns 4th-Straight Finals Trip
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
March 14, 2024
EAST LANSING — Thursday’s first Division 4 Semifinal was a matter of depth and experience overcoming star power.
St. Ignace senior Jonny Ingalls entered the game averaging 30 points a contest, and Wyoming Tri-unity Christian head coach Mark Keeler knew Ingalls would get his – which he did in the form of 31 points.
But summoning their wealth of big-game experience and a deeper bench, Tri-unity Christian overcame Ingalls and St. Ignace with a late surge to earn a 60-53 win.
The Defenders (23-5) advanced to their fourth straight championship game, where they’ll look to claim a second title in three seasons after losing last year’s Final 39-37 to Munising.
“I think depth had a lot to do with it,” Tri-unity Christian head coach Mark Keeler said. “I think they were all tired. I told them before the game that (Ingalls) is going to get some shots. He is an amazing player. He is going to knock them down. What we didn’t want was for him to score 41 points like he did the last game.”
Tri-unity Christian certainly had a lot of work to do in less than a 48-hour period between Tuesday’s Quarterfinal round and Thursday to prepare for Ingalls, which made practice a more concentrated effort than usual Wednesday.
“We hadn’t played someone with the talent and jump shot he has all year,” Tri-unity Christian senior Jordan VanKlompenberg said. “We said we were going to face-guard him and not let him catch the ball, but if he’s bringing the ball up, it’s hard to do that. In practice, we definitely focused more on a single player.”
The teams went back-and-forth the entire game, but especially during the fourth quarter.
St. Ignace held a 40-36 lead going into the fourth, but Tri-unity Christian scored the first five points of the quarter to take a 41-40 lead with 6:05 remaining in the game.
The Saints responded with a run of their own, scoring the next seven points to take a 47-41 lead with 4:46 left following a pair of free throws by Ingalls.
But Tri-unity Christian had an answer of its own, going on a 12-1 run to grab a 53-48 lead with 1:54 to go. The run was highlighted by a pair of 3-pointers by senior Lincoln Eerdmans.
A basket by Ingalls brought St. Ignace to within 55-51 with 1:03 remaining, but Tri-unity Christian did a nice job of keep-away with the ball and ultimately went up 57-51 with 34 seconds left on two free throws by VanKlompenberg.
A 3-point attempt by Ingalls went in and out on the next St. Ignace possession, and the shot was rebounded Tri-unity Christian junior Keaton Blanker. Following a foul, Blanker made two free throws to give the Defenders a 59-51 lead with 24.4 seconds remaining that all but sealed the game.
Blanker scored 19 points, and senior Wesley Kaman added 14 for Tri-unity Christian, which had a 38-26 rebounding advantage.
It was a tough way to end the season for St. Ignace (21-7), which advanced to the Semifinals for the first time since 1983 and now has to say farewell to six seniors – and retiring 25-year coach Doug Ingalls – who brought the program to heights not seen in more than four decades.
“They finished and we didn’t, and that was the deciding factor in this game,” said Ingalls, who is stepping down with a record of 375-182 over three stints leading the program. “We had the heart of a champion.”
PHOTOS (Top) Tri-unity Christian’s Keaton Blanker (4) works to get a shot past the outstretched arms of St. Ignace’s Jonny Ingalls during Thursday’s Division 4 Semifinal. (Middle) Lincoln Eerdmans (25) splits a pair of Saints defenders. (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)