Breslin Bound: Boys Report Week 8
February 3, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A number of MHSAA boys basketball teams finished the first half of their league schedules last week.
A number of games set up which teams will chase over this final month of the regular season, as well as which will be chased with little to no room for error.
See some of those teams below that stuck out for how they stayed in or joined league races over the final week in January.
CLASS A
Battle Creek Central (7-6) – Opponents can’t sleep on the Bearcats despite their middling record; Battle Creek Central started 0-5 but has won five straight including two by five or fewer points last week. Central trails Kalamazoo Central by a win in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference East and faces the Maroon Giants on Friday.
Dearborn Fordson (9-3) – A brief downturn of three losses in four games in mid-January is over thanks to wins over rivals Robichaud and Dearborn last weekend. The Tractors’ next games are against the teams ahead of them in the Western Wayne Athletic Conference Blue standings – co-leaders Belleville and Romulus.
Novi (10-2) – Barring something unexpected, only Salem can still challenge Novi in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association Central. The Wildcats finished fifth in the league last season; a 77-65 win over Salem on Jan. 20 separates the two at this point.
Saginaw Arthur Hill (11-2) – Playing potentially its last season (the school reportedly may merge with Saginaw High), the Lumberjacks are taking advantage and haven’t lost in 2015. They own a one-game lead in the Saginaw Valley Association North thanks to an 88-66 win last week over second-place Saginaw.
CLASS B
Alma (9-2) – The Panthers took a tough Tri-Valley Conference crossover loss to West leader Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary on Friday, but opened last week by beating East co-leader Millington by 15 and then extended their Central advantage to two games with a win Saturday over Hemlock.
Dowagiac (10-1) – The Chieftains retained their grip on a share of first place in the Wolverine Conference West with a 68-66 win over third-place Edwardsburg last week. Dowagiac has won seven straight and gets its rematch Friday with Paw Paw, the other first-place team and the only one to beat Dowagiac this winter.
Haslett (10-1) – The Vikings have quietly set the pace in the Capital Area Activities Conference Red behind standout junior point guard Brandon Allen, and he’s gotten plenty of help during a six-game winning streak that last week included an overtime win over Class A Holt. The only loss was to second-place DeWitt, up again Feb. 13.
Marysville (9-2) – Marysville missed a league title by a win last season but has two more than the field in the Macomb Area Conference Silver after rolling through the first half of the league schedule undefeated. The Vikings needed three overtimes to beat Clawson 51-46 last week.
CLASS C
Carson City-Crystal (8-2) – The Eagles extended their recent winning streak to five with a 62-55 win over Vestaburg on Friday that pushed both teams and Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart into a tie for first place in the Mid-State Activities Conference. The second half of the league schedule starts this weekend.
Fennville (11-1) – A halfcourt shot make was the most memorable play of Friday’s 67-61 overtime win over Saugatuck that kept Fennville in first place in the Southwestern Athletic Conference North. The big shot sent it to the extra period as Fennville went on to win the “Never Forgotten” game played in honor of former standout Wes Leonard, who died on the court in 2011.
Manton (8-3) – The Rangers won 10 games last season and can equal that total in 2014-15 with two victories this week. Manton lost big to Highland Conference leader McBain three weeks ago, but maintains second place and gets McBain again Feb. 20.
Maple City Glen Lake (7-4) – The Lakers opened 3-4 but haven’t lost since to hold on to a share of first place in the Northwest Conference. Glen Lake owns that piece of the top spot after beating Frankfort – also tied for first – 45-44 on Jan. 13.
CLASS D
Alanson (8-2) – The Vikings have won six straight and sit alone in second in the Northern Lakes League after defeating third-place Mackinaw City 45-42 on Friday. Alanson fell to the Comets by 21 points on Jan. 6 and won nine games a year ago.
Felch North Dickinson (7-5) – The Nordics started 1-5 but are making their way back up the Skyline Central Conference East standings. North Dickinson sits in third but beat second-place Crystal Falls Forest Park 57-53 last week.
Lawrence (10-1) – The Tigers’ 8-player football MHSAA title kicked off a strong year for the school’s boys teams; the basketball team leads the Southwestern Athletic Conference South and has won seven straight.
Rudyard (10-3) – The Bulldogs are second to Class A Sault Ste. Marie in the Straits Area Conference and have won four straight including 75-65 over third-place St. Ignace on Friday. Rudyard gets its second shot at Sault Ste. Marie on Feb. 24 after losing by 10 in their first meeting Jan. 16.
PHOTO: Alma defeated Millington in a crossover matchup of Tri-Valley Conference leaders last week. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com).
Breslin Bound: 2022-23 Boys Report Week 10
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 13, 2023
From strictly an anecdotal point of view, it’s appeared Michigan’s best boys basketball teams have matched up more this regular season than most in recent memory.
No doubt, expanding the schedule to 22 games has helped provide a few more opportunities. And it seems like every Saturday over the last 10 weeks has included one or more showcase events where several of the elite have faced off – which makes the nine undefeated teams we have left all the more impressive.
Detroit Cass Tech stands alone among the undefeated in Division 1, while Hart, Olivet and Standish-Sterling are without a loss in Division 2. Laingsburg and Napoleon are undefeated in Division 3, and Mio, Painesdale Jeffers and Taylor Trillium are at 1.000 winning percentages in Division 4. Another 24 teams have only one loss this season, and 20 have only two defeats – and we highlight a number of these teams below.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice 73, Detroit U-D Jesuit 62 The Warriors (16-1) completed an outright championship run through the Detroit Catholic League Central, leaving the Cubs (15-3) in second place, and after finishing second to Jesuit last season.
2. Ferndale 82, Port Huron Northern 65 The Division 2 Eagles (9-6) are up to eight wins over their last nine games, this one over another Division 1 contender in PHN (16-2).
3. Munising 54, Powers North Central 49 The Upper Peninsula has four of the top nine teams in Division 4 MPR, and Munising (16-1) sits No. 9 but has another argument to be regarded higher after defeating No. 4 North Central (11-3).
4. Davison 94, Flint Hamady 90 (5OT) The finale of Davison’s Cardinal Classic was classic and memorable finishing in just under two hours and 10 minutes as the Cardinals (13-5) edged the Hawks (15-3).
5. Pittsford 71, Hillsdale Academy 66 (3OT) The Wildcats (12-3) avenged a 12-point loss to Hillsdale Academy (11-4) from Jan. 12 as the top teams in the Southern Central Athletic Association East met for the rematch.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Ann Arbor Huron (16-1) A loss to Saline on Jan. 31 is the only misstep during an otherwise perfect run. Huron can clinch a share of the Southeastern Conference Red championship Tuesday against Monroe, which will go well with showcase victories over Port Huron Northern (16-2) and Benton Harbor (13-4) over the last three weeks. The River Rats also are coming off a 57-41 win over Ypsilanti Lincoln – which defeated Huron in its District opener last season after Huron had finished Division 1 runner-up in 2020-21.
Grosse Pointe South (15-3) The Blue Devils have gone from 11-11 overall and nearly worst to first in the Macomb Area Conference Red, having tied for fourth last season but clinching a perfect run to the league title with last week’s win over Macomb Dakota. This potential showed during two losses to start the season as they fell by only three to Detroit Loyola (17-1) and six to Ferndale, and the third loss was by just seven to River Rouge (12-5). South meanwhile has downed West Bloomfield (12-3), Saline (12-5), Birmingham Groves (11-5) and Roseville (11-6) twice.
DIVISION 2
Warren Lincoln (15-3) The Abes have built on last season’s 19-3 momentum with another league championship, this one in the MAC Gold, and Saturday’s 74-63 win over host Benton Harbor at the Wilson Chandler Shootout was the team’s ninth-straight win. Lincoln has done it against a stacked schedule, falling only to Brother Rice, Warren Fitzgerald and Muskegon (15-1) while defeating North Farmington (15-1), Detroit Martin Luther King and Grand Rapids Northview (13-4) and sweeping Harrison Township L’Anse Creuse (13-4) and Warren Woods Tower (13-5).
Warren Michigan Collegiate (14-2) A two-point double-overtime loss to Grand Rapids Christian on Feb. 4 broke a 12-game winning streak, but the only other defeat came to reigning Division 1 champion Warren De La Salle Collegiate as the Cougars have mostly dominated. A 45-44 victory over Orchard Lake St. Mary’s and 63-56 win over Detroit Edison are among the most notable work, with the latter earning Michigan Collegiate the Charter School Conference East championship.
DIVISION 3
Grandville Calvin Christian (15-1) The Squires have followed up last season’s 19-4 finish in part with a 14-game winning streak, their lone loss to Hudsonville Unity Christian on Dec. 9. The two months of undefeated play have included eight wins over teams with double-digit victories, including 62-54 over Hopkins and 60-54 over Wyoming Godwin Heights last week as Calvin Christian finished regular-season sweeps of those opponents. The Squires lead Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian by two games in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Silver with four to play – and they meet Feb. 24 after Calvin won the first round 83-66 on Jan. 27.
Ovid-Elsie (14-2) The Marauders are a combined 30-6 over the last two seasons as they play for a second-straight Mid-Michigan Activities Conference championship. Chesaning (15-3) has become a solid rival – those two have decided the last three league titles – and they’re tied for first with their rematch Friday deciding a share of the MMAC crown. Ovid-Elsie won the first meeting 55-51 in overtime Jan. 16, but had an early loss to Durand (14-3) – which it avenged 49-47 on Friday. Ovid-Elsie’s only other defeat came to undefeated Laingsburg (16-0) – a possible District opponent.
DIVISION 4
Bellevue (14-1) Going over 20 wins with a league championship has become the norm for the Broncos, and they’re working on a possible eighth-straight conference title this winter with their only loss nonleague to Bronson on Dec. 28. They’ve otherwise been perfect and mostly unchallenged, with only one single-digit win. The defensive work has been especially impressive; Bellevue has held three straight opponents (including Pittsford, see above) to under 20 points, and only three opponents all winter have scored more than 32.
Ironwood (13-3) The Red Devils followed two straight sub-.500 finishes with a 12-10 run last season, and they’ve raised their play a few more levels – especially over the last three weeks as they’ve won seven straight beginning with a 54-51 overtime victory over Watersmeet. Ironwood and Watersmeet are the main contenders in the Copper Mountain Conference Porcupine Mountain title race, and they meet again Feb. 16. A pair of strong in-state losses – to undefeated Painesdale Jeffers (16-0) and Houghton (12-3) – also are part of the resume.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Monday – Hillman (14-1) at Mio (14-0) – The leaders of the North Star League’s divisions meet in advance of a possible rematch at their Division 4 District.
Wednesday – Pewamo-Westphalia (12-3) at Laingsburg (16-0) – There are still tough games to win in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference, but getting two clear of the second-place Pirates would go a long way for the league-leading Wolfpack.
Thursday – Richmond (15-1) at Croswell-Lexington (13-3) – The Blue Devils are threatening Croswell-Lexington’s three-year hold on the Blue Water Area Conference title, having won their first matchup 53-44 on Jan. 19 to take the league lead.
Friday – Benton Harbor (13-4) at Niles Brandywine (14-1) – The Tigers’ 73-54 win over Brandywine on Jan. 13 is the difference at the top of the Lakeland Conference standings, and Benton Harbor can clinch a share of the title by finishing a regular-season sweep.
Saturday – Muskegon (15-1) at Grand Blanc (15-2) – The cross-state tilts among contenders are winding down for the regular season, and this will be one of the last but also could be one of the best.
MHSAA.com's weekly “Breslin Bound” previews and reviews are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Office of Postsecondary Financial Planning 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. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
PHOTOS (Top) Fowler and Bath tip off Friday in a game Bath would eventually win 75-66 in overtime. (Middle) Jakobie Boose (4) elevates for a jumper as Flint Hamady and Davison closed the Cardinal Classic with a five-overtime matchup won by the Cardinals 94-90. (Below) Negaunee's Gavin Saunders (23) is defended by Ishpeming's Griffin Argall (24) during the Miners' 63-42 win. (Photos by John Johnson, Terry Lyons and Cara Kamps, respectively.)