Breslin Bound: Boys Report Week 8
January 30, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A record nearly 60 years old was toppled last week by Powers North Central. Now Beaverton is readying to celebrate a new winningest coach in MHSAA basketball history.
Those have been the headline grabbers in boys hoops over the last few weeks, and of course we touch on both below in this week’s Breslin Bound report powered by MI Student Aid. But there was plenty else to discuss too as we came out of halftime of this boys basketball season into a final dash full of exciting possibilities.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Powers North Central 76, Bark River-Harris 29 – The Jets have brought a lot of attention to their small community and Upper Peninsula basketball as a whole thanks to what this win earned them – an MHSAA record with 66 straight victories going back more than two seasons and including two Class D title runs.
2. Detroit Catholic Central 52, Detroit U-D Jesuit 51 – This was the first of two banner wins last week for the Shamrocks (who also downed Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 70-54); last season, DCC fell to the eventual Class A champion Cubs by 21 and 35.
3. Flint Carman-Ainsworth 52, Saginaw 45 – The Saginaw Valley League North-leading Cavaliers handed the South-leading Trojans this loss, avenging last season’s 20-point Regional defeat.
4. Detroit Edison PSA 99, Detroit East English 81 – After losing to East English by 20 on Jan. 10, DEPSA stunned the 10-2 Bulldogs to improve to only 5-7 but with three wins over its last four games.
5. Lansing Catholic 76, Williamston 72 – These two split the Capital Area Activities Conference White championship last season, but this counts as an upset after the Hornets (10-2) beat Lansing Catholic by 21 during the first week of this winter.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each class making sparks:
CLASS A
Melvindale (9-2) – The Cardinals have won seven straight since opening 2-2 and downed Brownstown Woodhaven 73-66 on Friday in a matchup of teams that entered undefeated in Downriver League play. Woodhaven is the reigning league champ, but Melvindale has an upper hand with this their only meeting of the season.
Sterling Heights (10-1) – The Stallions have taken major strides this winter after going 6-15 last season and winning a combined 13 games over the last three. That lone loss this run was in double overtime to Marysville, which they trail in the Macomb Area Conference Silver but face again Wednesday.
CLASS B
Fennville (9-2) – A three-point win over Gobles on Dec. 13 has kept Fennville atop the Southwestern Athletic Conference Lakeshore, and the Blackhawks can stretch the lead as they face the Tigers again Tuesday. Fennville is playing this season for a third straight league title, and the only losses were by one to Grand Rapids Covenant Christian and nine to Class A Byron Center.
Onsted (9-2) – The Wildcats sent 6-foot-10 Austin Davis to University of Michigan after last season’s league and District title runs. But after opening 2-2, they’re in position again to make things interesting in the Lenawee County Athletic Association; those losses came to Dundee and Hillsdale, and Onsted beat Dundee last week and sees Hillsdale again Tuesday.
CLASS C
Iron Mountain (11-1) – Last season’s Mid-Peninsula Athletic Conference co-champion (with Negaunee) has been chasing all season after falling to current leader Norway by four on Dec. 16. The Mountaineers – which beat Negaunee by four last week – get Norway again Feb. 10.
Sand Creek (11-0) – The Aggies downed second-place Ottawa Lake Whiteford 70-53 on Tuesday to move into first place alone in the Tri-County Conference. Those teams tied for fourth in the league last season when Sand Creek finished 11-11 overall, but it’s allowed only one opponent to get within 10 points this winter.
CLASS D
Bellaire (9-1) – The reigning Ski Valley Conference champion already has a two-game lead on the field after handing Pellston a 64-57 defeat on Jan. 19. The Eagles took a loss on opening night to Harbor Springs 40-37, but have looked more since like the team that made last season’s Quarterfinals.
Southfield Christian (8-2) – After playing, and winning a pair of District titles, in Class C the last two seasons, Southfield Christian is back in Class D. The two losses came during the season’s first three games to Class A Ann Arbor Pioneer and U-D Jesuit, and the Eagles beat Class A West Bloomfield by 10 on Tuesday.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Romulus (8-2) at Dearborn Heights Crestwood (10-2) – The Western Wayne Athletic Conference Blue has three teams with only two losses, and Crestwood sees the other two this week starting with the league leader.
Wednesday – Farwell (2-7) at Beaverton (10-1) – A win would give Beavers coach Roy Johnston 729 for his career, breaking the Michigan high school record set by River Rouge’s Lofton Greene from 1942-84.
Wednesday – Cornerstone Health/Technology (7-2) at River Rouge (12-0) – Cornerstone has played some tough competition and could be a challenger in Class C, and we expect to know more from this matchup.
Friday – Detroit East English (10-2) at Detroit Martin Luther King (10-2) – East English can still claim a share of the Detroit PSL East Division 1 title from the Crusaders and won the first meeting 71-57.
Saturday – Flint Beecher (9-3) vs. Ypsilanti Community (9-3) at Delta College – This matchup of teams with high aspirations is the most intriguing of the Delta College Showcase.
PHOTO: North Central's Marcus Krachinski (3) battles with Bark River-Harris defender Nick Lippens in the paint during the first half Friday night at Powers. (Photo by Keith Shelton.)
Breslin Bound: 2023-24 Boys Report Week 8
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 22, 2024
Tuesday’s matchup of Cadillac (11-0) hosting Whitehall (12-0) would crack our five “Can’t-Miss Contests” for the upcoming week most weeks every season – and it's lined up to be a great one.
But perhaps indicating the decisive stretch we've reached this season, it falls just outside our preview list below – which is loaded with potential league title deciders, be they the first meetings between expected favorites or rematches from early-season faceoffs that now mean much more.
“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. Iron Mountain 48, Kingsford 47 Coming out of this matchup of arguably the top two teams in the Upper Peninsula, Iron Mountain (11-0) stands alone as the last undefeated team on its side of the Bridge after handing the neighboring Flivvers (11-2) just their second defeat.
2. Port Huron Northern 59, Warren Lincoln 57 The Huskies (10-2) drew even with Lincoln atop the Macomb Area Conference White by avenging an 80-46 loss to the Abes (9-2) from Dec. 15.
3. Zeeland West 61, Detroit Cass Tech 42 West (8-3) delivered the only defeat this season to the reigning Division 1 champion Technicians (9-1) during the Gottagetit Hoops Classic at East Kentwood.
4. Warren Lincoln 49, Grand Rapids Christian 47 Lincoln bounced back from its loss to PHN quickly, defeating Romeo on Thursday and then handing Grand Rapids Christian (8-1) its only loss, also at East Kentwood.
5. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 76, Detroit U-D Jesuit 68 The Eaglets (10-1) avenged their lone loss this winter, 60-55 to Jesuit on Dec. 18, to take a two-game lead in the Detroit Catholic League Central.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Detroit Martin Luther King (11-3) After opening this season with losses to a pair of strong opponents in Lansing Waverly and North Farmington, King has reasserted itself among the elite with 11 wins over its last 12 games (and the only defeat during that time to undefeated East Lansing). The Crusaders join Cass Tech at the top of the Detroit Public School League Blue heading into Tuesday’s matchup, and are coming off handing Grand Rapids Northview a 54-53 loss in East Kentwood on Saturday – adding to wins over Kalamazoo Central, Saginaw and Detroit Southeastern and Renaissance among others.
Rockford (9-3) The Rams also got off to a slow start, relatively speaking, opening 2-3 but with those losses to Muskegon by a point, Byron Center and Grand Rapids South Christian. Rockford has won its last seven games, defeating Zeeland West (see above) to win the Zeeland Holiday Tournament and last week moving into first place alone in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red by handing the only losses this season to Hudsonville (55-52 OT) and East Kentwood (61-56). Rockford tied for third in the league behind those two last season.
DIVISION 2
Benton Harbor (13-0) After stumbling a bit to end last season on a 3-6 streak, Benton Harbor has cruised to another magnificent start with Saturday’s 58-48 victory over Wyoming Lee in East Kentwood tying its closest win this winter. A 72-59 victory over Niles Brandywine on Jan. 11 has the Tigers atop the Lakeland Conference again as they look to repeat, with a 92-46 win over Detroit Douglass from Dec. 28 also among their most impressive. Big-time matchups await against South Haven, Kalamazoo Central, Watervliet, Brandywine again Feb. 16 and Niles in the regular-season finale after the Vikings ended Benton Harbor’s 2022-23 run.
Tecumseh (10-1) A nine-game winning streak last February and March was stopped by an overtime Regional Final loss to Chelsea, but Tecumseh picked right back up this winter with this start and its only defeat 55-51 to Riverview over the break. Tecumseh has avenged losses from last season to Adrian Madison and Temperance Bedford, can avenge another in Tuesday’s matchup with Pinckney, and sees Chelsea for the first time Jan. 30 after Chelsea dealt Tecumseh three defeats total during last season’s 20-7 campaign.
DIVISION 3
Alcona (9-4) The Tigers are showing a nice ability to rebound – first from a 1-3 start with their current 8-1 run, and more recently after falling 38-37 to Ogemaw Heights on Jan. 8 but coming back a week later to defeat Oscoda 47-36 to stand alone in first place in the North Star League Big Dipper. That was the closest of Alcona’s nine wins, and the second game in the Oscoda series is on the Tigers’ homecourt Feb. 6. Alcona was 10-12 but second in the league a year ago.
Iron Mountain (11-0) As noted above, Iron Mountain is the lone undefeated team left in the Upper Peninsula, and Kingsford was the first team to come within single digits of the Mountaineers since their 51-43 victory over Gladstone in the season opener. This is familiar territory for Iron Mountain, of course, and three more of these victories came over opponents that have won at least nine games. Iron Mountain does go to Kingsford Feb. 13, and circle as well a home game Feb. 5 against Menominee, which ended the Mountaineers’ seasons the last two winters.
DIVISION 4
Lake Linden-Hubbell (8-2) The Lakes have enjoyed a nice climb from seven to 13 to 17 wins over the last three seasons, respectively, and they could be ready to take another step. The losses came to Houghton and Painesdale Jeffers, which both have 11 wins this season, and Lake Linden-Hubbell welcomes Jeffers for a rematch Feb. 6. A 74-42 season-opening win over Chassell also was a highlight, and the Lakes travel to Chassell on Feb. 9 and for possibly another telling matchup a week later at Stephenson.
Saginaw Nouvel (9-3) The Panthers, coming off a Division 3 Regional Final run, tested themselves right away this winter and went 0-3 the first week against Essexville Garber, Pewamo-Westphalia and still-undefeated Cass City (falling 54-53). They haven’t lost again. Nouvel sits atop the Tri-Valley Conference White with just Ithaca to play to complete a first-half run through the league, defeated nine-win opponents Imlay City and Standish-Sterling, and will test itself again Feb. 20 at Chesaning, which is off to an 11-0 start.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Detroit Cass Tech (9-1) at Detroit Martin Luther King (11-3) – Both are undefeated in the PSL Blue, and Cass Tech won all three matchups last season: 57-55, 74-70 (OT) in the PSL championship game and 71-59 in a District Semifinal.
Tuesday – Pewamo-Westphalia (9-1) at Laingsburg (10-0) – The Wolfpack are first and the Pirates second in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference thanks to Laingsburg’s 59-55 overtime win Dec. 6.
Thursday – East Lansing (11-0) at Okemos (10-1) – These rivals split last season’s two matchups just three days apart, and they enter this one as the only two teams undefeated in Capital Area Activities Conference Blue play.
Friday – Riverview Gabriel Richard (11-1) at Jackson Lumen Christi (10-0) – This eventually could decide the Detroit Catholic League AA title as these two are undefeated in league play and the next contender has two conference losses.
Friday – Beal City (11-2) at McBain (9-1) – The Aggies also are trying to even the season score in this series, as McBain leads the Highland Conference thanks to its 60-43 win over Beal on Dec. 13.
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PHOTOS (Top) Jayce Branson (3) gets to the rim during East Lansing's 52-29 win over DeWitt last week. (Middle) Flint Southwestern and Kearsley face off Jan. 5. (Top photo by Max McCallister; middle photo by Terry Lyons.)