#TBT: Making Hoops History
October 9, 2014
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
With nearly 90 years of our own to recall, we enjoy history quite a bit at the Michigan High School Athletic Association.
And we also enjoy when those who have been part of our events send us a souvenir like this 1939 Boys Basketball Regional program from March 9-11, 1939, at what became known as Western Michigan University.
Regionals for Class A, C and D were played at the then-Western State Teachers College, with Kalamazoo St. Augustine, Watervliet and Burr Oak emerging as champions, respectively.
Also participating were Battle Creek, Holland, Benton Harbor and Kalamazoo Central in Class A; Bangor, Decatur, Eau Claire, Constantine and Kellogg in Class C; and Augusta and St. Joseph Catholic in Class D.
Of note:
- The cover of the program included a list of Regional champions at the site dating to 1920. The MHSAA began in 1925 from a previous body.
- "Rules Changes to Watch" listed on the inside pages included the lane violation and a rule for overtime in which the first team scoring two points was declared the winner.
- The back cover showed an artist's sketch of the football/track and field and baseball stadiums then under construction at a cost of $270,000.
Below is the inside pages in full, including filled-in brackets for all three tournaments.
Moment: Rouge Holds Off Unity Challenge
April 14, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
We continue with our third day of "Rouge Week" with River Rouge's third-straight Class B championship during the 1960s, clinched with a 59-49 victory over Hudsonville Unity Christian in the Final.
Unity, ranked just behind the Panthers at No. 2 in Class B heading into the MHSAA Tournament, gave Rouge a run nearly to the end. Unity pulled within 38-36 at the outset of the fourth quarter before Boice Bowman, Bill Dunson and Larry Brazon keyed a 9-2 run to help the Panthers pull away.
Dunson, an all-stater as a senior that winter, scored a team-high 16 points. Bowman added 15. Rouge finished 25-1 for the second-straight season.