Breslin Bound: Girls Report Week 1

December 8, 2014

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Some of our favorite stories from the beginning of each season are told when a team, after just a week, has already equaled its success from the previous season.

A few of those are highlighted in this week’s Breslin Bound girls hoops report to kick off 2014-15.

Each week, we’ll look at four teams from each class that stuck out over the previous seven days or the season to that point as we point toward the start of the MHSAA District tournaments March 2.

For schedules of each day’s games statewide and results as we receive them, plus links to each team’s full schedule, results and league standings, click here – and please help us by filling in missing scores or emailing them to [email protected].

Class A

Farmington Hills Mercy (2-0) – The Marlins, Class A semifinalists last season, are proving again already they can win close with 55-52 and 49-46 wins over Waterford Mott and Salem, respectively, to open 2014-15.

Flushing (2-0) – The Tigers improved two wins last season to 13-9, with two losses to Flint Powers Catholic; they beat the Chargers 56-23 on Friday to kick off a perfect first week.

Howell (2-0) – The Highlanders were solid to start coming off a 15-7 finish last season, but with an impressive performance to further generate excitement for the weeks to come; 6-foot-1 junior Erin Honkala had 19 points, 28 rebounds and eight blocked shots in Friday’s 47-30 win over Ann Arbor Skyline. The rebounds tied for 13th most for one game in MHSAA history.

Lapeer (2-1) – The former Lapeer East and West last season finished with a combined record of 13-29; the new schools created from a merger of the old kicked off last week with two wins before falling only 57-47 to always-strong Goodrich.

Class B

Adrian (2-1) – The Maples already have equaled their win total from last season’s 2-19 finish, with a 47-35 overtime victory over Monroe Jefferson among highlights.

Berrien Springs (2-0) – The Shamrocks didn’t win last season until February, but equaled last season’s win total with two victories to start including a 50-48 nail-biter over Cassopolis.

Grosse Ile (2-0) – The Red Devils are looking to build on last season’s 18-4 finish and kicked off this winter with a pair of wins over Detroit Catholic League teams including 42-41 over Livonia Ladywood on Friday.

Haslett (2-0) – The Vikings made the Class A Regional Finals last season finishing 23-2, but are back in Class B and opened with a 63-21 win over reigning Finals champion Eaton Rapids – one of two teams to beat Haslett in 2013-14.

Class C

Grass Lake (2-0) – Last season’s 9-12 finish included a 2-7 skid at the end; the Warriors ended it with a 61-52 win over Concord on opening night and then a 62-36 victory over Cascade Conference foe Hanover-Horton.

Hesperia (2-0) – One week in and Hesperia has guaranteed a better finish than last winter’s 1-18; the Panthers equaled it with a 34-28 win over Mason County Eastern in the opener and surpassed with a 42-30 victory over Kent City Algoma Christian on Thursday.

Lake City (2-0) – The Trojans also started strongly last winter with five straight victories before struggling down the stretch, but looked pretty tough beating Harrison by 15 and Mancelona by 36 last week.

Niles Brandywine (2-0) – The Bobcats have a streak worth statewide attention; they haven’t lost a regular-season game since Jan. 30, 2012, and opened this winter by beating Class A Kalamazoo Loy Norrix 53-46.

Class D

Baraga (2-0) – The Vikings won six games last season, with a 52-point loss to Houghton on opening night; they beat Houghton 33-24 to start this season and are on pace to equal last year’s win total by January.

Bark River-Harris (2-0) – Two of last season’s five losses (to go with 18 wins) were to Crystal Falls Forest Park, but Trojans’ star Lexi Gussert is at Michigan State University now and the Broncos got a hard-fought 36-34 win over Forest Park in their first Skyline Central Conference game.

Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (2-0) – The Irish weren't considered a favorite before winning last season's Class D title; Sacred Heart won't sneak up on anyone this time and opened with their 14th and 15th-straight wins dating to last January. 

Wakefield-Marenisco (2-0) – The Cardinals have been on a nice run since the middle of last season; after opening 2013-14 at 2-7, they finished 8-4 and added another pair of wins to open last week.

PHOTO: Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart’s Averi Gamble prepares to shoot in the reigning Class D champion’s 43-35 win over Shepherd on opening night. (Click to see more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com).

Countdown to Calvin: District Preview

February 26, 2018

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Over the next three weeks, 700 Michigan high school girls basketball teams will play to become one of four to hoist trophies as 2017-18 MHSAA champions.

The first steps toward achieving that ultimate goal will come at District tournaments tipping off tonight all over our state.

Over the next two weeks, we’ll alter the format of our Countdown to Calvin reports – powered by MI Student Aid – still looking at some of the key results from last week but also at three of the most eye-catching brackets in each class for the upcoming week of playoffs.

This week, that means we’ll take closer looks at 12 Districts total in addition to scores from last week that saw some of the state’s best match up one more time before single elimination games begin. (Click here to navigate brackets for all 128 tournaments.)

Week in Review

The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:

1. Detroit Edison 57, Saginaw Heritage 55 (2OT) – We’ll know March 17 if this titanic matchup featured the eventual champions in Class C and Class A, respectively.

2. Kingsley 70, Maple City Glen Lake 66 – Kingsley completed a perfect regular season and an outright Northwest Conference championship with this win over the second-place Lakers.

3. Wayne Memorial 50, Howell 46 – After coming back to beat Hartland in the semifinal, Wayne won this matchup of Class A contenders to claim the overall Kensington Lakes Activities Association title.

4. Traverse City St. Francis 56, Charlevoix 47 – St. Francis avenged a two-point loss to Charlevoix from Feb. 2 to break a first-place tie and clinch the Lake Michigan Conference title.

5. Ypsilanti Arbor Prep 44, Harper Woods Chandler Park 43 – Another Class C favorite, Arbor Prep, avenged a 24-point loss to the Class B Eagles from Jan. 25.

Districts at a Glance

These could be among our most competitive brackets. Host sites are in bold:

CLASS A

Flint Carman-Ainsworth 
Fenton (14-6), Flint Carman-Ainsworth (18-2), Flint Southwestern (2-15), Flushing (16-4), Grand Blanc (10-10), Linden (0-19), Swartz Creek (9-11).

Reigning Class A champion Flushing held on to win another Flint Metro League championship and has won 16 of its last 18. But host Carman-Ainsworth is the likely favorite thanks in part to a 21-point win over the Raiders in the season opener. Carman-Ainsworth finished second in the Saginaw Valley League to one-loss Heritage, with its only losses to Heritage and reigning Class B champion Detroit Country Day. Carman-Ainsworth and Flushing would see each other in the District Final – but Fenton could get in the way. The Tigers face Flushing in tonight’s opener and beat Flushing by 18 just two weeks ago.

Midland 
Bay City Central (3-17), Bay City Western (17-3), Midland (13-7), Midland Dow (15-5), Mount Pleasant (11-9), Saginaw Heritage (19-1).

These teams all play in the Saginaw Valley League, and that familiarity could be advantageous and dangerous for just about every team in the field. Heritage is a favorite to win the whole thing this season – but on its side of this bracket, Mount Pleasant has enjoyed its best finish in years and Midland bounced back from a 0-3 start to place fifth in the 14-team league. Dow and Western meet to start the other side of the bracket, with the Chargers winning their lone meeting by 12 two weeks ago – but the Warriors hoping to re-catch the momentum that helped them to a 13-0 start.

Owosso
DeWitt (19-1), East Lansing (20-0), Grand Ledge (12-8), Lansing Waverly (11-9), Owosso (5-15), St. Johns (14-6).

There may be no more closely contended recent rivalry in the state than DeWitt versus East Lansing. Those Class A contenders have played three straight games decided by a point. The Trojans, boasting recently announced Miss Basketball candidate Jaida Hampton, won the Dec. 5 meeting 52-51 and also last season’s District Final over the Panthers 48-47 – after DeWitt won last season’s first matchup 59-58. They would face off again in this District Final. But don’t forget: Grand Ledge made back-to-back Class A Quarterfinals in 2013 and 2014 and the Semifinals the second time, and St. Johns made the Semifinals only two seasons ago.

CLASS B

Battle Creek Pennfield 
Battle Creek Pennfield (15-5), Comstock (19-1), Marshall (10-10), Olivet (11-9), Parchment (6-14).

Comstock has been building to a season like this for the last five, and has increased its win total for the fourth straight already this winter. The Colts surely are looking forward to their first game this week against Marshall on Wednesday – the Redhawks have ended Comstock’s last four seasons. Marshall could be dangerous though with four wins in its last five games after making the Class B Semifinals last season and winning Class B in 2016. On the other side of the bracket, Pennfield finished third, two spots ahead of Marshall in a strong Interstate 8 Athletic Conference. The Panthers skidded a bit the last few weeks with three losses over their last five games, but those losses came to the other three top teams in the league.

Big Rapids 
Alma (15-5), Big Rapids (18-2), Clare (11-8), Remus Chippewa Hills (3-17), Shepherd (6-14), Stanton Central Montcalm (20-0).

Central Montcalm has jumped from seven to 12 to 17 and now 20 wins over the last four seasons and won the Central State Activities Association Gold with wins of nine and seven points over Big Rapids. Those were the only defeats this season for the host Cardinals, and a Semifinal rematch would be one of the state’s biggest Wednesday games. But Big Rapids can’t look past Alma in the opener – the Panthers finished second to Freeland (18-2) in the Tri-Valley Conference Central. On the other side of the bracket, Clare tied for third in a competitive Jack Pine Conference after sharing the league title a year ago.

Kalkaska 
Benzie Central (16-4), Cadillac (3-17), Kalkaska (15-5), Kingsley (20-0), Ludington (12-8), Manistee (11-9), Reed City (14-6).

Kingsley joins Central Montcalm as one of only two undefeated teams left in Class B, and the Stags’ run included handing Benzie Central two of its defeats. Kingsley would see Lakes 8 Conference runner-up Ludington in a District Semifinal, but wouldn’t see Benzie or Kalkaska until the championship game. Those two could meet Wednesday. Benzie must get past a Reed City team that finished fourth in a strong CSAA Gold – see references to Central Montcalm and Big Rapids above – while Kalkaska must get past a Manistee team that has won five of its last six.

CLASS C

Ishpeming 
Gwinn (9-11), Ishpeming (17-3), Ishpeming Westwood (14-6), Negaunee (20-0).

This is an all-Mid-Peninsula Athletic Conference District, and these are four of the top five finishers. Negaunee improved five wins this regular season despite scares from both Ishpeming and Westwood – the Patriots missed breaking up the perfect run by just a basket on Jan. 19, and they and Negaunee face off on one side of the bracket Wednesday. Ishpeming, which got within seven of Negaunee on Feb. 10, lost only to the Miners and Westwood this season but got a close game from Gwinn in their first meeting Jan. 9.

Laingsburg 
Bath (13-7), Brighton Charyl Stockwell (5-12), Byron (16-4), Dansville (2-18), Laingsburg (17-2), New Lothrop (18-2).

Host Laingsburg’s only losses this season were to reigning Class C runner-up Pewamo-Westphalia, but those two wouldn’t meet again until the Regional Semifinal. However, on the other side of this bracket Genesee Area Conference White champion New Lothrop won 18 straight before losing to Class B contender Goodrich last week, and Byron shared the GAC Blue title. They and Bath, also from Laingsburg’s Central Michigan Athletic Conference, will provide a strong challenger for this District title.

Traverse City St. Francis 
Grand Traverse Academy (12-7), Manton (17-3), Maple City Glen Lake (18-2), Traverse City St. Francis (17-3).

Tonight’s opener will be one of the most intriguing in the state regardless of Class. Glen Lake finished second in the Northwest Conference with its two defeats both to Class B Kingsley (see above), and the Lakers beat St. Francis 60-49 on Dec. 6. St. Francis, meanwhile, finished off a Lake Michigan Conference championship with a win over rival Charlevoix last week (also see above). On the other side of the bracket, Manton also is a league champion, in the Highland Conference, and Grand Traverse Academy started 11-3 before running into a rough patch over the last few weeks.  

CLASS D

Adrian Lenawee Christian
Adrian Lenawee Christian (19-1), Jackson Christian (7-13), Morenci (16-4), North Adams-Jerome (7-13), Waldron (15-5).

The host Cougars would appear a strong favorite. Their only loss was by a point to Class A Monroe (12-8) on Jan. 9, and they downed possible District Semifinal opponent Morenci 61-42 a week ago. However, Morenci has two 1,000-point scorers and is coming off a Tri-County Conference championship. The Bulldogs must be careful to not look past Southern Central Athletic Association Central champion Waldron tonight, however. The other side of the bracket may have the teams with lesser records, but their third meeting could be a classic after Jackson Christian edged North Adams-Jerome by only two and six points during the regular season.

Battle Creek St. Philip
Athens (16-4), Battle Creek Calhoun Christian (16-4), Battle Creek St. Philip (11-9), Bellevue (18-2), Marshall Academy (0-11).

Bellevue and Athens finished first and second, respectively, in the SCAA West, and are on opposite sides of this bracket. St. Philip also plays in that league, and four of its losses came to those two teams. Calhoun Christian won the Mid-South Conference but won’t be unfamiliar with the competition after playing and falling to all three SCAA teams during the season’s first two weeks. The Cougars are 15-1 since a 1-3 start.

Onaway
Hillman (19-1), Onaway (10-9), Posen (10-8), Rogers City (15-4).

Hillman won its fourth straight North Star League Big Dipper title, and Rogers City has finished runner-up the last three seasons – this time the Tigers won their meetings by three and 13 points. They meet in one District Semifinal on Wednesday, while NSL Little Dipper champion Posen takes on host Onaway, which came in fourth in a Ski Valley Conference featuring at least a pair of possible Class D state contenders.

PHOTO: Laingsburg, here in a win over Fowler on Jan. 25, is among District hosts that could earn championships this week. (Click for more from Varsity Monthly.)