Breslin Bound: Girls Report Week 8

January 25, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

A total of 19 teams over four classes remain undefeated as we reach the midpoint of another girls basketball season.

But a number of others aren’t far behind – more than 140 teams have lost only two or fewer games.

Each week during the regular season, we’ll glance at four teams from each class that have caught our attention. (Results and records below are based on schedules posted at MHSAA.com.)

Class A

Caledonia (10-1) – The Fighting Scots have won seven straight, kept alive with a 43-41 win over Grand Rapids Christian on Friday – and are only a one-point loss to Byron Center from perfection.

Flushing (9-2) – Following up handing Detroit Renaissance its second loss, two weeks ago, Flushing nearly doubled up solid Flint Carman-Ainsworth and further extended its lead in the Flint Metro League with a win over Swartz Creek. 

Southfield (9-0) – The Blue Jays’ perfect run so far has included only one win by fewer than 10 points – 46-42 over Harper Woods Chandler Park on Dec. 8 – and they have won 19 straight regular-season games.

St. Joseph (10-1) – The Bears trail Stevensville Lakeshore in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West because of a 58-55 loss to the Lancers on Dec. 11 – but St. Joseph gets a rematch Feb. 5 and is two wins better than at the midpoint last season. 

Class B

Frankenmuth (10-1) – Only undefeated Bay City John Glenn has beaten the Eagles, 41-23 on Dec. 7, and Frankenmuth has downed the next four teams chasing in the Tri-Valley Conference East including handing second-place Birch Run its only loss.

Marshall (10-1) – The Redhawks are undefeated after falling to Williamston 40-33 on opening night, and two weeks ago Marshall handed Jackson Northwest its only loss to earn a one-win lead in the Interstate 8 Athletic Conference.

Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (9-1)  -- The Fighting Irish have won nine straight since opening night, when they fell to Macomb Dakota 49-31; Notre Dame Prep hasn’t had a game closer than 10 points since Dec. 18.

Stevensville Lakeshore (9-0) – The Lancers are halfway to a third straight league title in the SMAC West and have yet to be challenged outside of St. Joseph (see above) and Elkhart Memorial (Ind.), which Lakeshore beat by a point Jan. 2.

Class C

Flint Hamady (10-0) – The reigning Class C runner-up is cruising as usual, with only one win by single digits – a 42-35 overtime victory over Burton Bendle on Jan. 8; but second-place and one-loss New Lothrop is up next.

Gobles  (11-0) – The Tigers have won 51 straight regular-season games and moved to 80-5 overall during 1,000-point scorer Ellen Doyle’s career. Gobles has won six straight by 20 or more points. 

Kalamazoo Hackett (10-0) – The Fighting Irish’s perfect first half has been driven by defense; Hackett hasn’t given up more than 35 points in a game and has held eight opponents to 29 or fewer.

Laingsburg (10-1) – A semifinalist last season who lost to eventual champion Calumet the game before Hamady did the same, Laingsburg hasn’t slowed in handing Bath its only loss and Class B Durand one of its two defeats.

Class D

Bellevue (9-1) – The Broncos will wait one more week for a rematch with Climax-Scotts, the only team to beat them this season, but are in line to improve significantly on last season’s 13-9 finish.

Big Rapids Crossroads Academy (11-1) – The reigning league champion Cougars have opened up a two-win lead in the West Michigan D with their only loss to expected Class D contender Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart. 

Pittsford (11-0) – Last season’s Class D runner-up held both of last week’s opponents to single-digit scoring – making that four teams this winter held to fewer than 10 points as the Wildcats have continued a 57-game regular-season winning streak. 

Posen (10-0) – The Vikings have been challenged rarely, with only Hillman (twice) playing to within single digits – but Posen will get a sure challenge this week from Class C Tawas (8-2).

PHOTO: Class A contender Saginaw Heritage remained undefeated with a key win last week over rival Midland Dow. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)

Breslin Bound: 2023-24 Girls Report Week 6

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

January 15, 2024

We’re nearly halfway through this girls basketball season, and with every week that passes the Michigan Power Ratings become a more accurate picture of what the state’s teams have accomplished this season – and a forecaster of which two will be seeded first and second and on opposite sides of District brackets in March.

MI Student Aid

MPR is based on results against other MHSAA Tournament opponents during the regular season. Several lists, showing all teams together, separately by division or broken down even further by District, can be found on the MPR page. A “snapshot in time” look of the top 20 in each division will be provided every Monday on the Girls Basketball Rankings page, and MPR also helps determine which games and teams are highlighted in every week’s “Breslin Bound” report.

“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. Ishpeming 57, Negaunee 53 The Hematites (6-0) handed the Miners (9-1) their only loss, and also the first in this series since Feb. 26, 2015, as Negaunee had won the last 17 meetings between the rivals.

2. Rockford 55, Grand Haven 38 The Rams (9-0) also won a matchup of undefeated teams, staying atop the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red with East Kentwood and with the Buccaneers (8-1) one of three teams one game back.

3. Lansing Catholic 62, Portland 34 The reigning Class B champion Cougars (4-3) pushed back past .500 by handing the Raiders (8-1) their lone loss this winter.

4. St. Charles 45, Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart 27 St. Charles (7-1) extended its winning streak to seven and moved into first alone in the Mid-State Activities Conference by handing the Irish (8-1) their lone defeat.

5. Bath 35, Dansville 17 The Bees (7-0) continued their perfect start coming off last season’s 7-15 finish, handing this loss to the reigning Central Michigan Athletic Conference champion after losing to the Aggies (5-2) by 10 a year ago.

Coleman and Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart players work for possession during last month’s 32-22 Irish win.

Watch List

With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:

DIVISION 1

Jackson Northwest (6-1) The Mounties have been formidable for several years, but last season’s shared Interstate 8 Athletic Conference title was their first since winning it outright in 2017-18. They’re working toward a much quicker repeat, and perhaps more. Northwest defeated the other reigning co-champ Coldwater 43-35 last week and also have a 52-47 win over Haslett, avenging two of their losses from last season’s 21-3 run. Coming up Tuesday is the first of two games with Marshall, the only other team undefeated in I8AC play this winter.

West Bloomfield (7-0) Last season’s Division 1 runner-up opened this season by again defeating Salem, its Semifinal opponent a year ago, and hasn’t been slowed while winning all its games by at least 18 points. Four starters are back, including Georgia-bound twins Indya and Summer Davis and Loyola-Chicago signee Kendall Hendrix. Last week’s wins over Detroit Country Day and Southfield Arts & Technology made for an impressive week, and undefeated Lake Orion is next up Tuesday to start Oakland Activities Association Red play.

DIVISION 2

Chelsea (7-2) Few have played a stronger schedule, as Chelsea’s opponents have a .710 winning percentage, and yet the Bulldogs have losses only to Rockford and Dexter as they look to build on last year’s 25-2 campaign. They’re the only team to defeat Jackson Northwest, 57-47, and an early 26-point win over Clarkston also pops off the page. Freeland (7-1) is up Tuesday before the start of Southeastern Conference White play, and a Dexter rematch is scheduled for Feb. 23.

Grand Rapids West Catholic (7-1) The Falcons are another contender to have lost to Rockford, but that’s it as they’ve moved to a combined 67-5 over the last four seasons and after making the Division 2 Semifinals a year ago before falling to eventual champion Lansing Catholic. West Catholic’s opponents have won nearly 70 percent of their games as well, with a key O-K Blue matchup coming up Friday in one-loss Spring Lake.

DIVISION 3

Michigan Center (10-0) The Cardinals already have surpassed last season’s 8-13 finish, and Thursday’s 59-54 overtime win over Grass Lake and December win over East Jackson gave Michigan Center victories over two of last season’s three co-champions in the Cascades Conference. Napoleon was the third champ last winter, and all three join Michigan Center in the new Cascades’ East division.

Niles Brandywine (7-0) The Bobcats are undefeated through the first half of the Lakeland Conference schedule after finishing second to rival Buchanan and 21-3 overall last winter. All three of those losses last season were to the Bucks, and Brandywine won their first meeting this time 38-27 with the rematch set for Feb. 1. Even more notably, the Bobcats handed reigning Division 3 runner-up Blissfield its only loss, 45-43 on Dec. 27 at the Michigan Hardwood Classic.

DIVISION 4

Bloomfield Hills Roeper (7-0) The Roughriders have bounded back into the Division 4 conversation over the last two seasons, finishing 16-6 a year ago and launching this start. Roeper handed Sterling Heights Parkway Christian its only defeat in the Roughriders’ Michigan Independent Athletic Conference Red opener Jan. 5 and as they seek to move up from tied for second place last year – with reigning champion Whitmore Lake in the MIAC Blue this season.

Kingston (8-1) The Cardinals are a combined 64-10 over the last four seasons and reached the Division 4 Quarterfinals a year ago. After taking a 45-35 loss against undefeated Division 2 contender Goodrich on Dec. 13, Kingston bounced back to hand Harbor Beach its only loss, 69-33. The Cardinals have held four opponents to fewer than 20 points and two more to fewer than 30, a main reason all eight wins are by at least 27 points.

Can’t-Miss Contests

Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up: 

Wednesday – Macomb Dakota (9-1) at Grosse Pointe North (7-1) – Dakota has an early one-game lead in the Macomb Area Conference Red on reigning champion GPN after North’s loss to Port Huron last week; Dakota sees Port Huron on Friday.

Thursday – Mendon (8-1) at Colon (7-0) – These two sit atop the Southern Central Athletic Association West standings after Colon won the West and Mendon was runner-up in the Southwest 10 Conference South last season.

Thursday – Stevensville Lakeshore (8-0) at Portage Central (7-0) – This is the first of their two meetings after Lakeshore was first and Central tied for second in the Southwestern Michigan Athletic Conference West last season.

Thursday – Mio (8-0) at Alcona (6-0) – The Thunderbolts look likely to make a run at the North Star League Big Dipper title, and a win over one of last year’s three co-champions certainly would provide a spark.

Friday – Rockford (9-0) at East Kentwood (8-1) – First place in the O-K Red is on the line, as is the Rams’ 32-game winning streak going back to December 2022.

MHSAA.com's weekly “Breslin Bound” previews and reviews are powered by MI Student Aid, a division within the Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP). 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 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) A 45-37 win over Williamston on Dec. 21 was part of DeWitt’s 8-1 start. (Middle) Coleman and Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart players work for possession during last month’s 32-22 Irish win. (Top photo by Terry Lyons, middle photo by High School Sports Scene.)