Countdown to Calvin: Girls Report Week 10
February 5, 2018
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Three weeks remain in this girls basketball season, and the Countdown to Calvin is starting to get louder.
League tournaments are either underway or will start this week in the Detroit Public School League, Detroit Catholic League, Charter School Conference or Macomb Area Conference. And while every team gets a fresh start with MHSAA Districts, those single-elimination league competitions definitely set a postseason mood.
Countdown to Calvin is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com. To offer corrections or help us fill in missing scores, email me at [email protected].
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Flint Carman-Ainsworth 57, Bay City Western 52 – All Saginaw Valley League teams are in one division this year, and this created a three-team jam in second place behind Saginaw Heritage as Carman-Ainsworth handed Western its first loss of the season.
2. East Lansing 63, Williamston 43 – These teams entered both undefeated and among the highest-ranked in Class A and B, respectively; they enter this week a combined 30-1.
3. Pittsford 49, Athens 32 – Bellevue’s upset of Athens two days earlier stole some of the excitement (more on that below), but the Wildcats did win their 70th straight game over another Class D power that had entered the week undefeated.
4. Macomb Dakota 53, Port Huron Northern 51 – The Macomb Area Conference Red continues to be one of the state’s most competitive leagues, and at least a share of this season’s title went to Dakota with this close win over Northern, which faces the other possible co-champ Grosse Pointe North on Wednesday.
5. Flint Beecher 58, Flint Hamady 48 – While both are still chasing Class B Goodrich in the Genesee Area Conference Red, Beecher can claim a regular-season sweep of its frequent Class C-contending rival.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each class making sparks:
CLASS A
Hartland (10-4) – The Eagles can’t catch Howell and repeat as a league champion, but they did hand the Highlanders their first league loss and second of this winter on Friday, 41-37. The win was the fourth straight for Hartland, which is 7-2 over its last nine games and had fallen to Howell in overtime Jan. 9.
Walled Lake Western (13-1) – The Warriors sit atop the Lakes Valley Conference in the league’s first year, with a key matchup against second-place South Lyon East coming up Tuesday. Western on Jan. 26 avenged its lone loss with a 51-43 win over Waterford Kettering – those two shared the Kensington Lakes Activities Association North title last season.
CLASS B
Ida (13-1) – The Bluestreaks have already claimed a share of the Lenawee County Athletic Association championship thanks to a three-game lead on the field. They haven’t lost since falling in the opener to Adrian Lenawee Christian, which is also 13-1. Ida finished second in the league last year to Blissfield, its opponent Friday.
Muskegon Oakridge (12-3) – The Eagles’ West Michigan Conference winning streak is up to 75 games and stretches most of this decade. They downed second-place Shelby 61-43 on Thursday and can clinch a share of another league title Tuesday against Scottville Mason County Central. Oakridge will look to improve next month on last season’s District title and has taken good losses against Class A Grand Haven, Muskegon and Muskegon Reeths-Puffer.
CLASS C
Charlevoix (10-3) – The Rayders scored the final 13 points over the final 1:13 to beat Traverse City St. Francis on Friday, creating a two-way tie between the rivals atop the Lake Michigan Conference. Keep in mind Charlevoix was only 3-19 two seasons ago before improving to 18-7 in 2016-17. The losses this winter came to Manton, St. Ignace and Kalkaska, which all have at least 10 wins.
Hartford (12-2) – The Indians trail only Centreville (14-1) in the Southwest 10 Conference, and both have at least four more wins than the rest of the league. While Centreville won their first meeting Jan. 12 by 41, Hartford deserves this recognition; it’s already surpassed last season’s 11-11 finish.
CLASS D
Bellevue (12-2) – The Broncos, last season’s Southern Central Athletic Association West champion, gave themselves a chance to catch newcomer Athens for at least a shared title this winter by handing the Indians their first defeat, 40-39 on Thursday. Bellevue had fallen to Athens by two points on Dec. 12 and also has lost to Pittsford (see note on 70-game winning streak above).
Gaylord St. Mary (14-1) – The Snowbirds have won every game since falling to Clare in their season opener, and only Bellaire on Jan. 17 has come within single digits of catching them. That 41-39 win put Gaylord St. Mary in first place in the Ski Valley Conference, but the rivals meet again Tuesday.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Bellaire (12-2) at Gaylord St. Mary (14-1) – The first meeting, and first place in the Ski Valley Conference, went to St. Mary 41-39. Both are likely Class D contenders as well.
Tuesday – Flushing (13-2) at Goodrich (10-3) – The reigning Class A champion and a regular Class B contender are leading their respective leagues this winter.
Tuesday – Freeland (13-2) at Alma (11-3) – The Falcons won the first meeting 47-38 and continue to hold a one-game lead on the Panthers in the Tri-Valley Conference Central along with a 37-game league winning streak.
Tuesday – Saginaw Heritage (13-0) at Midland (9-4) – Heritage won big the first time around, but this meeting counts in the league standings – and a Midland win would make the SVL at least a four-team race.
Wednesday – Detroit Renaissance (10-6) vs. Detroit Communication Media Arts (12-1) at Detroit East English – This PSL tournament second-round game pits a league champion in CMA and a runner-up in Renaissance.
PHOTO: Muskegon Oakridge's Sophia Wiard works to get past a Shelby defender during Thursday's win. (Photo by Sherry Wahr.)
Breslin Bound: 2023-24 Girls Report Week 9
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 5, 2024
No fewer than 12 girls basketball league championships could be decided on the spot or eventually by what takes place on courts across the state this week.
With just under a month remaining this regular season, title time has begun. And even then, arguably the two most intriguing matchups over the next seven days from a statewide standpioint have nothing to do with league titles – but do involve one MHSAA Finals contender playing in both.
“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. Macomb Dakota 53, Grosse Pointe North 43 The Cougars (14-2) set themselves up to clinch the Macomb Area Conference Red title, which they’ve now won outright, and avenged their only league loss of the season after previously falling 50-41 to the Norsemen (11-3).
2. Tecumseh 60, Chelsea 57 Tecumseh (10-3) broke a 17-game losing streak against the Bulldogs (11-4) to take over first place alone in the Southeastern Conference White.
3. Belleville 61, Wayne Memorial 50 The Tigers (13-1) stand alone atop the Kensington Lakes Activities Association East after sending Wayne (10-4) into second place.
4. Byron Center 49, East Grand Rapids 42 Byron Center (11-4) emerged from a jam at the top of the Ottawa-Kent Conference White standings to move a game ahead of East Grand Rapids (9-6) and Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern.
5. Portland St. Patrick 45, Fowler 30 The Shamrocks (12-2) have a one-game lead on Fowler (11-3) and Dansville and avenged a Dec. 14 69-63 loss to the rival Eagles, who made the Division 4 Semifinals last season.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Belleville (13-1) As noted above, Belleville is in first in the KLAA East thanks to its win last week over Wayne and also after finishing second in the league to Wayne the last three seasons. The Tigers are undefeated in Michigan this winter, with their only loss to Mason (Ohio) on Mason’s homecourt last month. Belleville led into the Wayne win with a 64-44 victory over Detroit Country Day the week before, and has solid victories over Dearborn (10-7) and Romulus (11-3) as well – with a Feb. 23 matchup with Detroit Edison (11-1) one to keep an eye on.
Grand Haven (14-2) The Ottawa-Kent Conference Red has gotten plenty of type this season with Rockford and East Kentwood at the top. But Grand Haven leads another set of contenders (with Holland West Ottawa and Hudsonville) that likely would win several leagues across the state. The Buccaneers have lost only to Rockford and East Kentwood, and have the rematch with Rockford on Tuesday and East Kentwood in the regular-season finale Feb. 23. Victories over West Ottawa (10-4), Spring Lake (11-3) and Traverse City Central (10-3) arguably have been the most notable – but Grand Haven has to be careful Friday with West Ottawa, which is coming off a win over East Kentwood.
DIVISION 2
Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard (16-0) The Irish have won all of their games by at least 12 points this season and can finish a perfect run through the Catholic High School League Central on Tuesday against Farmington Hills Mercy – which FGR defeated by 20 last week. The Irish boasted one of the most impressive starts to 2023-24 with wins over Midland Dow (11-2), Ypsilanti Arbor Prep (12-2), Grand Rapids Catholic Central (10-5) and Lansing Catholic (10-3), with the three over Mercy, Arbor Prep and Lansing Catholic avenging losses from last year’s 19-4 campaign.
Freeland (13-2) The Falcons may be one obstacle away from a major run over the next two months. They are a combined 33-8 over the last two seasons, but their last five losses have come to Frankenmuth (11-2) – including both defeats this winter. Freeland did avenge two losses from last season, to Bay City Western and Chelsea, and can avenge another Feb. 12 at Sanford Meridian. The Falcons also have wins over Alma (11-3) and Essexville Garber (11-5), and would see Frankenmuth a third time in a Regional Semifinal.
DIVISION 3
Harbor Springs (12-2) After finishing 18-5 and third in the Lake Michigan Conference last season, Harbor Springs is tied for first in the LMC with last week’s 48-41 win over co-leader Elk Rapids – which also had ended the Rams’ 2022-23 season. Harbor Springs is enjoying an eight-game winning streak since falling to Elk Rapids in their first meeting this winter, 61-51 on Jan. 9, and the Rams’ only other loss came in mid-December to St. Ignace, 60-54. They’ve avenged their other two losses from last season, to Traverse City St. Francis and Boyne City, and have a nice challenge on the way in reigning Division 4 champion Maple City Glen Lake (11-4) on Feb. 27.
Hemlock (12-2) The reigning Division 3 champion took losses to Division 1 Midland Dow (11-2) and Division 2 Goodrich (15-0) to finish off December, but that’s it during an otherwise strong run that’s also included handing St. Charles (12-1) its only defeat and downing St. Louis (12-3), Garber (11-5) and Standish-Sterling (11-4). The Huskies have clinched a share of the Tri-Valley Conference Blue title and can finish an outright championship run next week. They will get further prep for the postseason against Division 2 Frankenmuth (11-2) on Saturday and Freeland (13-2) on Feb. 27.
DIVISION 4
Baraga (12-3) A 49-37 win over Lake Linden-Hubbell last week left Baraga as the only team without a loss in the overall Copper Mountain Conference standings and also avenged a 48-45 loss to LL-H from Dec. 8. The 2023 Division 4 runner-up’s only other defeats this winter were to Division 2 Negaunee on Dec. 29 and Division 3 Calumet, by just four points, on Jan. 9. They’ve won their six games since falling to the Copper Kings and can make major noise over the next month starting with a matchup at Ewen-Trout Creek (11-2) tonight and then a trip to Ishpeming (14-0) next week.
Maple City Glen Lake (11-4) The reigning Division 4 champion has pushed its lead in the Northwest Conference to two games as it plays for a sixth-straight league title. A pair of wins over Frankfort (10-4) and others over Kingsley (11-5) and Brethren (10-3) stick out, but the losses are impressive too – coming to Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep (11-4), Elk Rapids (13-2), Mason County Central (11-3) and Lake Leelanau St. Mary (11-1). The Kingsley rematch is Wednesday, and Harbor Springs (12-2) comes to Glen Lake on Feb. 27 – with St. Mary part of the same District bracket at Leland next month.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Detroit Edison (11-1) at West Bloomfield (13-1) – West Bloomfield is the only team to defeat Detroit Edison during the regular season both of the last two, and both teams are coming off Saturday losses to out-of-state opponents but remain unbeaten in Michigan.
Thursday – Detroit Renaissance (14-0) at Detroit Edison (11-1) – Edison is lined up to have one of the most challenging weeks of any team in the state this season, but has prepared for it against top competition all winter.
Friday – Negaunee (15-1) at Ishpeming (14-0) – A 57-53 win by Ishpeming in the first meeting remains Negaunee’s lone defeat as these teams top the Western Peninsula Athletic Conference East.
Friday – Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (15-0) at Jackson Lumen Christi (14-2) – St. Mary’s has a one-game lead on Lumen Christi in the CHSL AA thanks to a 46-18 win in their first meeting.
Friday – Saugatuck (11-1) at Martin (10-2) – The winner will have a one-game lead in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Central with two league games to play. Saugatuck won the first meeting 32-27.
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PHOTOS (Top) Clare defenders surround a Shepherd player heading toward the basket during last week's 46-21 win over the Bluejays. (Middle) Bath applies defensive pressure during its 61-58 win over Springport. (Top photo by High School Sports Scene; middle photo by Click by Christine McCallister.)