Breslin Bound: 2021-22 Boys Report Week 1
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
December 13, 2021
Showcase matchups began quenching fans’ thirst for the new season last week, with more on the way, and league play already is ramping up as we embark on a four-month journey – much different than last season’s two-month sprint.
Boys basketball season began the way it’s meant to begin, and no one will be taking that for granted.
Every Monday with “Breslin Bound” we’ll take glances at five scores that especially jumped out from the previous week, provide snapshots of two teams in each division to watch as the winter progresses, and then give a glimpse of five intriguing matchups on the schedule during the week to come.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com. Send corrections or missing scores to [email protected].
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Detroit U-D Jesuit 51, Detroit Martin Luther King 42 These two are both expected to be in the Division 1 championship mix again, as usual, making this a game that might be recalled when March rolls around.
2. Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice 86, Grand Blanc 68 The Warriors opened with an impressive win over the reigning Division 1 champion, putting up what would’ve been a season-high points total last winter.
3. Freeland 80, Bridgeport 51 Although these Tri-Valley Conference foes did split last season, Bridgeport is coming off a run to the Division 2 Semifinals.
4. Grand Rapids Catholic Central 50, Grand Rapids Christian 45 The reigning Division 2 champion didn’t lose a game last season but got an immediate test from the Eagles in this opener.
5. Harrison 40, Beaverton 38 Harrison finished seventh and Beaverton was undefeated in winning the Jack Pine Conference last season; this avenged 29 and 39-point losses by the Hornets.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
Division 1
Bay City Central (2-0) The Wolves are making an early push for one of the most interesting potential turnarounds this winter. The finished 2-12 last season, and they’ve already equaled that success. And it came with plenty of excitement – Central opened with a 63-61 win over Midland Dow and followed with another close finish, 51-49 over Tawas.
Okemos (2-0) After a rare down season – finishing 3-7 with a pair of overtime losses and two more defeats by five or fewer points – Okemos is off to a fast start reestablishing itself as a contender in the Capital Area Activities Conference Blue. The first step was a 63-51 opening-night win over a Howell team coming off a District title, and the next was a 53-37 victory over DeWitt.
Division 2
Onsted (3-0) The Wildcats are coming off two straight 14-win seasons, and they couldn’t have gotten off to a better start last week. All three wins were by double digits – 69-56 over Michigan Center, 68-38 over Hanover-Horton and 69-26 over Jonesville – and Hanover-Horton made the Division 3 Semifinals last winter, after defeating Michigan Center in Regional play.
Richmond (3-0) The Blue Devils joined Onsted among 12 teams statewide to start 3-0 last week, a great bounce-back after going 4-6 last season with six games canceled. This start is more reminiscent of when the team went 18-4 in 2019-20 – except last week Richmond also got a win over Fraser, 51-49, to go with victories over Marine City and Cardinal Mooney.
Warren Michigan Collegiate (2-0) After missing last season’s Quarterfinals by a one-point loss to Detroit Loyola, Michigan Collegiate opened in a big way last week. The Cougars downed Detroit Mumford by 30 and then defeated Ecorse 72-45 at the Horatio Williams Tip-Off Classic. A Motor City Roundball Classic matchup Dec. 27 with Detroit Renaissance could be telling before Charter School Conference play begins. (UPDATED Jan. 31, 2022; this originally appeared under Division 3, but Michigan Collegiate is in Division 2.)
Division 3
Holton (2-0) Even with last season shortened, Holton has upped its win total each of the last four from six to 10 to 13 to finishing 15-6 last winter. The Red Devils got started on attempting to repeat as champions of the Central State Activities Association Silver with a 46-28 win over Morley Stanwood on Friday, after opening with a 16-point win over Howard City Tri County.
Division 4
Lake Linden-Hubbell (2-0) The Lakes play in a strong Copper Country division of the Copper Mountain Conference which features primarily Dollar Bay and Painesdale Jeffers as well. But Lake Linden-Hubbell will try to work its way into the race and got a solid jump on bettering last season’s 7-9 overall finish with a 39-34 win over Hancock and more sizable victory over Baraga.
New Buffalo (2-0) The Bison are coming off a District title and off to a fast start. They held on for a 77-73 win over Division 1 Sturgis to open, and then won big against Covert to kick off the Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph Conference White schedule. New Buffalo was runner-up in the league and 13-4 overall last season.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Traverse City St. Francis (0-0) at Charlevoix (1-0) – The Lake Michigan Conference race gets going right away, with the reigning champion Rayders taking on one of last season’s co-runners-up.
Thursday – Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (2-0) at Clarkston (2-0) – This is a rematch of a Division 1 Regional Semifinal, won by the Eaglets 38-37 on the way to reaching last season’s Quarterfinals.
Friday – Hudsonville Unity Christian (2-0) at Grand Rapids South Christian (1-1) – Two of the Grand Rapids area’s best were a combined 33-6 last season.
Friday – Detroit U-D Jesuit (3-0) at Ferndale (0-1) – Jesuit lost only one game last season, a Division 1 Regional Final, and Ferndale is coming off a run to the Division 2 Semifinals.
Saturday – Benton Harbor (2-0) vs. Flint Carman-Ainsworth (1-0) at Grand Rapids Union – This Showcase Classic game matches teams that were a combined 29-6 last season.
Second Half’s weekly “Breslin Bound” previews and reviews are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Office of Postsecondary Financial Planning located within the Michigan Department of Treasury. 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 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as 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.
PHOTO Ovid-Elsie, defending, opened with a 56-52 win over Bath last week. (Photo by Christine McCallister.)
Work Ethic Continues to Drive Van Dyk's Endeavors as Co-Owner of Family Farm
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
August 4, 2026
Matt Van Dyk’s work ethic was always easy to spot, even for those not spending every day at Imlay City’s basketball practices.
“The only way he could get out of work in the summer was for church or basketball, nothing else,” Imlay City boys basketball coach Don Gauthier said. “We would have summer league games in Flint or wherever we were playing, and he would show up five minutes before tip off, covered in mud, dirt, or whatever he was doing on the farm, and with no excuses, would come out there and play as hard as anybody. That work ethic, it was contagious to everybody else.”
That work ethic was born in the fields at Van Dyk Farms, grew through his time on the court for Imlay City and eventually Michigan State, and continues to serve him in his role as part owner of that same family farm, which serves as one of the largest produce suppliers in the eastern United States.
“I’ve had some phenomenal coaches in my life,” Van Dyk said. “My high school coach was Don Gauthier, and he really instilled work ethic into us. I think his favorite quote was, ‘Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.’ When I think about high school, just that work ethic of working hard every day really helped with being at the college level, but also with farming. And, really, I’ve been blessed to have role models that have all echoed that same mentality. My high school coach, my junior college (St. Clair County Community College) coach Dale Vos, and at Michigan State with coach (Tom) Izzo, plus my father, Doug Van Dyk.”
Matt Van Dyk, a 2012 Imlay City graduate, returned home to the 1,000-acre family vegetable farm after graduating with his agri-business degree from MSU in 2017.
While he’s officially one of the owners, he said his unofficial title is field operations, as he oversees planting, growing and harvest operations.
“I’m the person they call when something’s broken down, or they need to know what field to go into next,” he said.
Van Dyk has immersed himself in the Imlay City community since his return, joining the township board for a while, as well as his church council. He’s also giving back as an athlete, helping with the basketball program. His wife, Rachel, who played volleyball at MSU, was the varsity girls volleyball coach at Imlay City for three seasons and still works with clubs in the area.
“The Bible says that to who much is given, much is expected, and I’ve been given a lot, more so than I deserve,” he said. “The opportunity to play at Michigan State, not many people get that opportunity. For me, to be able to use that and give back is what we’re called to do. With the farm, too. I have the opportunity to work on a family business, and some people will say that you’re starting on second base – well there’s a lot that’s expected from me with this opportunity that I’m given. That is where my true worth comes from; it doesn’t come from personal success, it comes from what our team here at Van Dyk farms can accomplish.”
While Van Dyk describes his time at MSU as an opportunity he was given, the reality is it was one he fought long and hard to earn.
After becoming an all-state selection in Class B and Blue Water Area Conference MVP at Imlay City, he originally went to Hope College after high school but transferred to SC4 following one semester.
During his lone year there, he was named the Michigan Community College Athletic Association Eastern Conference Freshman of the Year, First-Team All-MCCAA and National Junior College Athletic Association Region XII All-Defense.
That earned him scholarship offers from in-state Division II programs, but he chose instead to walk-on at MSU and follow his dream of playing for the Spartans. At worst, he thought, he would graduate with a top-notch degree in the field he wanted.
Of course, he ended up with much more than that. After two years as a walk-on, Van Dyk earned a scholarship for his final season at MSU. He wound up playing in 53 games during his career, starting four during the 2016-17 season.
“I guess while you’re in it, it’s just work,” he said. “You put your head down, take it one day at a time. Looking back and seeing how there are no days off in life, you’re like, ‘OK, maybe that was pretty awesome what I did.’ I got to go to Italy, got to go to Madison Square Garden, got to play at Duke, got to travel the world.”
He also went viral.
While work ethic was what pushed Van Dyk to reach his dreams, he was also a remarkable athlete, possessing one of the best vertical leaps on the roster. That came out in a game against Ohio State his junior season, during which he threw down a massive dunk off an alley-oop. The play made the ESPN SportsCenter Top 10.
“That’s not my style of play at all,” Van Dyk said with a laugh. “Dunking, that’s what got me on the team, was my athleticism. But being flashy, that’s not my thing. It’s a funny way to work things out, and I’m forever indebted to Alvin Ellis for throwing it off the backboard.”
Now, as Van Dyk is back in Imlay City with his wife and two young daughters with another on the way in November, he’s putting his head down to better his family’s business and the community at large. All while continuing to set the right example for the next potential athlete willing to work for what he earned.
“They see him, and he played at Michigan State, and there’s his picture on the wall,” Gauthier said. “Most young kids have big dreams, and they have a guy right there in their hometown that did it. They look up to that. For the athlete and basketball player he is, he’s just a better person. He’s very humble, he doesn’t act big time toward anybody. That’s even more impressive.”
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PHOTOS (Top) At left, Matt Van Dyk puts up a jumper for Imlay City. At right, Van Dyk and his daughters enjoy a moment in one of his family’s fields. (Photos provided by Matt Van Dyk.)