Breslin Bound: 2024-25 Boys Report Post-Break
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 7, 2025
Believe it or not: Boys basketball season is only seven weeks away from the start of District play.
Things have heated up quickly coming out of a busy holiday break for several championship hopefuls. League play will take over from here on out for most, but this weekend also will include another big showcase in East Kentwood featuring two more massive matchups of Division 1 contenders.
Today’s “Breslin Bound” catches us up after three weeks away and is powered by MI Student Aid 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. Muskegon 69, East Lansing 65 (OT) The Big Reds (6-0) opened a 4-0 run through the break at the D Zone Invitational with this matchup of Division 1 contenders – and by dealing East Lansing (7-1) its only loss.
2. Detroit Martin Luther King 48, Kalamazoo Central 38 The Crusaders (8-1) also put together a 4-0 run through the break, finishing it with this win over the previously-undefeated Maroons (6-1) at the Muskegon Basketball Showcase.
3. Byron Center 65, Warren Lincoln 63 Byron Center (7-2) is riding a six-game winning streak thanks in part to emerging from this close call against the reigning Division 2 champion Abes (3-3).
4. Flint Powers Catholic 69, Riverview Gabriel Richard 66 These two both finished last season at the Breslin Center in Semifinals and gave each other a great test at the D Zone Showcase.
5. Grand Rapids Catholic Central 54, Grand Rapids Christian 43 The Cougars (5-3) bounced back from a loss to Byron Center to take a strong first step in the Ottawa-Kent Conference White with this victory over the 2024 Division 2 runner-up Eagles (4-4).
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (9-1) The Warriors trail the Catholic High School League Central leaders by a game with their lone loss to Detroit U-D Jesuit a month ago. But they are coming off a holiday break that included wins over East Kentwood, Warren Lincoln, Flint New Standard Academy and Jackson and should surge into the remainder of the league schedule which picks back up Friday at Detroit Catholic Central. Circle that one and matchups Saturday against Muskegon and Jan. 24 at Orchard Lake St. Mary’s as ones to watch over the next few weeks.
Hudsonville (6-1) Nearly half this team’s roster made a quick turnaround from playing for the Division 1 football championship at Ford Field to hitting the basketball floor running, and did so successfully. The lone defeat was by a point in overtime to Grand Rapids Christian on Dec. 10, but Hudsonville pulled out a notable five-point win over Hudsonville Unity Christian – Unity’s only loss so far. The Eagles also downed Detroit Catholic Central by 13 at their showcase event in mid-December and posted impressive double-digit victories against Whitehall in the season opener and Holland West Ottawa last week to kick off the O-K Red schedule.
DIVISION 2
Flint Powers Catholic (8-0) As noted above, the Chargers reached the Division 2 Semifinals last season and have continued to accelerate to start this winter. Their best two wins, arguably, have come in their last two games as they edged Gabriel Richard and then downed Schoolcraft 68-60 at its Champions Classic on Saturday. Six of their first eight opponents remain .500 or better, and it’s already easy to circle a Feb. 18 game at currently-undefeated Flint Carman-Ainsworth that could not only decide the Saginaw Valley League championship but indicate Powers’ potential to power through another deep postseason run.
Kingsford (7-1) Although the Flivvers stumbled just a bit with their first loss of the season last week against Marquette, 58-53, they came into that game off a 10-day break and came back to defeat Crystal Falls Forest Park by 17 on Monday. Kingsford finished off their 2024 slate with a championship at the Elk Rapids Invitational, defeating the host Elks by 27 and then Jackson by 20 to clinch the title. Three more wins this season have come against opponents that have at least six victories. The Flivvers reached the Regional Finals last season (where, coincidentally, they fell by four to Flint Powers).
DIVISION 3
Jackson Lumen Christi (8-0) Lumen Christi is another team coming off a trip to the Quarterfinals and also an eight-win jump from 2022-23. They’ve started out the right way to continue the climb, with all of their wins this season by double digits including a 73-36 victory over Clarkston Everest Collegiate on Saturday that was the Mountaineers’ first defeat. The Titans shared the CHSL AA title last year with Riverview Gabriel Richard before falling to RGR in the CHSL Cardinal championship game and MHSAA Tournament, and those two will face off for the first time this season Jan. 21.
Maple City Glen Lake (5-1) The Lakers finished second in the Northwest Conference last season but reached the Division 4 Quarterfinals, and they’ve impressed this winter already despite facing five opponents playing better than .500 ball and a sixth that’s just a smidge below. Wins over Harbor Springs 71-63 and Charlevoix 68-62 avenged 2023-24 defeats, and they’ll get a chance to do the same for last year’s Quarterfinal loss to Mount Pleasant Sacred when they face the Irish next week. The Lakers did fall to Frankfort, 49-42, and will attempt to reset the top of the Northwest Conference standings when they see the Panthers again Jan. 30.
DIVISION 4
Crystal Falls Forest Park (7-1) Monday’s loss to the Division 2 Flivvers came after a perfect December for the Trojans as they look to build off last season’s 22 wins and trip to the Quarterfinals. A 62-56 win over Munising avenged a 2023-24 loss, and the Trojans defeated Norway last week after splitting with the Knights last season. Forest Park also handed Dollar Bay its only loss, 67-49 on Dec. 30 at Michigan Tech, and perhaps their most impressive win came 44-41 over Division 3 Menominee. They’ll get a similar opportunity again Division 2 Escanaba on Thursday and finish the regular-season at Division 1 Marquette.
Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (8-0) The Irish played as long as they could last winter, finishing Division 4 runners-up, and they are thriving again with all eight wins by double digits and six by at least 30 points. Sacred Heart opened with a 63-53 win over Fulton, which finished second to the Irish in the Mid-State Activities Conference a year ago, and the Irish lead the league again thanks as well to a 69-37 win over second-place Vestaburg. Games next week against Glen Lake and Jan. 25 at Lumen Christi could tell even more about Sacred Heart’s potential to march again.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Wednesday – Flint Carman-Ainsworth (7-0) at River Rouge (7-2) – Rouge’s schedule is loaded again playing as an independent, and coming off two-straight two-point losses the Panthers next will welcome the SVL leader.
Friday – Michigan Center (8-1) at Grass Lake (7-0) – Grass Lake is finding itself in a league title mix for the first time in half a decade in the Cascades Conference East, and reigning co-champion Michigan Center shares first place again.
Friday – Detroit Old Redford (6-0) at Romulus Summit Academy North (7-1) – Reigning Division 3 runner-up Old Redford somewhat kicked off that Breslin run last season with a 52-51 win over Summit in the Charter School Conference Tournament final.
Saturday – Muskegon (6-0) vs. Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (9-1) at East Kentwood – Less than 24 hours after playing Byron Center in a game that could have massive league title implications, the Big Reds will tip off at the Gottagetit Hoop Classic against another statewide Division 1 power.
Saturday – Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (6-3) vs. East Lansing (7-1) at East Kentwood – Two more Division 1 contenders will finish off the Gottagetit event with a highly-anticipated 7 p.m. matchup.
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) River Rouge's Roland Berry III (21) drives to the basket against Birmingham Groves on Dec. 30. (Middle) Kingsford's Gavin Grondin (20) makes a move toward the basket while being defended by Marquette's Jacob MacPhee on Friday. (Top photo by Team Arreguin Photos; middle photo by Cara Kamps.)
Boyd Finds Nothing but Net as Old Redford Earns Championship Day Debut
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
March 14, 2024
EAST LANSING — The day before his team’s Division 3 Semifinal against Riverview Gabriel Richard, Detroit Old Redford head coach Ray Reeves said he installed a new play for his team to run.
Lo and behold, Old Redford found itself running that play Thursday at its most important moment of the season.
The Ravens were trailing by a point with two seconds remaining in regulation and set to inbound the ball from underneath their basket.
The play was called “one,” mainly because it was one of five new plays Reeves said were installed.
“I was watching Auburn play and I saw (head coach) Bruce Pearl run it,” Reeves said. “I took it from him.”
That play ended up earning Old Redford a chance to finish this season “one” in the state, as senior Justin Austin inbounded the ball into the near corner on the left side of the floor to junior Arkell Boyd, who drained a heavily-contested 3-pointer just before the buzzer to give the Ravens a 43-41 win over Gabriel Richard.
Old Redford will meet Niles Brandywine at 4:30 p.m. Saturday in a matchup of teams making their first appearance in an MHSAA Final in this sport.
“When that particular play came at the end of the game, I knew what to do,” said Boyd, who was mobbed by teammates on the floor after the shot went in.
The win continued a magical journey for Old Redford, which earned a one-point win over 2023 champion Flint Beecher in the Quarterfinal and a two-point victory over Detroit Loyola in a Regional Final.
Expanding on his team’s run this season, Reeves said the pivotal moment came during a trip to Indiana earlier in the year that produced some roster attrition.
“We went to Indiana with 14 players and came back with nine,” Reeves said.
The roster cut came after what Reeves said were issues with overbearing parents, which he said produced a team meeting that lasted from 10 p.m. until roughly 7 a.m. the next morning in Indiana.
“We knew it had to change,” Reeves said. “You think as an adult it would sometimes get better because you are dealing with adults. But I realized it was getting worse and it was killing my team. We came together that night, and we haven’t looked back.”
Trailing 37-32 with 4:42 remaining, Gabriel Richard mounted a charge, going on a 7-0 run to take a 39-37 lead with 2:01 left following a 3-point play by junior Nick Sobush.
Old Redford tied the game at 39-39 with 33.8 seconds remaining on a steal and layup by junior Kason Mayes, but Gabriel Richard regained the lead at 41-39 with 14.3 seconds left with a layup by junior Luke Westerdale.
Following a timeout, Old Redford put the ball in the hands of Mayes, who was fouled on a layup attempt with 3.3 seconds to go.
Mayes made the first free throw and missed the second to make it 41-40 Gabriel Richard. But Old Redford got the ball back when the rebound went off a Gabriel Richard player, which set up Boyd’s heroics.
Mayes scored 16 points, and Boyd added 15 for Old Redford (21-7).
Junior Charles Kage had 15 points and nine rebounds, and Sobush added 13 points for Gabriel Richard (23-4).
“It’s tough to swallow,” Gabriel Richard head coach Kris Daiek said. “I thought our kids played hard. But hey, it happens. It’s March Madness.”
The good news for Gabriel Richard is that all six players who saw minutes Thursday are expected back to help the program expand on what was its first Semifinal appearance since 1989.
“This is an educational moment for my kids,” Daiek said. “It stinks now. I give credit to Old Redford. It was a great battle all the way down the stretch. This will build character and make us a little bit tougher.”
PHOTOS (Top) Teammates pile onto Detroit Old Redford’s Arkell Boyd after his game-winning basket Thursday at Breslin Center. (Middle) The Ravens’ Ja'Quan Stennis gets a hand up high as Gabriel Richard’s Nick Sobush (1) works to get off a shot. (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)