Breslin Bound: 2025-26 Boys District Preview
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
February 23, 2026
The march to Breslin Center ramps up significantly this week as more than 700 boys basketball teams across Michigan begin a journey they hope will end in East Lansing.
We always switch up our “Breslin Bound” format once the MHSAA Tournament starts, as last week’s most intriguing results below are followed this time by glances at three District brackets of note in each division. Host sites are bolded, and teams playing in those brackets are listed by seed as determined by Michigan Power Ratings (MPR).
Everything you could want to know this week about tickets, brackets and more can be found on the Boys Basketball page. To watch any of several games online, visit the NFHS Network.
“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. Saginaw Heritage 73, Grand Blanc 60 The Hawks (18-4) avenged a 28-point loss to Grand Blanc (17-4) from December in this matchup of Saginaw Valley League division champions.
2. Detroit Catholic Central 64, Detroit Martin Luther King 54 The Shamrocks (15-6) won the annual Operation Friendship championship game matching the winners from the Catholic High School League and Detroit Public School League, and adding to a 54-46 overtime win over King (17-5) from December.
3. Gladwin 49, Beaverton 46 Gladwin (21-1) claimed the overall Jack Pine Conference championship with its second win this month over Beaverton (17-5).
4. Flushing 52, Goodrich 51 Flushing (18-4) held on for a second close win over Goodrich, this time in the Flint Metro League championship game, after winning their Jan. 27 meeting by four.
5. Wayne Memorial 61, Hartland 48 The Zebras (19-3) capped off their regular season by defeating the Eagles (18-4) in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association title game.
Districts at a Glance
These could be among our most competitive brackets. Host sites are in bold, and teams are listed by seed:
DIVISION 1
Detroit Cass Tech
1. Detroit Martin Luther King (17-5), 2. Detroit Cass Tech (16-6), 3. Detroit Western (19-2), 4. Grosse Pointe South (11-11), 5. Grosse Pointe North (10-12).
King and Cass Tech have met twice this season – King won the Jan. 21 matchup 60-53 that helped decide the PSL Blue title, and then 68-63 in the PSL Tournament city championship game Feb. 15. King also defeated Western, 56-36, in a league tournament semifinal, while Cass Tech and Western didn’t face each other during this regular season. Grosse Pointe North has won seven of its last nine games and defeated Cass Tech by a point in their District matchup last season, and South owns a big early win over North.
Flushing
1. Saginaw Heritage (18-4), 2. Flushing (18-4), 3. Saginaw United (13-8), 4. Flint Carman-Ainsworth (8-14), 5. Swartz Creek (11-11).
As noted by the results above, Heritage and Flushing emerged at the end of last week as the top teams from the Saginaw Valley League and Flint Metro League, respectively. Saginaw United finished second in the SVL South and split with SVL North runner-up Mount Pleasant this season, and despite losing to Heritage early should also be considered a contender. Flushing has only one loss this calendar year, to Pontiac Notre Dame Prep in overtime, and Heritage has lost only twice since Jan. 1 and defeated Mount Pleasant twice by 20 or more points to win the SVL North.
Muskegon
1. Rockford (18-3), 2. Muskegon (19-2), 3. Greenville (20-2), 4. Muskegon Mona Shores (10-10), 5. Muskegon Reeths-Puffer (6-16), 6. Cedar Springs (7-15).
Rockford and Muskegon are the anticipated matchup to decide this bracket, and they met in last season’s District Final with the Rams winning 64-62. Rockford has victories over Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice and East Kentwood but finished second to the latter in the O-K Red. Muskegon has downed Wayne Memorial and Lansing Waverly and won the O-K Green. And definitely don’t count out River Cities Alliance champion Greenville, which has two losses by a combined six points and introduced itself loudly with a December win over Grand Rapids Northview.
DIVISION 2
Comstock Park
1. Grand Rapids Catholic Central (16-6), 2. Grand Rapids Christian (16-5), 3. Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian (17-5), 4. Wyoming Kelloggsville (14-7), 5. Comstock Park (5-17), 6. Ada Forest Hills Eastern (2-20).
Grand Rapids Christian claimed the O-K White title outright last week in part thanks to a 51-43 win over Grand Rapids Catholic Central, and they split their regular-season series as the Cougars won their Jan. 20 meeting by five. NorthPointe was second in the O-K Silver and Kelloggsville fourth, and on opposite sides of this bracket certainly could provide obstacles as the Cougars and Eagles pursue a third round.
Ludington
1. Ludington (20-2), 2. Hart (19-3), 3. Reed City (10-12), 4. Manistee (12-10), 5. Big Rapids (9-13).
Ludington finished undefeated in the West Michigan Conference Lakes and has reached Regional Finals the last two seasons. Hart was second in the WMC Rivers and is seeking a first District title since 2019. They have key mutual opponents; both lost to North Muskegon this winter, and Hart also took a loss from Fremont while Ludington swept the Packers. Manistee and Ludington played Thursday – Ludington winning 68-55 – and they could meet again in a District Semifinal if Manistee gets past Big Rapids tonight.
Yale
1. Yale (20-2), 2. Croswell-Lexington (17-5), 3. Imlay City (16-6), 4. Almont (10-10), 5. North Branch (7-15).
All five of these teams are from the Blue Water Area Conference and finished among the top six, with Yale and Croswell-Lexington sharing the championship and splitting their matchups – the Pioneers won Jan. 20 in overtime, 64-57, while Yale won the rematch Friday 60-41. Imlay City finished third in the BWAC and despite losing both games against both champs took Croswell-Lexington to overtime the second time they played.
DIVISION 3
Kent City
1. Blanchard Montabella (15-7), 2. Kent City (14-8), 3. Morley Stanwood (13-9), 4. Ravenna (13-9), 5. Lakeview (7-15), 6. White Cloud (3-19).
The top four seeds all finished second or third in their respective leagues and will look to add a trophy winning what could be one of the most tightly-contested brackets in any division. Montabella tied for second in the Mid-State Activities Conference West and has won six of its last seven games since falling to Ravenna 43-39 on Jan. 28. Ravenna, which tied for third in the WMC Rivers, has bounced back from a late rough stretch and opened this season with a win over Morley Stanwood – which finished second in the Central State Activities Association White while splitting with third-place Kent City, which won their Friday matchup by 20.
Mancelona
1. Mancelona (20-2), 2. East Jordan (20-2), 3. Indian River Inland Lakes (14-8), 4. Harbor Springs (11-11), 5. Boyne City (9-12), 6. Charlevoix (6-15).
By the numbers, Mancelona and East Jordan has been so close at the top of this District that East Jordan actually passed Mancelona in MPR during the week after seeding. East Jordan also won the Ski Valley Conference by game over Mancelona, claiming their matchups 48-38 and 45-36. Inland Lakes finished third in the Ski Valley, losing to both league title contenders twice, and Harbor Springs is coming over after finishing third in the Northern Shores Conference and losing to East Jordan by only six points, 45-39, on Thursday.
Unionville-Sebewaing
1. Harbor Beach (19-3), 2. Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port Laker (18-3), 3. Cass City (16-6), 4. Unionville-Sebewaing (11-11), 5. Bad Axe (6-15).
There is a great deal of familiarity in this bracket as well, as Harbor Beach won the Big Thumb Conference Black and Laker and Cass City were first and second, respectively, in the BTC White. Harbor Beach saw both during the first half of the regular season, defeating Cass City by seven and Laker by three. Laker defeated Cass City by seven and nine to win their league. USA tied for fifth in the BTC White – with an eight-point win over Cass City and a four-point loss to Laker in February rematches.
DIVISION 4
Lake Linden-Hubbell
1. Dollar Bay (19-2), 2. L’Anse (15-6), 3. Baraga (15-6), 4. Lake-Linden-Hubbell (7-15), 5. Chassell (5-16).
Dollar Bay won the Copper Mountain Conference championship and L’Anse and Baraga both finished among the upper half among a strong group – in fact, Baraga defeated Dollar Bay by 11 just 10 days ago. Dollar Bay did defeat Baraga in last season’s District Final, and the Blue Bolts’ only other loss this season was to Division 1 Marquette. L’Anse is enjoying its first winning season since 2018-19 and swept Baraga during the regular season.
Rogers City
1. Hillman (19-2), 2. Posen (15-5), 3. Gaylord St. Mary (13-9), 4. Rogers City (12-9), 5. Onaway (5-17), 6. Atlanta (4-13).
Hillman and Posen shared the North Star League Little Dipper championship, splitting the regular-season series with Posen and winning their most recent matchup 57-50 on Jan. 27. They may meet again, but Hillman also took a loss from potential Wednesday opponent Rogers City before winning their rematch by 20. Rogers City also defeated Posen twice. Gaylord St. Mary is intriguing after finishing fourth in the Ski Valley Conference but, as noted above, defeating that league’s champion East Jordan earlier this month.
Three Oaks River Valley
1. St. Joseph Michigan Lutheran (17-4), 2. St. Joseph Our Lady of the Lake Catholic (13-7), 3. New Buffalo (14-8), 4. Eau Claire (11-11), 5. Three Oaks River Valley (3-17).
Michigan Lutheran finished first, Our Lady and New Buffalo tied for second, and Eau Claire finished fourth in the Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph League. New Buffalo handed Michigan Lutheran its only conference defeat in their second of two games – winning by a point – and New Buffalo and Our Lady split their two games, decided by five and two points. Michigan Lutheran also defeated New Buffalo to clinch a District championship a year ago.
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PHOTOS (Top) Muskegon’s James Martin throws down a dunk against Muskegon Mona Shores during a Jan. 30 win. (Middle) Flushing’s Raymond Neither (10) works for post position against Goodrich’s Jensen LePla during the Raiders’ 52-51 Metro League title clincher. (Muskegon/Mona Shores photo by Tim Reilly. Flushing/Goodrich photo by Terry Lyons.)
Tri-Captains Pace Striving Spring Lake
February 8, 2018
By Tom Kendra
Special for Second Half
Things are looking up for the Spring Lake boys basketball team.
The Lakers have raised the bar in recent years, making their mark on the statewide level with two appearances in the MHSAA Class B Quarterfinals over the last three seasons.
This winter, led by a trio of tall, versatile and extremely intelligent captains in Sam Johnson (6-foot-8), Griffin Lorimer (6-4) and Jack VanWingen (6-2), Spring Lake has stepped up its schedule and its game in its quest to get back to the quarters – and perhaps further.
“When it gets to tournament time, it comes down to playing your best basketball of the year and making a run,” said Johnson, who scored a game-high 16 points on Wednesday as Spring Lake doubled up host Sparta, 50-25, for an Ottawa-Kent Conference Blue win.
“A big key in March is experience and leadership, and we definitely have plenty of that.”
Spring Lake (12-3, 6-2 in the O-K Blue), which hosts Allendale on Friday night in another conference game, showed it was going to be a force to be reckoned with early this year when it posted back-to-back tight wins over a pair of bigger schools in Rockford (48-46) and rival Grand Haven (69-66 in double overtime).
Bill Core, in his 17th year as Spring Lake’s head coach, said that in addition to good height on the front line, this may also be the smartest team he’s ever coached. Core said that intelligence helps this team make adjustments on the fly and smart decisions when the game is on the line.
“Those three captains are all 4.0 kids, and they’re great role models,” said Core, who is assisted by Randy White. “They have high basketball IQs, and I trust them to make decisions and figure things out.”
Johnson is the player who draws the most attention from opposing teams at 6-8, with the ability to post up and step out and knock down mid-range jump shots.
Johnson, who plans to play basketball next year at Claremont McKenna College in California, leads the Lakers with 12 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. And don’t try to hack him and send him to the free-throw line. Johnson is shooting a team-best 80 percent on free throws.
The most versatile of the three captains is Lorimer, who is hard to miss with his curly blonde hair and red shoes. He creates matchup problems with his inside-outside game, and currently averages 10 points and seven rebounds per contest.
Johnson and Lorimer are a 1-2 punch up front that most teams can’t match.
“We know one of the strengths of this team is that we’re deep in the post, and that makes it hard for teams to just focus on one guy,” explained Lorimer. “It’s good to have that balance. Plus, we’ve played together so long that we just know where the other guys are going to be.”
Lorimer’s versatility was perhaps best displayed last year at team camp in Rockford, where he was assigned to guard one of the state’s best big men in 6-9 Xavier Tillman (now at Michigan State) one day, then came back the next day and had to check standout guard Matt Beachler (now at Central Michigan).
But the most important of Spring Lake’s three captains might be VanWingen, a slasher who is the team’s best at breaking down defenses. VanWingen is adept at finding Johnson and Lorimer inside as well as kicking the ball back out to the arc to shooters Ben Arteaga, Kyle Wiersma and sophomore Cayden Ball.
“I think we’re a very well-balanced team,” said VanWingen, the top returning scorer off last year’s who is currently averaging 11.2 points, five rebounds and three assists per game. “Our big guys get a lot of attention, but we also have guards who can shoot it. It’s important that we trust each other and know that everyone is going to do their job.”
Spring Lake’s senior trio has been too much for almost everybody to handle, with the main exception being conference rival and possible Regional opponent Grand Rapids Catholic Central, which is ranked No. 6 in Class B.
The two teams met on Jan. 5 at Spring Lake in a much-anticipated showdown, but the Cougars swarmed the hosts in a lopsided 80-39 victory. The Lakers were much more competitive when the two teams played last week in Grand Rapids, but still lost, 59-40.
“We improved by 22 points the second game, and if we improve by another 22 points in the next game, we’ll win by three,” quipped Core, who knows his team will be a huge underdog if it’s fortunate enough to win the District it is hosting next month and possibly get another shot at GRCC in the Class B Regional opener at Grand Rapids West Catholic.
The Lakers can gain confidence by looking back to last year, when they lost to GR Catholic twice during the regular season, then stunned the Cougars in the Regional championship game. That win put Spring Lake in the Quarterfinals for the second time in three years, after it made a surprise run to the school’s first-ever boys basketball Quarterfinals appearance in 2015.
Lorimer believes this year’s team has the potential to make it three Quarterfinal appearances in four years.
“I really do think we have another level we haven’t reached yet,” said Lorimer, who plans to play next year at Trine University in Angola, Ind. “We may have for short stretches, but we haven’t strung it together for a whole game. That’s what we’re working on.”
Tom Kendra worked 23 years at The Muskegon Chronicle, including five as assistant sports editor and the final six as sports editor through 2011. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for Muskegon, Oceana, Mason, Lake, Oceola, Mecosta and Newaygo counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Spring Lake senior Griffin Lorimer battles along the baseline in a victory earlier this season against Muskegon Reeths-Puffer. (Middle) Spring Lake senior Jack VanWingen glides in for a bucket in a victory over Muskegon Reeths-Puffer. (Below) Spring Lake senior Sam Johnson goes up for a shot during the Lakers' thrilling double-overtime win over neighboring rival Grand Haven earlier this season. (Photos by Tim Reilly.)