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.)
Pair of 4th-Year Standouts Helping Fuel Bronson's Rising Expectations
By
Scott Hassinger
Special for MHSAA.com
December 3, 2024
BRONSON – Kam Brackett and Boston Bucklin are hoping to close out their Bronson basketball careers with a Big 8 Conference title and more postseason hardware this winter.
Brackett and Bucklin, who both begin their fourth seasons on the Vikings' varsity, are confident they can accomplish some lofty goals.
Both Brackett and Bucklin and their teammates are riding a wave of momentum following a successful football season that saw Bronson finish 6-4 and make the MHSAA Playoffs.
Eighth-year Bronson boys basketball coach Damien Loveless is excited to see how far his two senior leaders can take the Vikings, who finished 14-9 last winter.
"Kam is a phenomenal basketball player. He came in as an physically undersized freshman, and we asked him to go in there and bang with bigger guys. By the end of the season he became our starting point guard," Loveless said.
Loveless had another solid scorer at the time in then-junior Aiden Hathaway.
"It was around game 11 that we needed someone to relieve some of the pressure on Aiden. We put Kam at point guard and bumped Aiden off the ball, and the switch was very instrumental to our success and we ended up winning Districts,” Loveless explained. “This undersized kid (Brackett) thrived in that role. and he could've cared less if he scored and did a nice job distributing the ball to the other guys. He showed right away that he understood the game of basketball. When you have someone like that in your lineup, you're going to be a pretty good team.”
Brackett averaged 5.8 points, 2.7 rebounds and a pair of assists his freshman year. As a sophomore, he averaged 12.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.3 steals per contest as Hathaway remained as Bronson's main scoring threat.
After losing Hathaway to graduation in 2023, Loveless asked Brackett to shoulder more of the scoring load as a junior. The son of Dave Brackett, a past all-stater at Burr Oak, Kam Brackett didn't disappoint as he finished his junior campaign averaging 23.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 4.5 steals. That performance earned the 6-foot-0 Brackett all-state honorable mention in Division 3, along with a runner-up finish for the Big 8 Conference Player of the Year honor. He is a two-time first-team all-league player.
"Last year we asked Kam to become our scorer, and that's a role he willingly stepped into," Loveless said.
Brackett poured in 37 points during Bronson's 2023-24 season opener and later posted a season high of 42 and another game with a triple-double with nine steals.
"Halfway through my freshman year I moved up and earned a starting spot on varsity. Ever since then I've been working to continue growing as a person and increasing my basketball skills," Brackett said. "My biggest strength is definitely getting to the rack. When my teammates find me open, I'm looking to drive and score or dish the ball off to our big guys when the defense collapses in on me. Coach Loveless and my teammates show a lot of trust in me when I have a good shot.
“I feel like we're going to go far in the tournament this year. We have a real good group of guys with different abilities and a bunch of underclassmen who will contribute greatly. There are a lot of people who can score, rebound or make a good pass. This team has improved a great deal over last season. We have to focus on league and Districts first, but a big step to putting our mark on this program would be to win a Regional title."
Going into the season opener against Battle Creek St. Philip last week, Brackett had 963 career points and was just 37 shy of going over the 1,000-point milestone for his career.
"Kam's instincts on the basketball court are so incredible. I love watching him play,” said Loveless, who during the school day serves as White Pigeon High School principal. “He's a great defender and takes a great deal of pride in that. Many of his points come off transition, but he can just flat out shoot, scores the ball very well and can play the game at the rim. He just loves the contact, pressure and intensity and thrives in the moment. Having someone like that on your team makes everyone around him better."
Brackett is looking to continue his academic career by studying business in college focusing on finance or accounting. Following a big football season this fall as a wide receiver, Brackett is weighing his options and considering continuing his gridiron career at the next level.
Bucklin, a 6-1 power forward, averaged 5.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists and one steal per game his junior season.
"Boston has always been a big and athletic kid. He's physical, our strongest guy on the team and is going to move bodies out on the floor. He is good at just about everything he puts his mind to," Loveless said.
Bucklin is anxious to help put his stamp on the Bronson program as well.
"Like every year we are hoping for a Big 8 championship and a District title. Our conference is pretty tough, and our team is one of the most skilled teams I've ever been on,” Bucklin said. “Kam is one of those players that just makes everyone around him better. Everyone is always double-teaming him, and he still finds a way to score or he passes off to that open guy.
“Our team doesn't have lot of size, but it’s about how hard you are willing to work to be successful. I'm more of a rebounder than a scorer and prefer to get that rebound and get the ball back out to Kam or another teammate because I know they are going to do something great with the basketball. Everyone on this team is so positive when we're together."
Besides basketball, Bucklin has participated in football, soccer and track & field. He has been accepted and will attend the University of South Florida where he plans to study to become a physician's assistant.
Basketball runs in the Bucklin family genes. Boston's father Steve Bucklin and his uncle Jeremy Bucklin both played at Bronson. Jeremy Bucklin recently served as Sturgis' varsity girls coach. Boston's cousin Aaron Bucklin, another Bronson grad, is the varsity boys coach at Coldwater.
Brackett, Bucklin and Tyler Wilber, another senior, will serve as the Vikings' tri-captains. The remaining seniors on the roster are Drew Norton and Keegan Krebs. Other key players are sophomores Layne Arver and Warner Wotta, juniors Matt Anderson, Spencer Losinski, Stevie Wilson, Zeb Olsen and Carter Sikorski, and freshman Owen Losinski.
Bronson finished second in the Big 8 Conference last winter and fell in the District Semifinals to league rival Union City. The Vikings have not won a league title since joining the Big 8 Conference, but Loveless expects this team to be in the hunt.
Bronson finished 6-15 a year before Loveless took the reins of the program beginning with the 2016-17 season. The Vikings have won at least 13 games the last three seasons.
"To see the change in our kids' expectations the last few seasons has been remarkable and has set the tone for our program," Loveless said.
Loveless, an Olivet native and a Grand Valley State University graduate where he served as a student assistant, served as director of basketball operations at Olivet College before coming to Bronson.
While a student at GVSU and working at Olivet College, Loveless conducted research on the correlation between yoga and sports injuries. Along with weightlifting, Loveless has included yoga as part of his team's workouts twice a week at Bronson.
"When I was at Grand Valley we did a lot of stretching, and that led me to do some research. I found that there was this college that had implemented yoga in its sports program, and they had a 70 percent injury prevention rate," Loveless said.
"Yoga helps with your flexibility and injury prevention. It also makes our athletes a lot stronger."
Scott Hassinger is a contributing sportswriter for Leader Publications and previously served as the sports editor for the Three Rivers Commercial-News from 1994-2022. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph and Branch counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Bronson senior point guard Kam Brackett (11) looks to score against Sturgis during a game his junior season. (Middle) Bronson senior post player Boston Bucklin (35) battles for a rebound in a District game against Union City last winter. (Below) Vikings head boys basketball coach Damien Loveless, left, is joined by his two returning four-year senior standouts Brackett (middle) and Bucklin. (Top photo courtesy of Brandon Watson/Sturgis Journal. Middle photo courtesy of Troy Tennyson/Coldwater Daily Reporter. Loveless/Brackett/Bucklin photo by Scott Hassinger.)