Breslin Bound: 2025-26 Boys Finals Weekend Preview

By Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor

March 12, 2026

This weekend’s Boys Basketball Finals at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center are a lesson in playing the best competition to prepare for the most important games of the season.

MI Student AidOf 16 teams still contending for championships, 11 played schedules that ranked among the 25 most difficult in their respective divisions, based on their in-state opponents’ combined winning percentage. Rockford in Division 1, Freeland in Division 2 and Menominee in Division 3 played the strongest schedules in their respective divisions, using that metric, and the Division 2 field in particular includes three teams whose schedules ranked among the top five in opponents’ success this season.

That preparation has paid off so far. But there are other factors to consider. East Lansing in Division 1 and Wyoming Tri-unity Christian in Division 4 are returning champions, and the Trojans’ KJ Torbert is the newly-crowned Mr. Basketball Award winner. Romulus Summit Academy North in Division 2 and Arts & Technology Academy of Pontiac in Division 3 also reached championship games last season and will attempt to take the final step this time.

Semifinals will be played Thursday and Friday, with all four championships games set for Saturday.

DIVISION 1 - Friday
Rockford (23-3) vs. Auburn Hills Avondale (26-1) - Noon
East Lansing (26-1) vs. Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (22-5) - 2 p.m.

DIVISION 2 - Friday
Freeland (24-3) vs. Romulus Summit Academy North (26-1) - 5:30 p.m.
Detroit University Prep (17-9) vs. Hudsonville Unity Christian (24-3) - 7:30 p.m.

DIVISION 3 - Thursday
Arts & Technology Academy of Pontiac (18-3) vs. Menominee (23-4) - Noon
Flint Elite (21-4) vs. Pewamo-Westphalia (25-2) - 2 p.m.

DIVISION 4 - Thursday
Dollar Bay (24-2) vs. Detroit Douglass (20-7) - 5:30 p.m.
Concord (23-4) vs. Wyoming Tri-unity Christian (25-1) - 7:30 p.m.

Finals - Saturday
Division 1 - 12:15 p.m.
Division 2 - 6:45 p.m.
Division 3 - 4:30 p.m.
Division 4 - 10 a.m.

Tickets for this weekend’s games are $14 for both Semifinals and Finals and available via the Breslin Center ticket office; please note the ticket office does not accept contactless/tap-to-pay payments such as Apple Pay or Google Pay, and it is strongly recommended that tickets be purchased in advance and added to mobile wallets prior to arrival at the Breslin Center. For ticket information and links visit the Boys Basketball page.

All Semifinals and Finals will be broadcast and viewable with subscription on the NFHS Network. Audio broadcasts of all Semifinals and Finals will be available free of charge from the MHSAA Network.

The Boys Basketball Semifinals & Finals are sponsored by Michigan Achievement Scholarship/MI Student Aid.

Here’s a look at the 16 semifinalists (with rankings by regular-season Michigan Power Ratings and statistics through Regional Finals):

Division 1

AUBURN HILLS AVONDALE
Record/MPR: 26-1, No. 7
League finish: First in Oakland Activities Association Red
Coach: Aaron Fox, first season (26-1)
Championship history: Class B champion 2002.
Best wins: 57-43 (District Final), 58-44 and 43-38 over No. 28 Clarkston, 56-53 over No. 36 Hamtramck, 50-49 over No. 4 Grand Blanc, 72-28 over Division 2 No. 18 Detroit University Prep.
Players to watch: Jaidon Bourgeois, 5-11 sr. G (13.4 ppg); Maxwell Muhl, 5-10 sr. G (10.3 ppg, 69 3-pointers); Jakobe Liford, 6-4 sr. F (15.2 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 3.9 apg).
Outlook: Avondale is returning to the Semifinals for the first time since its championship season of 2002, and with its only loss this season to Freeland – which has advanced in Division 2. Fox took over the program this winter after five as an assistant and has emphasized a defensive effort that is giving up a mere 47.3 points per game while holding opponents to 38 or fewer in seven games. Senior 6-5 forward Noah Bonds stands tall averaging 7.3 rebounds and nearly a block per game, and he and the three starters listed above have all had games of at least 24 points this season.

BLOOMFIELD HILLS BROTHER RICE
Record/MPR: 22-5, No. 8
League finish: Tied for third in Catholic High School League Central
Coach: Rick Palmer, eighth season (132-51)
Championship history: Class A champion 1974, runner-up 1977.
Best wins: 88-59 over No. 15 Wayne Memorial in Quarterfinal, 59-29 over No. 23 Warren Fitzgerald in Regional Final, 87-56 over No. 25 Detroit Cass Tech in Regional Semifinal, 67-56 over No. 30 Bloomfield Hills in District Final, 88-53 over No. 5 Kalamazoo Central, 59-52 over No. 16 Grand Rapids Northview, 60-49 over No. 14 Detroit Catholic Central, 59-51 over Division 2 No. 13 Detroit Edison.
Players to watch: Greg Grays, 6-2 sr. G (14.9 ppg, 42 3-pointers); Jordan McDaniel, 5-10 fr. G (19.3 ppg, 39 3-pointers); Trevor Smith, 6-8 sr. F (7.4 ppg, 10 rpg, 1.7 bpg).  
Outlook: Brother Rice is making its first trip to the Semifinals since 1984 and after winning its second Regional championship over the last three seasons. Two of the Warriors’ three in-state losses were to teams in this field – East Lansing and Rockford – and three losses overall this season were by three points or fewer. Grays made the all-state second team last winter and teams with McDaniel for an impressive scoring duo, and 6-5 senior forward Ivan Stojanovski chips in another 8.6 points per game. Grays also was a Mr. Basketball Award finalist this season and has signed with Detroit Mercy.

EAST LANSING
Record/MPR: 26-1, No. 3
League finish: First in Capital Area Activities Conference Blue
Coach: Ray Mitchell, eighth season (152-35)
Championship history: Two MHSAA titles (most recent 2025), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 72-60 over No. 17 Ann Arbor Pioneer in Quarterfinal, 68-39 over No. 5 Kalamazoo Central in Regional Final, 92-78 (District Final), 81-64 and 74-62 over No. 21 Lansing Waverly, 47-31 over No. 23 Warren Fitzgerald, 80-71 (OT) over No. 1 Rockford, 62-41 over No. 8 Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice, 41-40 over No. 6 Detroit Martin Luther King, 73-58 over Division 2 No. 6 Lansing Sexton.
Players to watch: KJ Torbert, 6-3 sr. G (25 ppg, 54 3-pointers, 5.4 rpg); Kingston Thomas, 6-5 jr. G (13.6 ppg); Dequarius Stewart, 6-6 sr. G (9.1 ppg).  
Outlook: The Trojans last year won their first Finals championship since 1958 and have been considered a favorite to repeat all winter with Torbert and Thomas returning starters and now Torbert being named the Mr. Basketball Award winner Monday. He also made the all-state first team last year and will continue at Bowling Green. East Lansing has lost only to Grand Rapids Northview and otherwise allowed only Rockford, King and Roseville within single digits. Mitchell has led the Trojans to a combined 78-5 record over the last three seasons.

ROCKFORD
Record/MPR: 23-3, No. 1
League finish: Second in Ottawa-Kent Conference Red
Coach: Kyle Clough, 10th season (152-74)
Championship history: Class A champion 2003, runner-up 2012.
Best wins: 48-47 (Quarterfinal) and 48-45 over No. 16 Grand Rapids Northview, 58-39 over No. 10 Marquette in Regional Final, 83-70 over No. 12 Muskegon in District Final, 45-41 and 61-53 over No. 22 Grand Haven, 68-52 over No. 11 Hudsonville, 57-55 over No. 2 East Kentwood, 72-36 over No. 19 Traverse City West, 81-78 (2OT) over No. 8 Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice, 55-45 over Division 2 No. 3 Hudsonville Unity Christian.
Players to watch: Jake Bascom, 6-6 sr. F (17.3 ppg, 7.1 rpg); Eli Wolfe, 6-3  soph. G (15.1 ppg, 3.4 apg); Josh Bascom, 6-4 soph. F (8.6 ppg, 6.1 rpg).
Outlook: Rockford is back at the Semifinals for the first time since 2012 but a combined 45-6 over the last two seasons and also in an intriguing spot for the future – the Rams will graduate Jake Bascom, a second-team all-stater last season, but have sophomores Josh Bascom and Wolfe plus a freshman in the starting lineup. The losses this winter came to East Lansing (in overtime) and in league splits against Hudsonville and East Kentwood, but Rockford also has impressed in close games with six victories by three points or fewer.

Avondale’s Jaidon Bourgeois goes to the basket during a District Final win over Clarkston.

Division 2

DETROIT UNIVERSITY PREP
Record/MPR: 17-9, No 18
League finish: Does not play in a conference.
Coach: Brandon Barrett, eighth season (96-89)
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 56-53 over No. 25 Harper Woods Chandler Park in Regional Semifinal, 66-57 over No. 13 Detroit Edison in District Final, 63-49 over Division 1 No. 4 Grand Blanc, 56-50 over Division 4 No. 10 Detroit Douglass.
Players to watch: Chris Byrd, 6-5 sr. G (19.6 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 3.0 apg); Maurice Jackson, 6-5 sr. G (14.6 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 4.5 apg); Tony Dent, 5-11 sr. G (8.3 ppg, 6.2 apg, 3.0 spg).
Outlook: After reaching the Quarterfinals for the second time over the last three seasons, University Prep will be making its first trip to the Semifinals – although Barrett has Breslin experience from his playing days on Southfield Lathrup’s Class A runner-up team in 1996. The Panthers started this season just 3-6 but bounced back in a big way and have won 10 of their last 11 games – with the only defeat during that time by one point in overtime to Detroit Loyola. Two more defeats came against teams also at Breslin this weekend.

FREELAND
Record/MPR: 24-3, No. 1
League finish: Second in Tri-Valley Conference Red
Coach: John Fattal, seventh season (130-33)
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 69-53 over No. 11 Ludington in Quarterfinal, 69-51 over No. 24 Flint Hamady in Regional Final, 54-48 over No. 5 Frankenmuth, 65-60 over No. 3 Hudsonville Unity Christian, 70-56 over Division 1 No. 7 Auburn Hills Avondale, 65-58 over Division 1 No. 20 Saginaw Heritage, 61-39 over Division 3 No. 1 Menominee, 68-52 over Division 3 No. 4 Harbor Beach, 75-63 over Division 3 No. 10 North Muskegon
Players to watch: Tucker Hileman, 6-2 sr. G (9.5 ppg); Tristan Comer, 6-6 sr. C (14.8 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.1 bpg); Wilson Huckeby, 6-4 sr. G (18.9 ppg, 81 3-pointers, 5.5 rpg).
Outlook: Freeland last reached the Semifinals in 2022 – when these seniors were in eighth grade – and just missed a year ago with a two-point Quarterfinal loss to Kingsford. But the Falcons couldn’t be more prepared – their opponents’ regular-season winning percentage of .651 (including postseason) is the highest in Division 2 and seventh overall. Huckeby will graduate as one of the most prolific 3-point shooters in MHSAA history; he has 326 for his career to rank fourth all-time. He made the all-state first team last season, and Comer earned an honorable mention.

HUDSONVILLE UNITY CHRISTIAN
Record/MPR: 24-3, No. 3
League finish: First in O-K Black
Coach: Scott Soodsma, 34th season (565-247)
Championship history: Division 2 champion 2019, two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 50-38 over No. 12 Grand Rapids Catholic Central in Quarterfinal, 61-47 (Regional Final), 66-39 and 51-41 over No. 20 Holland Christian, 70-30 (Regional Semifinal) and 57-43 over No. 15 Paw Paw, 60-39 (District Final) and 65-48 over No. 7 Grand Rapids South Christian, 68-58 over Division 1 No. 26 Macomb Dakota.
Players to watch: Brogan Sherd, 5-11 sr. G (12.2 ppg, 61 3-pointers); Kyler Berghuis, 6-2 sr. G (10.2 ppg); Owen VanderWaal, 6-6 sr. C (11.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 1.1 bpg).
Outlook: Unity Christian is a combined 44-6 over the last two seasons as it makes it first trip to the Semifinals since its championship run of 2019. The Crusaders have won 10 straight games and all by double digits since taking their most recent loss, to Freeland – and the other defeats came to Division 1 Rockford and Hudsonville. Senior guard Kaden Bareman is another player to watch; he entered this week with 59 3-pointers and connecting on nearly 44 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc.

ROMULUS SUMMIT ACADEMY NORTH
Record/MPR: 26-1, No. 2
League finish: First in Charter School Conference Gold
Coach: Derek Clark, second season (50-5)
Championship history: Division 2 runner-up 2025.
Best wins: 56-44 over No. 16 Chelsea in Quarterfinal, 62-52 over No. 8 Dearborn Divine Child, 65-50 over No. 13 Detroit Edison, 35-33 and 48-44 over No. 25 Harper Woods Chandler Park, 58-50 over Division 1 No. 14 Detroit Catholic Central, 35-29 over Division 1 No. 23 Warren Fitzgerald, 71-57 and 63-44 over Division 3 No. 9 Arts & Technology Academy of Pontiac.
Players to watch: Marquan White, 6-2 sr. G (13 ppg, 48 3-pointers); Codey Bush, 6-2 fr. G (11.4 ppg, 3.2 apg); Jordan Fuller, 6-0 sr. G (15.4 ppg, 48 3-pointers).
Outlook: Summit fell just shy of a first championship a year ago, losing to Warren Lincoln 58-51 in the Division 2 championship game. But the Dragons have been nearly unstoppable this season, losing only to Columbus Bishop Hartley, which ended its playoff run Tuesday in an Ohio regional semifinal. Fuller and 6-foot-3 senior forward Demetri Campbell (8.4 ppg) are the only returning starters from last season, although White was the top sub playing 18 minutes in the Final.

Division 3

ARTS & TECHNOLOGY ACADEMY of PONTIAC
Record/MPR: 18-3, No. 9
League finish: Second in Charter School Conference Gold
Coach: Orlando Lovejoy, second season (37-4)
Championship history: Division 3 runner-up 2005.
Best wins: 67-39 over No. 4 Harbor Beach in Quarterfinal, 83-59 over No. 7 Detroit Loyola in Regional Semifinal, 81-73 (OT) over Division 2 No. 13 Detroit Edison, 94-92 (OT) over Division 2 No. 25 Harper Woods Chandler Park, 65-53 over Division 2 No. 18 Detroit University Prep.
Players to watch: Lewis Lovejoy, 5-10 soph. G (26.5 ppg, 41 3-pointers, 7.6 apg, 6.5 rpg, 4.9 spg, 2.1 bpg); Devonte Grandison, 6-3 sr. F (14.7 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 3.5 apg, 4.4 spg, 3.4 bpg); Jaiden Price, 5-9 sr. G (11 ppg, 3.6 apg).
Outlook: Lewis Lovejoy and Grandison both started last season as well, and Grandison is the only senior starter this time – so big things could be ahead over the next few seasons as well. Lovejoy made the all-state first team last season and is averaging nearly six points and two steals more per game this winter while keeping his rebounds and assists consistent with a year ago. The only losses were a pair to Summit – playing for the Division 2 title this weekend – and by six points to Division 1 Hamtramck. The Lions have won their postseason games by an average of 39.2 ppg.

FLINT ELITE
Record/MPR: 21-4, No. 18
League finish: Second in Genesee Area Conference Blue
Coach: Greg McMath, fourth season (66-27)
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 55-53 (OT) over No. 15 Onsted in Quarterfinal, 61-53 over No. 22 Springport in Regional Final, 58-54 over No. 12 Jackson Lumen Christi in Regional Semifinal, 73-63 over No. 19 International Academy of Flint, 55-51 over Division 2 No. 24 Flint Hamady.
Players to watch: Artie Smith Jr., 5-8 soph. G (12.4 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 7.2 apg, 6.5 spg); Jeffrey Turner, 6-2 sr. G (12 ppg); Razach Spillers, 6-3 sr. F (10.5 ppg, 8.8 rpg).
Outlook: Elite, a cooperative of New Standard Academy and Burton Madison Academy, has taken another step this season while building on last year’s run to the Quarterfinals. The Warriors entered the postseason off a championship in the GAC Tournament, during which they avenged two losses to Hamady and a third to IAF – and the fourth defeat this season came Avondale, playing in Division 1 this weekend. Smith and Turner earned all-state honorable mentions last season, and senior guard Dei’On Wright provides a scoring boost off the bench at 10.7 points per game.

MENOMINEE
Record/MPR: 23-4, No. 1
League finish: First in Great Northern Conference
Coach: Sam Larson, ninth season (120-87)
Championship history: Class B champion 1967, Division 3 runner-up 2022.
Best wins: 64-42 over No. 3 Beal City in Quarterfinal, 67-50 over No. 13 Elk Rapids in Regional Final, 59-46 over No. 5 Ishpeming Westwood in Regional Semifinal, 55-40 and 61-56 over Division 1 No. 10 Marquette, 54-50 over Division 2 No. 10 Kingsford, 84-52 over Division 4 No. 2 Crystal Falls Forest Park.
Players to watch: Tanner Theuerkauf, 6-3 sr. F (17.8 ppg, 49 3-pointers, 5.2 rpg); Darrent Butler, 6-2 sr. G (15.2 ppg); Talan Woods, 5-9 jr. G (9.5 ppg, 3.4 apg).
Outlook: Menominee improved from 13-12 a year ago to return to the Semifinals for the second time this decade after finishing Division 3 runner-up in 2022 – when these seniors were in eighth grade. Theuerkauf quarterbacked the Division 7 championship football team in the fall and made the all-state second team in basketball a year ago. The Maroons opened this season with a loss to Division 2 semifinalist Freeland, avenged later losses to Kingsford and Westwood, and the only other defeat was by two points to Division 1 Traverse City Central.

PEWAMO-WESTPHALIA
Record/MPR: 25-2, No. 6
League finish: First in Central Michigan Athletic Conference
Coach: Dominic Schneider, sixth season (123-24)
Championship history: Division 3 champion 2019, two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 61-38 and 55-46 over Division 4 No. 4 Fowler, 61-30 and 58-40 over Division 4 No. 15 Portland St. Patrick, 70-46 over Division 2 No. 39 Detroit Country Day.
Players to watch: Grady Eklund, 6-3 sr. G (20.7 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 3.5 apg); Logan Farmer, 6-1 soph. F (9.8 ppg); Trent Piggott, 6-5 sr. C (10.5 ppg, 5.6 rpg).
Outlook: The Pirates will play at Breslin for the second-straight season and returning two starters and the top sub from last year’s Semifinal loss to Riverview Gabriel Richard. Eklund made the all-state first team last season and went over 2,000 career points this winter. P-W is holding opponents to only 36.4 points per game and kept teams under 30 points eight times. The lone losses came by two to Division 1 Grandville and four to Division 2 Grand Rapids Catholic Central.

Dollar Bay's Baron Colbert (2) guards Spencer Kramer during the Blue Bolts’ Regional Final win over Felch North Dickinson.

Division 4

CONCORD
Record/MPR: 23-4, No. 9
League finish: Second in Big 8 Conference
Coach: Marcus Gill Sr., seventh season (102-56)
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 49-41 over No. 22 Colon in Quarterfinal, 55-39 over No. 21 Petersburg Summerfield in Regional Final, 49-40 (Regional Semifinal) and 65-42 over No. 13 Hillsdale Academy, 67-57 over No. 26 Battle Creek St. Philip.
Players to watch: Connor Stevens, 6-5 sr. G (13.9 ppg, 12.4 rpg, 1.0 bpg); Darrell Dean Jr., 6-1 jr. G (11.1 ppg); Jett Smith, 5-10 sr. G (19.9 ppg, 56 3-pointers, 3.2 apg).
Outlook: Concord will play in its first Semifinal since 1986, continuing a season that’s seen the Yellow Jackets win 11 of their last 12 games and both Stevens and Smith reach 1,000 career points. They’ll be prepared for top competition this weekend; Concord’s losses were once to Fowler, twice to Springport – which both lost in Regional Finals, Springport in Division 3 – and to Division 1 Brother Rice, mentioned above. Stevens earned an all-state honorable mention last season and he, Dean and Brady Garrett all have connected on more then 30 3-pointers, joining Smith and providing several perimeter options.

DETROIT DOUGLASS
Record/MPR: 20-7, No. 10
League finish: Tied for second in Detroit Public School League Blue
Coach: Pierre Brooks Sr., 12th season (191-74)
Championship history: Division 4 champion 2021.
Best wins: 73-37 over No. 17 Southfield Christian in Regional Final, 58-50 over No. 7 Allen Park Inter-City Baptist in Regional Semifinal, 59-52 over Division 2 No. 32 Detroit Denby, 52-50 over Division 2 No. 39 Detroit Country Day, 63-59 over Division 1 No. 43 Saginaw United, 64-55 over Division 1 No. 46 Detroit Renaissance.
Players to watch: Damani Oliver, 5-11 fr. G (22.5 ppg); Jeremiah Thurman, 5-10 sr. G (16.1 ppg); Jacodi Nathan, 5-8 jr. G (12.3 ppg).
Outlook: Detroit Douglass is also making its second Semifinal trip this decade, to go with its championship run in 2021, and has seen several much larger opponents playing in a league filled with them and filling its nonleague schedule with more. All seven losses came to Division 1 and 2 teams that finished with 16 or more victories this winter. Six players average at least nine points per game and seven players have had high games this season of at least 18 points. Sophomore 6-3 guard Dimauvion Smith-Powe (11.6 ppg) is another to watch from a starting lineup with no seniors.

DOLLAR BAY
Record/MPR: 24-2, No. 14
League finish: First in Copper Mountain Conference
Coach: Jesse Kentala, 19th season (177-201)
Championship history: Has never played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 55-46 over No. 3 Pickford in Semifinal, 62-46 over No. 11 Felch North Dickinson in Regional Final, 49-45 (OT) over No. 2 Crystal Falls Forest Park, 77-61 over No. 34 L’Anse.
Players to watch: Liam Tourtillott, 6-1 sr. F (20.2 ppg, 73 3-pointers, 6.7 rpg, 3.4 apg); Baron Colbert, 6-2 jr. G (16.9 ppg, 43 3-pointers); Caleb Kentala, 5-10 sr. G (6.1 ppg, 8.2 apg, 3.8 spg).
Outlook: Dollar Bay avenged its mid-February loss to Baraga in a District Final on the way to returning to the Semifinals this week for the first time since 2019, and the win over Pickford on Tuesday was Pickford’s lone loss this winter. The story of the Blue Bolts’ return is a great one – after a stretch of five seasons with a combined 100-17 record and two Semifinals appearances to end the last decade, they finished just below .500 the last three seasons before bouncing back in a big way. Freshmen guard Noah Tourtillott (10.7 ppg) and forward Tayler Jahnig (7.4) start and could help this become the start of a longer streak as well.

WYOMING TRI-UNITY CHRISTIAN
Record/MPR: 25-1, No. 8
League finish: First in Alliance League
Coach: Brent Voorhees, first season (25-1)
Championship history: Seven MHSAA titles (most recent 2025), six runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 55-44 over No. 4 Fowler in Regional Final, 61-44 over No. 32 Saginaw Nouvel Catholic Central in Regional Semifinal, 59-57 (OT) over Division 2 No. 37 Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian.
Players to watch: Cody Osbun, 6-3 jr. F/C (12.4 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 3.2 apg); Caleb Hofmann, 6-3 jr. F (11.2 ppg); Brayden Nelson, 6-1 sr. G/F (11.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg).
Outlook: Tri-unity is seeking a third-straight Division 4 title and fourth in five seasons. That said, the Defenders return to Breslin this week minus two graduated all-staters and the retired third-winningest coach in MHSAA boys basketball history. No matter. Voorhees was a Tri-unity all-stater as a senior in 2000 and assisted coach Mark Keeler the last five seasons. Osbun is the lone returning starter from last season’s Final but Nelson and senior Clayton Rowlader (9.8 ppg) played the most minutes off the bench.

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PHOTOS (Top) Menominee’s Tanner Theuerkauf (3) claps during his team’s Division 3 Quarterfinal win over Beal City on Tuesday. (Middle) Avondale’s Jaidon Bourgeois goes to the basket during a District Final win over Clarkston. (Below) Dollar Bay's Baron Colbert (2) guards Spencer Kramer during the Blue Bolts’ Regional Final win over Felch North Dickinson. (Menominee photo by Brandon Kish/kishba media. Avondale/Clarkston photo by Terry Lyons. Dollar Bay/North Dickinson photo by Cara Kamps.)

We Will Always Remember Trojans, Lumberjacks as 114-Year-Old Rivalry Nears End

By Ron Pesch
MHSAA historian

February 9, 2024

The MHSAA basketball record book still lacks a rivalries category. The state’s football record book offers clues to likely candidates, but without deep research, the participants and sequencing of such lists will remain unknown.

Certainly, among the candidates would be the annual boys basketball battles between Saginaw’s east side and west side – Saginaw High vs. Saginaw Arthur Hill. Come Friday, Feb. 16th, 2024, twilight falls on one of Michigan’s most intense. Because of its significance, the game will be hosted outside of a high school gymnasium.

Saginaw’s Dow Event Center will stage the final regular-season showdown between the Trojans and Lumberjacks. Titled the ‘Game of Legends,’ all 5,000 tickets for the celebration were snapped up in 20 minutes. After years of discussions, at the end of the school year, Saginaw High and Arthur Hill will combine to finalize the formation of Saginaw United High School.

Based on the research of Dave Slaggert, the series between schools began during the 1910-11 season at the Saginaw Manual Training School gymnasium. Head varsity boys basketball coach at Arthur Hill from 1996 through 2001, Slaggert spent five years compiling a book documenting the rivalry. Much of the manuscript has already been committed to paper. That includes a chapter penned by Michigan State University coaching legend Tom Izzo, who highlights the uniqueness of the crosstown rivalry, the crazy fans, and the talent that brought him regularly to town. Titled “Remember the Trojans & the Lumberjacks,” the concluding chapter awaits the results of the 2024 season.

The Beginnings

In 1889, Michigan’s State Legislature consolidated the cities of East Saginaw and Saginaw City into what we know today as Saginaw.

East Side High School opened in 1865. In 1901, West Side High School was renamed Arthur Hill, in honor of a former school board president and mayor of Saginaw City.

Football teams from Saginaw High (sometimes called Saginaw Eastern) and Arthur Hill High first met on the gridiron in 1894. In 1904, both joined Flint (Central) and two schools from Bay City to form the Saginaw Valley League. During the 1910-11 season, the boys squads from the Saginaw schools squared off on the basketball court for the first time.

Saginaw High’s Webster Kirksey (30) puts up a shot; he graduated in 1951.“Saginaw High easily defeated the Arthur Hill High school basketball players … in the first game of the interscholastic series,” stated the Saginaw Daily News, “the final score standing 60 to 17. … (Bill) Steckert contributed 12 field baskets for the winners. … (Leo) Vondette starred for the losers.”

Perhaps it was a typo – it’s impossible to know – but the final score differed in the 1911 Saginaw yearbook – “The Aurora” – when published in the spring. “Before a large crowd of enthusiastic fans, Arthur Hill was decisively defeated in the local gym, the final count being 69 to 17, with the East Siders on the heavy end.”

The author concluded with flair and flourish: “Steckert starred for Saginaw, getting 24 points to his credit, while Vondette was the celestial light for the vanquished quintet. Dancing was enjoyed after the game.”

A week later, the Saginaw girls basketball team opened its season against the west siders. According to the yearbook, “Saginaw out-played Arthur Hill and defeated them by the score of 41-4.” The newspaper credited Leona Buck as the leading scorer, with a phenomenal 29 points.

The Inevitable Finale

The doors open at 3 p.m. for the 2024 festivities at The Dow next Friday. Fittingly, the Saginaw girls team will tip off the action on the court at 5 o’clock. The girls programs already have consolidated, and the Phoenix of Saginaw United will face Flint Carman-Ainsworth – a school that consolidated in 1986. The Hill and High contest is scheduled for 7 p.m.

“It’s really going to be a big deal,” said Slaggert, thrilled by the prospect. “Saginaw’s going all out for this. They’re trying to do it up in style.”

The wrap-up comes a decade after what, initially, looked like the end.

On Feb. 15, 2014, Detroit Free Press sportswriter Mick McCabe wrote about the expected unification.

“Saginaw and Saginaw Arthur Hill likely met for the last time ever in the regular season Friday,” he wrote. Saginaw had just knocked off the Lumberjacks, the No. 2 team in McCabe’s weekly ranking of the state’s top teams.

“The Saginaw-Arthur Hill basketball rivalry is the best in the state, so you shouldn’t be surprised when the underdog wins. But Saginaw (11-6) was coming off consecutive losses to Midland and Midland Dow for maybe the first time ever.”

The school district was expected to announce the closure of Saginaw High that following Monday, merging its students into Arthur Hill. The move would mean a new school name, new school colors, and a new nickname.

Like many urban centers across the country, outbound migration of both jobs and people, combined with plunging birth rates, had altered the demographics of cities, and the education landscape.

“In just five decades, the city's population dropped from nearly 100,000 in the 1960s to fewer than 52,000 by the 2010 census,” stated the Saginaw News in 2014. “To say it another way, Saginaw lost 48 percent of its residents during the last 50 years.”

McCabe cut to what that meant to enrollment numbers at the two schools: “In 1987, Saginaw High had over 1,800 students; it is now down to about 600. Arthur Hill had 2,395 students in ’85; it now has 973.”

Arthur Hill’s Ernie Thompson and coach Larry Laeding accept the 1962 Class A championship trophy.Despite the defeat, McCabe predicted Arthur Hill to be among the final four Class A teams still standing that season when the annual MHSAA Tournament shifted to Michigan State’s Breslin Center. But in the craziness of March, the Trojans again took down Arthur Hill in the Districts, 53-51.

Adding to the madness, the expected consolidation didn’t happen. A recommendation by a Saginaw interim superintendent to close Saginaw High found no school board support.

With the potential consolidation still hovering, one year later sportswriter Bill Khan recalled other recent departures from Michigan’s classic basketball landscape in an article for the StateChamps! Sports Network:

“The Saginaw-Arthur Hill rivalry is at risk of going the way of other great urban rivalries – such as Flint Central-Flint Northern, Pontiac Central-Pontiac Northern, Lapeer East-Lapeer West, Detroit Cooley-Detroit Southwestern, Detroit Mackenzie-Detroit Redford, Detroit Kettering-Detroit Northeastern, Detroit Miller-Detroit Northern and Detroit Southeastern-Detroit Eastern, that have ended in years past due to school closures and consolidations.”

Arthur Hill downed the Trojans twice during the 2014-15 regular season league action, and again in postseason District play, before finishing the year as Class A runner-up, and the holding pattern of the planned school merger continued.

Enrollment numbers continued to drop at both schools and after much community and school board debate, construction on a brand-new five-story Saginaw United High School began in 2022.

A Celebration of Statistics

The state basketball tournament kicked off in 1917. Over 107 years, on only two occasions – in 1943 during World War II, and in 2020, due to COVID-19 – the tournament was not completed.

Slaggert breaks down the City of Saginaw School District’s incredible basketball history in a quick series of numbers.

“47-36-18-8,” said Slaggert, stressing a bullet point of a well-rehearsed pitch, breaking out the incredible success of the two schools come tournament time.

“During those 105 tournaments, 47 times, Saginaw High (starting in 1919) or Arthur Hill (beginning in 1930) made it into the state Quarterfinals – the final eight.

“That’s almost half of the 105 possible years. And in most cases throughout that rivalry, they would have played each other in the Districts. So how many more times would they have made it if they were coming in different brackets or different directions? “

To take that further, he noted, 36 times one of those teams made it into the final four. On 18 occasions, one of the two schools reached the state title game, and on eight occasions, they emerged as MHSAA state champions.

Six of those titles were won by Saginaw High (1942, 1962, 1996, 2007,2008, 2012). Arthur Hill’s championships were won in 1944 and 2006.

“That's a pretty incredible stat for two schools in the same town, don’t you think?” Slaggert asked.

Richard dunks at the final buzzer as Arthur Hill downs top-ranked Flint Northwestern in a 1999 Class A Regional matchup.That history also points out another Slaggert challenge. As illustrated, come March the schools could, in theory, bump into each other one more time come the postseason. This year, the teams are in different Districts, and could potentially cross paths in an MHSAA Regional.

A Parade of All-Staters

Between 1938 and 2023, a combined total of 106 players from the two schools – 10 or more in each decade from the 1940s to the 2010s – have earned all-state basketball honors from The Associated Press and/or one or more of the Detroit newspapers: the Free Press, News or Times.

Since the introduction of Michigan’s Mr. Basketball award in 1981, honoring the best-of-the-best from the state’s top high school seniors, 10 players from the two schools have landed among the top five in voting: Eric Davis (AH –‘15), Maurice Jones (AH –‘10), Draymond Green (S –‘08), Dar Tucker (AH –‘07), Anthony Roberson (S –‘02), Eugene Seals (S –’00, and head coach of the United girls basketball team), Jason Richardson (AH-‘99), Jessie Drain (S –‘91) and Daryl Reed (S –‘87). Richardson won the award. Davis, Green, Tucker, Roberson, and Seals all finished second in the annual voting.

Tony Smith (S -‘74), Craig Dill (AH -‘63), Ernie Thompson (S -‘62), Webster Kirksey (S -‘51), Dick Rifenburg (AH -‘44), and Larry Savage (S -‘42) were all honored by the Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan with their Retro Mr. Basketball Award when the organization sought to honor the great seniors in Michigan high school basketball from the years 1920 through 1980. Seven others – James Koger (S -‘79), Lovell Humes (S – ’63), Bill Agre (AH -‘47), Gene Glick (AH -’46), Jack Mott (AH -’45), Eddie Johnson (S – ’43) and Stanley Paskiewicz (S -’38) – were among the candidates for that award.

Based on research by Orchard Lake St. Mary’s Robin Goddard, Saginaw High is likely the state’s winningest basketball program, trailed by Benton Harbor, Kalamazoo Central and Orchard Lake St. Mary’s.

Initially, Saginaw dominated the crosstown series with the Lumberjacks. But by the 1920s Arthur Hill overcame the deficit, and by the mid-1950s the Hill had opened a wide 25-game lead in wins versus losses. But by 1975, the gap had narrowed with the Trojans just six games back in the series. And yet, the exact status of the rivalry is still unknown, as the capture of game scores is spotty going forward.

The digging to capture those missing scores continues, as does the race to game day.

Slaggert has committed to printing 1,000 copies of his book. His challenge to date has been selling copies of something that does not yet, physically, exist. As it stands, currently there are 772 pages in the book. It includes a mind-blowing 800+ photos dating as far back as 1905. The sale price is fixed at $40. That currently means the production cost per copy exceeds the retail price, so Slaggert continues to chase sponsorships to defray the printing expense.

“It’s a non-profit effort,” he noted. “If there are any profits, they go to scholarships for the new high school. All money is run through the Saginaw Community Foundation,” which makes sponsorships tax-deductible.

His favorite memory from the series is his last victory as an Arthur Hill coach. It comes from 2001.

“Saginaw High defeated us 90-37 in the second game of that season and finished with a 17-5 season record that year,” he retold. “We had a modest 10-10 season record heading into the Districts but showed lots of improvement through the season. We met again in the District Finals. Saginaw High was led by Anthony Roberson, LaMarr Woodley, Michael Thomas and Tanoris Shepard and was ranked seventh in the state. In front of a sold-out Heritage High School crowd, our kids played their hearts out and, led by Devaundre Whitson, Omar Linder, and Freddy Jackson, pulled out a 68-66 overtime win! (It’s) my greatest thrill in coaching, and most of the old-timers say it’s the greatest upset in the rivalry.”

Slaggert retired from coaching after that season, and in the years to follow, found a desire to record the history of the series.

“I have nine living coaches from Saginaw and Arthur Hill that have written a chapter for me. I have eight others that I've written on Larry Laeding, Chuck Fowler, and different coaches that are deceased,” he said. “My intent is to give something back to my community. I didn’t do this for money. I wanted this story to be passed down to future generations – people 100 years from now about Jason Richardson, Draymond Green, Ernie Thompson, Craig Dill, and all the great ones.

“It’s a labor of love for me, I’ve really enjoyed it.”

This banner provides ordering information for the book.To order Slaggert's book, click for the Facebook link or visit the Saginaw Community Foundation website, click "Give Now" and select the book title as Fund. Cost is $40 with an option including shipping for $52.

 

PHOTOS (Top) Saginaw Eugene Seals drives against Arthur Hill’s Jason Richardson – with coach Marshall Thomas in the background – during a sold-out 1999 game at the Saginaw Civic Center. (2) Arthur Hill’s Ernie Thompson and coach Larry Laeding accept the 1962 Class A championship trophy. (3) Saginaw High’s Webster Kirksey (30) puts up a shot; he graduated in 1951. (4) Richard dunks at the final buzzer as Arthur Hill downs top-ranked Flint Northwestern in a 1999 Class A Regional matchup. (Photos collected by Dave Slaggert. Top photo courtesy of Saginaw News/MLive.)