Breslin Bound: Boys C-D Semis Preview
March 20, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
If new MHSAA champions are crowned in Class C and D this weekend at Michigan State's University's Breslin Center, there's a possibility they'll celebrate another accomplishment to go along with taking home the top trophy – beating last season's champion along the way.
Among eight teams taking the court Thursday are reigning Class C champion Flint Beecher and reigning Class D champion Southfield Christian.
Below is the schedule for all four Thursday Semifinals and four Saturday Finals, plus broadcast information and a look at all eight C and D Semifinalists.
Semifinals - Thursday
Class C
Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central (23-2) vs Flint Beecher (25-1), 1 p.m.
Laingsburg (23-2) vs Negaunee (24-1), 2:50 p.m.
Class D
Powers North Central (23-3) vs Wyoming Tri-unity Christian (24-2), 6 p.m.
Southfield Christian (21-4) vs Lansing Christian (22-3), 7:50 p.m.
Finals - Saturday
Class A - Noon
Class B - 6:30 pm
Class C - 4:30 pm
Class D - 10 am
Tickets cost $8 per pair of Semifinals and $10 per two-game Finals session. All Semifinals will be streamed live on MHSAA.tv and available on a pay-per-view basis for $3.95 per day or $6.95 for the weekend. Saturday's first three Finals will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Detroit, with the Class B game on Fox Sports Plus and then re-broadcast on Fox Sports Detroit at 10:30 p.m.. Free radio broadcasts of all weekend games will be available on MHSAANetwork.com.
And now, a look at the Semifinalists in Class C and D.
Class C
FLINT BEECHER
Record/rank: 25-1, No. 1
League finish: First in Genesee Area Conference Red
Coach: Mike Williams, ninth season (163-65)
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recently 2012), four runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 83-46 over No. 7 Harbor Beach (Regional Semifinal), 69-47 over No. 6 Mount Clemens (Regional Final), 46-44 over No. 9 Detroit Consortium (Quarterfinal).
Players to watch: Monte Morris, 6-3 sr. G (21.5 ppg, 9.5 apg, 5.3 rpg, 5.4 spg); Markell Lucas, 6-4 sr. F (8.3 ppg, 6.8 rpg).
Outlook: Williams has returned Beecher to powerhouse status, with a combined 77-4 record over the last three seasons. Obviously, Iowa State recruit Morris has had a lot to do with that; the four-year varsity player was named Mr. Basketball earlier this week. Lucas earned all-state honorable mention Tuesday and also started in last season’s Final, and junior guard Emmanuel Phifer (11.1 ppg) was a top option off the bench in 2012 and now is the team’s second-leading scorer. Its only loss was to Class A No. 1 Detroit Pershing, by seven.
LAINGSBURG
Record/rank: 23-2, honorable mention
League finish: Tied for first in Central Michigan Athletic Conference
Coach: Greg Mitchell, 24th season (350-191)
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 40-37 and 44-33 (District Semifinal) over honorable mention Pewamo-Westphalia, 61-59 over honorable mention Muskegon Heights (Regional Final), 42-32 over honorable mention Beaverton (Quarterfinal).
Players to watch: Jake Zielinski, 6-2 sr. G/F (16 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 2.4 apg); Shaun McKinney, 6-3 sr. G/F (11.5 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 3.2 apg).
Outlook: This run has been a worthy reward for one of the Lansing area’s most consistent programs – the Wolfpack have posted 20 winning seasons under Mitchell, and only one losing season over the last 14. Laingsburg relies on veteran leadership and balance; four seniors start and six are part of the main rotation, and four more players in addition to the two above average between four and eight points per game.
MONROE ST. MARY CATHOLIC CENTRAL
Record/rank: 23-2, honorable mention
League finish: Second in Huron League
Coach: Randy Windham, fourth season (74-25)
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 59-48 over honorable mention Hillsdale (Regional Semifinal), 71-62 over honorable mention Schoolcraft (Quarterfinal), 47-32 over Class D honorable mention Adrian Lenawee Christian.
Players to watch: Kevin Woodson, 6-2 sr. G (19 ppg, 53 3-pointers, 2.2 apg); Chinedu Nwosu, 6-3 sr. F (9.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg).
Outlook: Aside from a pair of losses to Class A honorable mention Milan, St. Mary cruised through the Huron League against mostly much larger opponents and won all of its tournament games by at least nine points. Woodson, an all-state honorable mention, is the leading scorer and top shooter of the bunch, but four others average between five and 10 points per game and two others have made at least 25 3-pointers. The 6-3 Nwosu starts alongside two 6-6 posts, senior Jeffery Albright and junior Bradley Sherman.
NEGAUNEE
Record/rank: 24-1, No. 3
League finish: First in Mid-Peninsula Athletic Conference
Coach: Michael O’Donnell, eighth season (156-45)
Championship history: Three MHSAA titles (most recently 2000), two runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 56-55 over honorable mention Maple City Glen Lake (Quarterfinal), 66-41 over Class D honorable mention Eben Junction Superior Central, 55-35 over Marquette.
Players to watch: Tyler Jandron, 6-1 jr. G (17.3 ppg, 4.3 spg, 4.0 apg); Tanner Uren, 6-3 sr. F (12.2 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 3.3 apg, 2.4 spg).
Outlook: Negaunee cruised through the regular season and into the Quarterfinals with only a pair of wins over Gwinn closer than 10 points. The Miners’ lone loss was to Class A Marquette, but they avenged that as well. The rotation is only six players, but they bring a variety of skills; senior Brock Weaver is a 6-7 body in the middle, and junior guard Eric Lori is the second-leading scorer at 12.7 points per game and had 37 3-pointers entering the week.
Class D
LANSING CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 22-3, honorable mention
League finish: Does not play in a league.
Coach: Steve Ernst, first season (22-3).
Championship history: Has not played in an MHSAA Final.
Best wins: 67-54 over honorable mention Adrian Lenawee Christian, 67-32 over Peck (Regional Final), 57-48 over Hanover-Horton.
Players to watch: Skylar Ross, 6-2 sr. F (18.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 60 3-pointers); Jordan Terry, 5-9 jr. G (15.6 ppg, 31 3-pointers, 4.3 apg, 3.1 spg).
Outlook: The Pilgrims made the best of not playing in a league by loading their schedule with much larger opponents; they beat Class A, B and C teams and their losses were twice to Class B Stockbridge and once to a strong St. Johns Homeschoolers program. Ross made the all-state team and Terry earned an honorable mention Tuesday, and they’re joined by two others scoring in double figures: 6-4 senior center Jeff Whitney (14.5 ppg, 8.8 rpg) and 6-0 senior forward Jay Noyola (10.7 ppg, 3.8 spg).
POWERS NORTH CENTRAL
Record/rank: 23-3, No. 10
League finish: First in Skyline Conference and Central UP Conference
Coach: Adam Mercier, seventh season (80-76)
Championship history: 1984 Class D champion.
Best wins: 65-60 and 64-61 (Regional Semifinal) over honorable mention Eben Junction Superior Central, 52-49 and 65-54 (District Semifinal) over honorable mention Carney-Nadeau, 71-57 over No. 2 Cedarville (Quarterfinal).
Players to watch: Travis Vincent, 6-2 jr. F (15.7 ppg, 13.1 rpg, 4.2 bpg); Trevor Ekberg, 6-5 jr. C (11.7 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 3.8 bpg).
Outlook: North Central won its first Regional title in 29 years on the way here, after also winning its first District title in 17 season in 2011 under former all-league player Mercier. And the Jets have made this run with no seniors on the roster. Vincent and Ekberg provide the team with two strong rebounders as the team, on average, is grabbing five more boards than its opponents. Junior forward Rob Granquist adds 12.6 points and three assists per game.
SOUTHFIELD CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 21-4, No. 3
League finish: First in Michigan Independent Athletic Conference Blue
Coach: Josh Baker, second season (46-6)
Championship history: MHSAA champion 2012.
Best wins: 51-49 over No. 4 Climax-Scotts (Quarterfinal), 47-46 and 68-61 (Regional Final), over No. 7 Allen Park Inter-City Baptist, 60-58 over Detroit Community
Players to watch: Bakari Evelyn, 6-1 soph. G (20.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 3.7 apg); Lindsey Hunter IV, 5-10 jr. G (14.7 ppg, 3.2 rpg).
Outlook: Hunter is the only returning starter from last season’s championship team, and he earned an all-state special mention Tuesday. But Evelyn has emerged from the top sub into an all-state selection and keys a team that also beat larger Orchard Lake St. Mary’s and Southfield, among others. Freshman 6-3 guard Eugene Brown provides another big boost – he’s averaging 9.5 points and 11.6 rebounds per game.
WYOMING TRI-UNITY CHRISTIAN
Record/rank: 24-2, No. 1
League finish: First in River Valley Conference
Coach: Mark Keeler, 26th season (498-141)
Championship history: Four MHSAA titles (most recently 2011), three runner-up finishes.
Best wins: 49-48 over Class A honorable mention Zeeland East, 53-52 over Hudsonville, 55-51 over Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central.
Players to watch: Joey Blauwkamp, 6-1 sr. G/F (14.1 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 4.2 apg); Daniel Cole, 5-10 sr. G (15 ppg, 2.0 spg).
Outlook: Tri-unity Christian’s template for success is well-established: load the regular-season schedule with larger schools, shine against them, and then do the same on the way to the Breslin Center. The team’s losses were to Class C Grandville Calvin Christian and Class B No. 6 Wyoming Godwin Heights. Blauwkamp was named Class D Player of the Year by The Associated Press on Tuesday, and Cole earned an all-state honorable mention.
PHOTO: Laingsburg's Sam Edwards (5) works to get around a Grandville Calvin Christian player during the Wolfpack's Regional Semifinal victory. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Breslin Bound: 2025-26 Boys Report Week 6
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 12, 2026
Believe it or not, Michigan’s boys basketball teams have played six weeks of their regular season – and have only six weeks left until the start of District tournaments.
And that makes now a perfect time for our annual introduction to Michigan Power Ratings (MPR), which are used to seed all teams for that first round of the MHSAA playoffs.
MPR is determined by considering a team’s success (total wins) and strength of schedule based on games against opponents also playing in the MHSAA Tournament. You can follow how teams rank all season long on the MPR page, where you can search not only by Division and school, but District grouping as well.
“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. East Lansing 80, Rockford 71 (OT) These are the top two teams in Division 1 MPR, and the No. 1 Trojans (11-0) remained undefeated by handing the Rams (8-1) their only loss as they met to finish the GottaGetIt Classic at East Kentwood.
2. Crystal Falls Forest Park 69, Kingsford 68 The Trojans (7-2) won this matchup of teams that both reached MHSAA Semifinals at Breslin last season.
3. Frankenmuth 47, Freeland 43 The Eagles (9-0) ended a nine-game losing streak against the rival Falcons (8-2), picking up their first win in this Tri-Valley Conference series since March 4, 2021.
4. Grand Rapids Northview 43, Grand Rapids South Christian 41 (OT) This could prove to be one of the most important results in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Gold, as Northview (8-2) and South Christian (8-2) shared the title a year ago.
5. Grand Haven 57, Grand Blanc 51 The Buccaneers (11-1) continued their terrific start by ending a week of three close wins with this arguably most notable one over the Bobcats (9-2).
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (10-3) The Warriors are unbeaten aside from a three-game stretch from Dec. 19-28 that saw them lose to two of the state’s best in East Lansing and Rockford (in double overtime) and another Catholic High School League Central contender in Toledo Central Catholic. Since, Brother Rice handed Concord its only defeat and got past Grand Rapids Northview 59-52 on Saturday at East Kentwood. A Friday win over Detroit Catholic Central also kept Rice among five teams with one league loss atop the CHSL Central.
Hudsonville (10-0) The Eagles, after reaching the Regional Finals last season, are attempting to catch rival Rockford both among the statewide elite and locally in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red after finishing second to the Rams a year ago. They face off for the first time Friday, and Hudsonville enters with plenty of impressive wins during the first half including an avenging of that Regional Final defeat to Byron Center and victories over Grand Rapids Christian, Hudsonville Unity Christian and Port Huron Northern.
DIVISION 2
Hudsonville Unity Christian (7-2) A pair of losses to Division 1 contenders listed above – Rockford and Hudsonville – are the only blemishes on an otherwise spotless start. An early 65-48 win over Grand Rapids South Christian has remained among the most notable, but add a 68-58 victory over Macomb Dakota at Saturday’s Hudsonville Showcase as the Crusaders look to carry momentum into the heart of the O-K Black schedule. They’re currently atop the standings with Zeeland East also without a league loss early.
Lansing Sexton (8-1) The J-Dubbs made serious noise with last season’s run to the Division 2 Quarterfinals following a heart-breaking loss that led to them finishing runner-up in the Capital Area Activities Conference White. The volume remains high as Sexton opened this season falling to East Lansing but came back to defeat reigning CAAC White champ Portland to start an eight-game winning streak that’s also included victories over Detroit Cass Tech and Holt.
DIVISION 3
Detroit Loyola (10-2) After finishing 25-2 in 2022-23, Loyola fell back to 12-14 the following winter, then 13-13 last year before making major strides again this season. Loyola did fall 60-59 in overtime last week to Dearborn Divine Child – and those two are tied for first in the CHSL AA after Loyola won their first meeting of the season. But last week’s defeat has been the Bulldogs’ only in-state loss – the other also came in overtime, 70-66 to Cincinnati Western Hills.
Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port Laker (7-1) Laker seems well on its way to a seventh-straight season with a winning record and could be in store for more coming off last winter’s 14-9 finish. Wins last week over Caro (in overtime) and reigning champion Millington helped the Lakers gain some separation in the Big Thumb Conference White standings, and they can gain more with Wednesday’s first matchup of the season with league co-leader Reese.
DIVISION 4
Crystal Falls Forest Park (7-2) The win over Kingsford was the program’s first since 2017 and came after back-to-back losses to Menominee and Dollar Bay, which are both 8-1. The Kingsford game also was the first this season for previously-injured Forest Park all-stater Vic Giuliani, and more big things should be on the way with a healthy lineup. The Trojans opened this season with a notable win at Norway but will see the Knights one more time and also will face Marquette on Feb. 17 at Northern Michigan University.
Fowler (9-1) Last season’s Division 4 runner-up did suffer its first loss last week, to rival Pewamo-Westphalia, but has otherwise been nearly unstoppable with seven double-digit wins including an especially notable one over Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart in a rematch of last year’s Regional Semifinal. Fowler will face P-W again Feb. 5, potentially with first place in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference on the line once more, and Saturday’s meeting with Concord could be one of the top Division 4 matchups of the regular season.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Central Montcalm (8-0) at Grant (9-0) – This is the only meeting of undefeated teams this week in Michigan, and they are leading their respective divisions of the Central State Activities Association.
Tuesday – Clarkston (9-2) at Auburn Hills Avondale (10-1) – They will head into their first of two meetings tied for first in the Oakland Activities Association Red.
Thursday – Colon (7-1) at Mendon (10-0) – The Hornets are first in the Southern Central Athletic Association West and Colon second after Mendon won their first matchup 80-73 in overtime.
Friday – Rockford (9-1) at Hudsonville (10-0) – A lot could change between now and this game with Rockford set to face East Kentwood and Hudsonville taking on Grand Haven on Tuesday, and those four among five O-K Red teams entering league play undefeated or with only one loss.
Friday – Saginaw Heritage (9-3) at Mount Pleasant (9-1) – This will be the lone regular-season meeting between these Saginaw Valley League North co-leaders.
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PHOTOS (Top) Goodrich’s Miles Washington (40) works to get a shot up past a Saginaw Heritage defender during the Martians’ 65-48 win Jan. 3. (Middle) Hudsonville’ Jovaan Daniels (1) defends while Detroit University Prep’s Tony Dent drives during the Eagles’ 72-56 win also on Jan. 3. (Photos by Terry Lyons.)