Breslin Bound: Boys Report Week 11
February 19, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Only a few boys basketball teams remain this season that look unstoppable with the playoffs set to begin in two weeks.
Those squads top this week's list of recent high achievers. But in a bit of irony, they are followed by teams that over the last week knocked off highly-regarded opponents and made things look as wide open as ever.
1. Detroit Pershing (19-0) – Considered Michigan’s best regardless of class all season, Pershing beat Cass Tech 80-61 to claim the Detroit Public School League championship.
2. Grand Blanc (16-0) – The Bobcats have improved from 12 to 14 to now 16 wins over the last three seasons and won the KLAA West championship by four games.
3. Climax-Scotts (17-0) – The Panthers aren't a surprise after making last season’s Class D Final before falling to Southfield Christian, but they look like the favorites to finish with a win this time.
4. Detroit Country Day (13-3) – The Yellow Jackets beat Class A power Saginaw Arthur Hill in a big way last week, 86-61.
5. Dowagiac (16-1) – The Chieftains last week earned their best win of a great run by beating Otsego, which had only one loss as well; expect them to meet again in the Wolverine Conference championship game.
6. Midland (13-4) – The Chemics have had a solid winter and are third in the Saginaw Valley Association North, but they made a statewide wave by beating reigning Class A champion Saginaw 64-59 last week.
7. Rockford (12-6) – The Rams have had a couple tough runs this season after finishing Class A runner-up a year ago, but won a key rematch by beating East Kentwood 44-40 last week after losing by six to the Falcons at the end of January.
8. Southfield Christian (14-4) – The reigning Class D champion earned three wins last week including one of its best this season, 47-46 over also highly-regarded Allen Park Inter-City Baptist.
9. Redford Thurston (13-4) – The Eagles entered last week’s game against Dearborn Heights Robichaud 3-3 over their last six, but then avenged a 29-point loss by beating Robichaud 65-55 in their rematch.
10. Goodrich (13-4) – The Martians won their seventh game in eight tries by beating previously one-loss Frankenmuth 53-44 to cap off last week.
PHOTO: Detroit Pershing's Kahlil Felder (12) led his team to the Detroit Public School League championship and was named Mr. PSL for this season. (Photo courtesy of the Detroit PSL.)
Breslin Bound: Boys District Review
March 16, 2015
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
District week turned into rematch week during some of the most intriguing tournaments of the first round of this season's MHSAA Boys Basketball Tournament.
See below for four champions in each class that stuck out, including a number that did so by beating one last time an opponent it had seen a few more over the course of this winter.
Class A
Grand Rapids Ottawa Hills (20-3) – The Bengals added a District title to their Ottawa-Kent Conference Gold championship. Ottawa Hills won 59-56 in the Final over East Kentwood (21-1), the only team to beat reigning Class A champion Muskegon this season, and opened in the Semifinal with a 54-51 edging of Grand Rapids Christian (12-10).
Lansing Everett (21-2) – The Vikings advanced to Regionals for the first time since 2005 after ending the runs of some familiar opponents. Everett beat Capital Area Activities Conference Blue rival and runner-up Grand Ledge (20-3) in the Final, 57-51 – the teams split during the regular season as Everett won the league title. The Vikings beat Blue third-place finisher East Lansing (12-9) in the Semifinal, 59-39, and CAAC Red champion DeWitt (11-10) in the opener 50-43.
Traverse City West (18-5) – The Titans, runners-up in the Big North Conference, eliminated two league champions. They opened with a 58-54 win over Marquette (16-4), the Great Northern U.P. Conference winner, then beat rival Traverse City Central (5-16) in the Semifinal before eliminating Big North champion Alpena (19-3) in the Final, 66-63.
Walled Lake Central (18-5) – The Vikings tied Walled Lake Western (21-2) for the Kensington Lakes Activities Association North title, but moved on to this week by edging Western 40-39 in the District Final. Central set up that opportunity by beating West Bloomfield (18-3) in the Semifinal, 54-52, and Walled Lake Northern (8-13) in the opener.
Class B
Benton Harbor (17-6) – The Tigers again emerged from this strong group of Class B teams in the Lower Peninsula’s southwest corner. They opened with a 74-55 win over Coloma (7-14), then downed Wolverine Conference West champion Dowagiac (15-5) in the Semifinal, 78-74. Benton Harbor then defeated Buchanan (13-9) in the Final, 53-42.
Eaton Rapids (15-8) – The home of the reigning Class B girls champion can cheer on a boys run this time after the Greyhounds beat Jackson Northwest (13-8), Leslie (16-5) and then Olivet (11-11) to win their District title. Eaton Rapids won the last two games both by double digits.
Frankenmuth (18-4) – Remember the name Mario Whitley; the Eagles’ 6-foot-3 freshman guard had 28 points and 10 rebounds in a District Semifinal 63-52 win over Flint Northwestern (16-4). Frankenmuth’s veterans took over in a 48-44 victory over Caro (10-13) in the Final.
Yale (21-2) – The Bulldogs split the Blue Water Area Conference championship with Imlay City (19-4) and Richmond (16-5), and lost to the former twice during the regular season. But Yale beat Imlay City 59-43 in the District Final after downing Richmond 45-41 in the Semifinal and Armada (3-18) in the opener, 37-36.
Class C
Boyne City (18-5) – The Ramblers edged East Jordan by a game to win the Lake Michigan Conference title despite falling to East Jordan during the opening week in December. Boyne City put an end to their series this season with a 48-45 win over the Red Devils (17-6) in the District Final, after defeating Harbor Springs (2-19) in the Semifinal and Charlevoix (12-9) in the opener.
Hanover-Horton (21-1) – The Comets’ lone loss this season came to Jackson Lumen Christi, by 14, on Dec. 20. But Hanover-Horton got the win when it counted more, downing the Titans (19-3) in the Semifinal 63-61 before clinching the championship 54-47 over Vandercook Lake (17-6), which also finished runner-up to Hanover-Horton in the Cascades Conference race.
Hillsdale (22-0) – There generally aren’t a lot of 20-win teams facing against each other during the tournament’s first week, but Hillsdale emerged from such a matchup, 78-60 over Quincy (21-2) in their District Final. Hillsdale also beat Union City (17-5) in the Semifinal, 77-53.
North Muskegon (16-7) – The Norsemen have more than doubled last season’s seven wins, and moved on to Regionals with a 67-63 District Final win over annual power Muskegon Heights (13-6). North Muskegon also edged Western Michigan Christian (14-7) in the Semifinal, 54-52, and beat Ravenna (4-16) in the opener.
Class D
Boyne Falls (20-2) – The Loggers have followed up losing to Bellaire in the 2013 District by beating the Eagles in the last two Finals – this time 48-41. Boyne Falls also won the Northern Lakes Conference championship, while Bellaire was the champ in the Ski Valley Conference. The Loggers advanced last week by beating league foe Ellsworth (11-10) by 15 in their Semifinal.
Covert (8-4) – The Bulldogs played an abbreviated regular-season schedule but didn’t look a step behind last week beating Lawrence (21-2) in the District Final, 60-59. Covert also beat St. Joseph Lake Michigan Catholic (12-10) in the Semifinal and Michigan Lutheran (4-16) in the opener.
Frankfort (20-2) – The Northwest Conference-winning Panthers also had to take on another 20-win team last week, and bested West Michigan D League winner Onekama (20-2) in the District Final, 64-25. Frankfort advanced with a 71-53 win over Buckley in the Semifinal (11-11).
Kalamazoo Heritage Christian (10-12) – After winning only three games in 2013-14 and finishing this winter sub-.500 for the regular season, Heritage Christian was one of last week’s stunners beating Climax-Scotts (17-5) in the Semifinal 54-51 and then Martin (11-11) in the District Final, 45-39 in overtime.
PHOTO: Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central advanced to this week's Regionals with a win over Grand Rapids Northview in their District Final. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)