North Central Finishes 3-Peat Perfectly
March 25, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
EAST LANSING – For the last three seasons and 83 straight games, Powers North Central’s boys basketball team has been perfect.
And for the first eight minutes Saturday, as these Jets played together for the last time, they couldn't have been much better.
Buckley never recovered completely from one of the most impressive opening barrages in recent Finals history. But the Bears did make North Central work to add this latest win, a 78-69 victory to claim a third straight Class D championship.
In their last game together, Jets senior starters Jason Whitens, Dawson Bilski, Bobby Kleiman, Marcus Krachinski and Seth Polfus all contributed as the team made its first 15 shots. Bilski tied the MHSAA championship game record for points in a quarter with 18 in the first as North Central as a team fell just shy of making the list for most points in a quarter, putting up 38 total – enough of a run to help them survive a nearly-as-epic comeback by the Bears, who also were undefeated heading into the day.
“Over the past couple of years, kids like me and Seth and Marcus, we never had the starting spots coming up. We had to wait a little while. We had to play our role,” Kleiman said. “But having two players like Jason and Dawson, that makes us just as good a players as them. They help us every day. They’re the ones who make us better. When things get tight, we look to them.”
“(But) we’re a team. And that’s where a lot of teams lack, is the team part. They have individuals, but us, we’re family. We love each other. And this whole ride has just been crazy, and we’ll never forget it.”
The Jets finished 28-0, and sit 83-0 over the last three seasons after again extending the nation’s longest active winning streak. Whitens capped his high school career with a 108-1 record over four varsity seasons, giving him not only a state record for wins but also breaking the record by four for most varsity boys basketball games played in MHSAA history. Bilski also started on all three championship teams and joined Whitens earning Class D all-state honors earlier this week. On Jan. 27, with their 66th straight win, they broke the MHSAA record for consecutive wins previously set by Chassell from 1956-58.
Coming off Thursday’s one-point, buzzer-beating Semifinal victory over Southfield Christian, Saturday’s start made it seem like a Jets victory lap was about to begin. At the end of the first quarter, North Central led 38-20 and had made 15 of 17 shots from the floor.
But much to Buckley’s credit, it didn’t show a sign of folding. The Bears were dominated by star juniors and will surprise no one if they make another run in 2018. Despite entering Saturday with a 26-0 record, they weren’t expected by most to win – but never let that sink in, even while staring up at a double-digit deficit less than four minutes into the game.
“I was just thinking man, they’re shooting the lights out. They’ve been here before, they’re all seniors, they want it that bad. We’ve just got to match their intensity,” Buckley junior Denver Cade said. “Sometimes they’re just putting them up there, going in, and you’re holding on. After that’s done, you’re just right back going at them, so we did.”
Buckley won the second and fourth quarters and tied North Central 10-10 in the third, taking advantage in part as Bilski left the game for an extended period after picking up his fourth foul just 1:32 into the second half.
But his absence may have only kept the Jets from increasing the lead – he re-entered with 6:30 to play and the Jets up 13, but from there Buckley launched a 13-3 run over four minutes to pull within 68-65 on Ridge Beeman’s basket with 2:41 to play.
“If we score 38 points in a quarter, typically teams kinda roll over,” North Central coach Adam Mercier said. “That didn’t happen today, and that’s a credit to those Buckley kids. We had to fight tooth and nail with them in the fourth quarter. I was just so proud of our kids, the way they finished this game.
“For these guys, it just comes with the territory. I sat here two or three years ago, trying to explain this group of boys – now they’re men – we just talked about that ‘it’ factor. It starts with these seniors and the seniors we had in the past, and that ‘it’ factor rings through with all of them.”
And as Kleiman said, when things got tight, the Jets turned to their accomplished stars.
Bilski and Whitens combined to score nine points during a 10-4 run to finish the game and a legacy that may not be approached for another half-century.
“You don’t think a team’s going to back down. You always have to keep coming back at them,” said Whitens, who also quarterbacked two straight undefeated football teams. “Respect to them for just keeping coming at us. It makes the game more fun. That’s what it’s all about, opponents going head to head, and they didn’t quit. We just had to keep going at it, and had a lot of fun doing it.”
Saturday's Final was the first featuring two undefeated teams since Shelby downed Stockbridge 71-57 in the 1971 Class C championship game. It was the first Class D Final pitting undefeated teams since Covert beat Ewen-Trout Creek 84-70 in 1966.
Bilski, who will continue his career at Michigan Tech, scored 25 points in just 20 minutes, making 8 of 9 shots from the floor. Whitens – a Mr. Basketball Award finalist this season – had 23 points on 8 of 11 shooting, while Kleiman added 12 points and Krachinski had 11 and seven assists.
Cade also scored 25 points with seven rebounds, and junior center Austin Harris had 22 points and nine rebounds. Junior guard Joey Weber added 15 more points and seven rebounds for the Bears.
All five Buckley starters should return next season.
“We’re going to use that as fuel. When we see them holding up that trophy, we’re not going to pout and cry about it,” Harris said. “We’re going to get really, really mad, get back in the gym, and do it really hard and see if we can win next year. You haven’t seen the last of us.”
PHOTOS: (Top) North Central’s Bobby Kleiman drives to the basket during Saturday’s Class D Final. (Middle) The Jets’ Marcus Krachinski tries to block a shot by Buckley’s Denver Cade.
Breslin Bound: 2023-24 Boys Report Week 8
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 22, 2024
Tuesday’s matchup of Cadillac (11-0) hosting Whitehall (12-0) would crack our five “Can’t-Miss Contests” for the upcoming week most weeks every season – and it's lined up to be a great one.
But perhaps indicating the decisive stretch we've reached this season, it falls just outside our preview list below – which is loaded with potential league title deciders, be they the first meetings between expected favorites or rematches from early-season faceoffs that now mean much more.
“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. Iron Mountain 48, Kingsford 47 Coming out of this matchup of arguably the top two teams in the Upper Peninsula, Iron Mountain (11-0) stands alone as the last undefeated team on its side of the Bridge after handing the neighboring Flivvers (11-2) just their second defeat.
2. Port Huron Northern 59, Warren Lincoln 57 The Huskies (10-2) drew even with Lincoln atop the Macomb Area Conference White by avenging an 80-46 loss to the Abes (9-2) from Dec. 15.
3. Zeeland West 61, Detroit Cass Tech 42 West (8-3) delivered the only defeat this season to the reigning Division 1 champion Technicians (9-1) during the Gottagetit Hoops Classic at East Kentwood.
4. Warren Lincoln 49, Grand Rapids Christian 47 Lincoln bounced back from its loss to PHN quickly, defeating Romeo on Thursday and then handing Grand Rapids Christian (8-1) its only loss, also at East Kentwood.
5. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 76, Detroit U-D Jesuit 68 The Eaglets (10-1) avenged their lone loss this winter, 60-55 to Jesuit on Dec. 18, to take a two-game lead in the Detroit Catholic League Central.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Detroit Martin Luther King (11-3) After opening this season with losses to a pair of strong opponents in Lansing Waverly and North Farmington, King has reasserted itself among the elite with 11 wins over its last 12 games (and the only defeat during that time to undefeated East Lansing). The Crusaders join Cass Tech at the top of the Detroit Public School League Blue heading into Tuesday’s matchup, and are coming off handing Grand Rapids Northview a 54-53 loss in East Kentwood on Saturday – adding to wins over Kalamazoo Central, Saginaw and Detroit Southeastern and Renaissance among others.
Rockford (9-3) The Rams also got off to a slow start, relatively speaking, opening 2-3 but with those losses to Muskegon by a point, Byron Center and Grand Rapids South Christian. Rockford has won its last seven games, defeating Zeeland West (see above) to win the Zeeland Holiday Tournament and last week moving into first place alone in the Ottawa-Kent Conference Red by handing the only losses this season to Hudsonville (55-52 OT) and East Kentwood (61-56). Rockford tied for third in the league behind those two last season.
DIVISION 2
Benton Harbor (13-0) After stumbling a bit to end last season on a 3-6 streak, Benton Harbor has cruised to another magnificent start with Saturday’s 58-48 victory over Wyoming Lee in East Kentwood tying its closest win this winter. A 72-59 victory over Niles Brandywine on Jan. 11 has the Tigers atop the Lakeland Conference again as they look to repeat, with a 92-46 win over Detroit Douglass from Dec. 28 also among their most impressive. Big-time matchups await against South Haven, Kalamazoo Central, Watervliet, Brandywine again Feb. 16 and Niles in the regular-season finale after the Vikings ended Benton Harbor’s 2022-23 run.
Tecumseh (10-1) A nine-game winning streak last February and March was stopped by an overtime Regional Final loss to Chelsea, but Tecumseh picked right back up this winter with this start and its only defeat 55-51 to Riverview over the break. Tecumseh has avenged losses from last season to Adrian Madison and Temperance Bedford, can avenge another in Tuesday’s matchup with Pinckney, and sees Chelsea for the first time Jan. 30 after Chelsea dealt Tecumseh three defeats total during last season’s 20-7 campaign.
DIVISION 3
Alcona (9-4) The Tigers are showing a nice ability to rebound – first from a 1-3 start with their current 8-1 run, and more recently after falling 38-37 to Ogemaw Heights on Jan. 8 but coming back a week later to defeat Oscoda 47-36 to stand alone in first place in the North Star League Big Dipper. That was the closest of Alcona’s nine wins, and the second game in the Oscoda series is on the Tigers’ homecourt Feb. 6. Alcona was 10-12 but second in the league a year ago.
Iron Mountain (11-0) As noted above, Iron Mountain is the lone undefeated team left in the Upper Peninsula, and Kingsford was the first team to come within single digits of the Mountaineers since their 51-43 victory over Gladstone in the season opener. This is familiar territory for Iron Mountain, of course, and three more of these victories came over opponents that have won at least nine games. Iron Mountain does go to Kingsford Feb. 13, and circle as well a home game Feb. 5 against Menominee, which ended the Mountaineers’ seasons the last two winters.
DIVISION 4
Lake Linden-Hubbell (8-2) The Lakes have enjoyed a nice climb from seven to 13 to 17 wins over the last three seasons, respectively, and they could be ready to take another step. The losses came to Houghton and Painesdale Jeffers, which both have 11 wins this season, and Lake Linden-Hubbell welcomes Jeffers for a rematch Feb. 6. A 74-42 season-opening win over Chassell also was a highlight, and the Lakes travel to Chassell on Feb. 9 and for possibly another telling matchup a week later at Stephenson.
Saginaw Nouvel (9-3) The Panthers, coming off a Division 3 Regional Final run, tested themselves right away this winter and went 0-3 the first week against Essexville Garber, Pewamo-Westphalia and still-undefeated Cass City (falling 54-53). They haven’t lost again. Nouvel sits atop the Tri-Valley Conference White with just Ithaca to play to complete a first-half run through the league, defeated nine-win opponents Imlay City and Standish-Sterling, and will test itself again Feb. 20 at Chesaning, which is off to an 11-0 start.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Detroit Cass Tech (9-1) at Detroit Martin Luther King (11-3) – Both are undefeated in the PSL Blue, and Cass Tech won all three matchups last season: 57-55, 74-70 (OT) in the PSL championship game and 71-59 in a District Semifinal.
Tuesday – Pewamo-Westphalia (9-1) at Laingsburg (10-0) – The Wolfpack are first and the Pirates second in the Central Michigan Athletic Conference thanks to Laingsburg’s 59-55 overtime win Dec. 6.
Thursday – East Lansing (11-0) at Okemos (10-1) – These rivals split last season’s two matchups just three days apart, and they enter this one as the only two teams undefeated in Capital Area Activities Conference Blue play.
Friday – Riverview Gabriel Richard (11-1) at Jackson Lumen Christi (10-0) – This eventually could decide the Detroit Catholic League AA title as these two are undefeated in league play and the next contender has two conference losses.
Friday – Beal City (11-2) at McBain (9-1) – The Aggies also are trying to even the season score in this series, as McBain leads the Highland Conference thanks to its 60-43 win over Beal on Dec. 13.
MHSAA.com's weekly “Breslin Bound” previews and reviews are powered by MI Student Aid, a division within the Department of Lifelong Education, Advancement, and Potential (MiLEAP). MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information. MI Student Aid administers the state’s scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
PHOTOS (Top) Jayce Branson (3) gets to the rim during East Lansing's 52-29 win over DeWitt last week. (Middle) Flint Southwestern and Kearsley face off Jan. 5. (Top photo by Max McCallister; middle photo by Terry Lyons.)