North Central Legend Continues to Grow
February 8, 2017
By Dennis Grall
Special for Second Half
ESCANABA – There was no drama because the game had virtually been decided by halftime, so the North Central Jets merely exchanged hugs and pats on the back after erasing a 59-year-old state record Jan. 27.
The Jets shelled neighbor and arch-rival Bark River-Harris 76-29 for their 66th consecutive win. That snapped the MHSAA record set for consecutive wins by fellow Upper Peninsula quintet Chassell from 1956-58, and they reportedly carry the longest active winning streak in the nation with 69 straight victories.
The capacity-plus crowd of about 1,000 cheered the record-setting performance, but the running clock had been going since the first minute of the third quarter and everyone knew the only thing to be determined was the final score.
The only other major excitement also came early, when Jets senior Dawson Bilski converted a three-point play with 17 seconds left in the first half to enter the 1,000-point club. He finished the night with 21 points and 1,002 career points.
The build-up to the win streak had taken precedence over Bilski’s approach primarily because this time of the season spawns several 1,000-point producers, while Chassell’s iconic mark had been in the discussion stages since North Central won its second straight Class D championship in March.
The Jets broke the record the same way they have waltzed through the past four seasons, with stifling defense, balanced scoring and another dunk by 2016 Associated Press Class D Player of the Year Jason Whitens.
Surprisingly some on-lookers have downplayed North Central’s streak, with coach Adam Mercier indicating there were questions about the competitive level of the schedule. Mercier simply pointed out the Jets were 4-0 in back-to-back trips to MHSAA Finals weekend at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center en route to consecutive Class D championships.
Teams can only play the schedule given them, and North Central is enjoying a fourth straight unbeaten regular season, in a conference annually considered the most competitive and balanced in the Upper Peninsula. The only loss during that span came March 18, 2014, when Cedarville won a Class D Quarterfinal 81-79 in Marquette.
The Jets own a 78-game regular season winning streak and are a stunning 94-1 since 2013-14. Their last regular season loss was Feb. 18, 2013, against Munising.
While the regular season success is hard enough to fathom, building a winning streak that is into its third straight season with a different cast each time helps put the record in better perspective.
Not only have the Jets defeated teams in their conference and their region, they have rolled through the district, regional and state tourney rounds unchecked.
In 2014-15, the Jets were 7-0 in the postseason highlighted by lopsided victories over Fulton (71-46) and Morenci (67-47) in East Lansing.
In 2015-16, the Jets were 8-0 in the postseason, crushing Fulton (64-23) and Waterford Our Lady (59-48) at the Breslin Center.
Perhaps the biggest question may never be answered. Will anyone eclipse North Central’s record, wherever it ends? After all, it took 59 years to surpass Chassell’s vaunted 65-win figure. If the Jets reach 80 straight, and the chance of that happening is pretty good, what are the odds of anyone else being that fortunate? This is a record that could realistically never be exceeded with just about everything stacked against such an attempt as the seasons unfold.
While the Jets now possess the state record boys streak, they are only second among schools in Menominee County for the longest win streak in state history.
Carney-Nadeau High School, just six miles south of Powers, owns the state girls record of 78 straight wins (from 1989-91). The Wolves won an amazing 127 consecutive regular season games until falling to Cooks Big Bay de Noc in 1993.
Even more astonishing, North Central and its 115 students own the MHSAA record of 26 straight victories in 8-player football. The Jets, with many athletes on that team who also play basketball, have won the past two 8-player football championships to cap back-to-back 13-0 finishes to the only seasons they have played that version of the gridiron game.
Denny Grall retired in 2012 after 39 years at the Escanaba Daily Press and four at the Green Bay Press-Gazette, plus 15 months for WLST radio in Escanaba; he served as the Daily Press sports editor from 1970-80 and again from 1984-2012. Grall was inducted into the Upper Peninsula Sports Hall of Fame in 2002 and serves as its executive secretary. E-mail him at [email protected] with story ideas for the Upper Peninsula.
PHOTO: The North Central Jets hold a banner marking their state record 66th consecutive boys basketball victory Jan. 27 after beating Bark River-Harris 76-29. Chassell held the mark of 65 straight wins that was set from 1956-58.
Past Teams of the Month, 2016-17
December: Dundee boys basketball - Report
November: Rockford girls swimming & diving - Report
October: Rochester girls golf - Report
September: Breckenridge football - Report
Breslin Bound: Boys Report Week 9
February 6, 2017
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
A record-setting boys basketball season enjoyed another highlight last week when Beaverton’s Roy Johnston set the MHSAA record for career coaching victories with his 729th, a 61-24 win over Farwell.
With some pretty significant highlights now in the history books, the state’s hoops scene will turn it’s attention to the final three weeks of the regular season – and lining things up for what should be another exciting March. This week’s top matchups are a highlight of our latest Breslin Bound report – powered by MI Student Aid.
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Detroit Martin Luther King 66, Detroit East English 60 – In avenging an earlier 14-point loss to East English, King solidified itself as the team to beat in the Detroit Public School League tournament.
2. Cornerstone Health & Technology 55, River Rouge 50 – The Class C Wolves are an intriguing contender in that class and handed the Class B Panthers their only loss.
3. Walled Lake Northern 42, Walled Lake Western 23 – After falling by seven to Western in overtime in their first meeting, Northern moved into a first-place tie with its rival in the Kensington Lakes Activities Association North after another neighbor, Walled Lake Central, followed by handing Western a second loss in a row.
4. Portage Central 70, Benton Harbor 64 (OT) – The Mustangs bounced back from a painful 24-point loss to Kalamazoo Central to hand Benton Harbor also its first loss of this season.
5. Grand Rapids Covenant Christian 80, Lansing Christian 67 – The Chargers got to 10 wins by handing only the third loss this season to the Pilgrims, who were ranked No. 1 in Class D earlier this winter.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each class making sparks:
CLASS A
Rochester Hills Stoney Creek (11-3) – After a brief slowdown midseason, the Cougars are moving again with five straight wins to solidify their spot atop the Oakland Activities Association Blue at the midpoint in the league schedule. Another title would be Stoney Creek’s second straight.
Westland John Glenn (12-1) – Coach Rod Watts, who previously turned around Lansing Eastern’s program, has John Glenn back in the mix after a couple of middling seasons. The Rockets have equaled last winter’s 12 wins and avenged the lone loss, to Canton, with a 57-51 win last week to pull into a tie for first place in the KLAA South.
CLASS B
Detroit Collegiate Prep (12-2) – The Colts will enter this week’s Detroit PSL tournament as the undefeated champion of the league’s West Division 2 after also winning the division and a District title a year ago. They won all 10 league games this winter by double digits.
Sanford Meridian Early College (12-1) – The Mustangs, who finished second to Beaverton in the Jack Pine Conference a year ago, put an end to the Beavers’ celebration last week with a triple-overtime win in the next game after Johnston set the coaching record. Both have one loss in the league after splitting this season.
CLASS C
New Buffalo (9-4) – After finishing two wins behind champion Cassopolis last season, New Buffalo is tied for first after handing the Rangers their only Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph Blue loss on Jan. 27. They meet again Feb. 18 in a make-up of what was supposed to be the first matchup this season.
Schoolcraft (12-1) – An 11-point loss to undefeated Kalamazoo Hackett on Jan. 10 is all that has kept Schoolcraft from being the team with the perfect record and first place in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Valley. They meet again Feb. 21; Schoolcraft has won all of its last five games by at least 40 points and should provide quite a challenge.
CLASS D
Gaylord St. Mary (10-4) – The Snowbirds will have a tough time catching Bellaire in the Ski Valley Conference – they have three league losses and Bellaire has none. But this season is a giant success so far after St. Mary went 8-13 a year ago, and it does get a shot at Bellaire again Feb. 15 after losing their first meeting by 11.
Holland Calvary (9-3) – The Crusaders have won three straight and six of their last seven, including 61-51 last week over Holland Black River to move into first place alone in the Alliance League. Calvary is going for its sixth straight league title – the last handful came with the conference split into divisions, but all eight schools are in one again this winter – and needs only two more wins to equal last season’s overall total.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Friday – Frankenmuth (11-1) at Bridgeport (13-0) – The Eagles’ only loss was 69-59 to the Bearcats on Dec. 13, and this rematch should end up sealing if the teams share the Tri-Valley Conference East title or Bridgeport wins outright.
Friday – Detroit Catholic Central (9-4) at Detroit U-D Jesuit (10-3) – The Shamrocks stunned Jesuit 52-51 only two weeks ago and have an outside chance of sharing the Detroit Catholic League Central title with another win.
Friday – Norway (13-0) at Iron Mountain (12-2) – A loss to Ishpeming on Friday hurt Iron Mountain’s title chances, but the Mountaineers could still shake up the Mid-Peninsula Athletic Conference a bit by handing leader Norway a first loss.
Friday – Westland John Glenn (12-1) at Wayne Memorial (11-2) – John Glenn won the first meeting Jan. 20, 69-65, and both are 7-1 in KLAA South play with two games left.
Saturday – Muskegon (13-0) at Ypsilanti Community (10-3) – These are stacking up as two of the contenders in Class A, and this could be one of the last telling nonleague games of this regular season.
PHOTO: Bridgeport takes on Frankenmuth on Friday in one of the most notable games in the Saginaw area and statewide in Class B. (Click for more from HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)