Breslin Bound: Girls Quarterfinal Preview
March 12, 2013
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Three reigning MHSAA girls basketball champions remain alive as we head into the final week of this season. They and two reigning runners-up are only one win away from returning to Michigan State University's Breslin Center.
But 27 more teams also sense how close they are to booking trips to East Lansing. That added ounce of motivation could go a long way in tonight's Quarterfinals across the state.
See below for a quick glance at all 16 games being played this evening. And click here for brackets including tip-off times and sites for every game.
Class A
Westland John Glenn (23-1) vs. Detroit Martin Luther King (22-0): King senior Antania Hayes might’ve fallen a few votes short in the Miss Basketball balloting this week, but her team is the favorite to leave Breslin on Saturday with the champion trophy. John Glenn senior guard Raven Bankston (18 ppg) hopes to stand in the way tonight.
Grand Ledge (21-4) vs. Grand Haven (25-0): The reigning Class A champion Buccaneers and 6-foot-5 center Abby Cole achieved something they didn't last winter by going undefeated this regular season. The Comets have taken big leaps of late – improving from eight, to 11, to 15 and now 21 wins over the last four seasons and already knocked out a Miss Basketball candidate in defeating Mattawan.
Grosse Pointe South (23-1) vs. Birmingham Marian (21-3): Grosse Pointe South is the reigning Class A runner-up and has rattled off 23 straight victories since losing on opening night to Chicago Whitney Young. Marian, with just a three-point loss a few weeks ago, is one of only a few to play King close this season, and is succeeding with no player averaging more than 9.8 points per game.
Saginaw Heritage (16-9) vs. Dexter (22-3): A lineup featuring three sophomore starters has led Heritage to its best season since 2005. Dexter won its first Regional title since earning back-to-back in 1997-98, and similar to Marian has four scorers averaging more than seven points per game but none averaging eight.
Class B
Clare (23-1) vs. Midland Bullock Creek (22-3): Clare has won a lot and won big; its only game within 10 points this season was a one-point loss to Saginaw Nouvel on Dec. 4. Two sophomores and a senior averaging double figures scoring have led Bullock Creek to its first District title since 2008 and now farther.
Detroit Country Day (18-3) vs. Flint Powers Catholic (19-6): Country Day won its eighth-straight Regional title and is led by guard Asia Doss scoring a team-high 13.3 points per game. Powers is back to being a power after going only 8-13 a year ago. Senior forward Kim Berry leads the way with 13.9 ppg.
Goodrich (22-3) vs. Livonia Ladywood (17-7): Reigning Class B champion Goodrich had a few hiccups after going undefeated in 2011-12, but could run away with the title again led by Miss Basketball runner-up Taylor Gleason (21.6 ppg). Ladywood will try to stop that run tonight while led by another high-scoring senior guard, Andrea Anastos (19.8 ppg).
Marshall (21-4) vs. Grand Rapids South Christian (23-1): Marshall is back in the Quarterfinals after falling last season to Dearborn Divine Child, and is back thanks in part to two sophomore starters. South Christian has its best record since 2006 and is in the Quarterfinals for the first time since 2004.
Class C
Niles Brandywine (24-0) vs. Manchester (24-1): Brandywine has made the Quarterfinals all four seasons under coach Josh Hood and made the Semifinals in 2010. Manchester hopes to get there keyed by a pair of seniors – 6-foot-1 forward McKenna Erkfrtiz and 5-5 guard Taylor Manders – both averaging more than 14 points per game.
Riverview Gabriel Richard (15-7) vs. Flint Hamady (22-3): Senior Ashley Henderson is averaging 16 points per game and had 30 in Gabriel Richard’s Regional title win over Madison Heights Bishop Foley. Last season was the only one over the last four that Hamady didn't make at least a Quarterfinal, and it’s looking to get back to a championship game for the first time since winning Class C back-to-back in 2009-10.
Delton Kellogg (21-4) vs. Saginaw Nouvel (23-2): Kellogg has increased its win total all three seasons under coach Mike Mohn, and has followed a third-place finish in the strong Kalamazoo Valley Association to bigger things. But Nouvel will be the toughest opponent this season; the Panthers have their best record since back-to-back championship runs in 2006 and 2007-08.
Shelby (21-3) vs. Houghton (22-2): Shelby has won at least 18 games all three seasons under coach Sarah Wolting, and this season claimed its first postseason titles under her leadership. Junior forward Elisa Jurmu is averaging 19.9 points per game as Houghton makes its first Quarterfinal appearance since 2009.
Class D
St. Ignace (24-0) vs. Crystal Falls Forest Park (23-1): The Saints made the Class C Semifinals in 2012 and didn't have their first close game this winter until a 74-68 win over previously-undefeated Posen. Crystal Falls Forest Park is trying to return to the Class D Semifinals and is again led by one of the state’s top juniors – 6-0 Lexi Gussert, who is averaging 32.5 points and 10.9 rebounds per game.
Climax-Scotts (19-5) vs. Gaylord St. Mary (23-2): Five senior starters have Climax-Scotts in the Quarterfinals for the first time in coach Dana Perrin’s three seasons as coach. Junior guard Kari Borowiak is averaging more than 17 points per game for a St. Mary team that hasn't lost since Dec. 18.
Athens (21-3) vs. Plymouth Christian (18-6): This is Athens’ third-straight Quarterfinal berth and it will be looking to return to Breslin after advancing to the championship game in 2012. Plymouth Christian gave reigning champion Waterford Our Lady a scare early this season and played one of the toughest schedules of any Class D Quarterfinalist.
Waterford Our Lady (19-4) vs. Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (16-7): Guards Lexie Robak and Ava Doetsch can finish this week as four-time MHSAA champions and have started for Our Lady all four of their high school seasons. Sacred Heart is back in the Quarterfinals for the first time since 2010 and hopes to avenge a 50-38 loss to Our Lady on Dec. 15.
PHOTO: Goodrich guard Taylor Gleason (22) will try to lead her team to a second-straight Class B championship this week. (Click to see more at HighSchoolSportsScene.com.)
Breslin Bound: 2024-25 Girls Report Week 7
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
January 20, 2025
We've reached the midpoint of this girls basketball season, but the second half is just the start of the buildup for the most exciting part of every year.
Most teams have played their league opponents once, with upcoming rematches set to decide champions. As noted earlier, for the first time this season District brackets will be seeded completely, meaning every team is playing to affect its position for when the MHSAA Tournament starts in seven weeks. And below we continue to detail several of the latest moves in league play and District ranking for teams hoping to be in a championship mix.
“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. DeWitt 62, Haslett 50 – The Panthers (10-1) broke a two-game losing streak against their longtime rival Vikings (8-2), picking up great momentum heading into one of DeWitt’s toughest weeks of the regular season.
2. Frankenmuth 65, Detroit Country Day 39 The Eagles (9-2) have won eight straight and handed Country Day (10-1) its lone loss in a matchup of Division 2 hopefuls.
3. Grass Lake 49, Leslie 39 Grass Lake (9-3) sits alone atop the Cascades Conference East after handing Leslie (6-3) its only league loss and after delivering the same to Michigan Center a week earlier.
4. Midland 56, Midland Dow 41 After last month ending an 11-game losing streak against rival Dow, Midland High (9-1) finished its first regular-season sweep of its rival in 11 years.
5. Detroit Renaissance 67, Grand Blanc 43 The Phoenix (13-1) are soaring again with three straight double-digit wins since suffering their lone loss, this victory coming at the Martin Luther King Showcase at West Bloomfield.
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Rockford (12-1) The Rams have reached at least the Division 1 Semifinals the last three seasons – winning the title in 2023 – and they are prepping well for another run despite playing a schedule of opponents with a combined .750 in-state winning percentage. The lone loss came Dec. 14 to Division 2 contender Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard, and Rockford has handed the only losses to Tecumseh and Grand Haven. The 51-45 win over Tecumseh on Jan. 11 was the only win decided by fewer than 12 points.
Temperance Bedford (8-1) The Kicking Mules have moved into first alone in the Southeastern Conference Red with wins over contenders Dexter and Saline over the last week – and after splitting with Saline last season, when those two shared the league title. Bedford reached the Quarterfinals a year ago, finishing 24-3, and opened this winter by avenging last year’s loss to Sylvania Northview. The only defeat this time has against Tecumseh to finish the season’s first week, and all but one of Bedford’s victories have come over opponents with at least a .500 record.
DIVISION 2
Ann Arbor Father Gabriel Richard (10-1) Coming off last season’s trip to the Division 2 championship game, and runner-up finish, FGR has played the toughest in-state schedule in any division with its Michigan opponents posting a combined .827 in-state winning percentage. The Irish gave Adrian Madison and Rockford their only losses, and are just a 46-45 loss to undefeated Belleville from being undefeated instead. FGR also is leading the Catholic High School League Central East and has another telling Division 2 challenger on the schedule with Chelsea making the trip to Ann Arbor on Feb. 18
Tecumseh (9-1) Coming off last season’s run to the Division 2 Quarterfinals, and right behind Father Gabriel Richard on that toughest schedules list, Tecumseh has played opponents with a combined .773 in-state winning percentage – second in the state regardless of division. As noted above, a 51-45 loss to Division 1 Rockford is all that is separating Tecumseh from being undefeated. Wins over Bedford and Blissfield remain those opponents’ only losses, and a 53-41 win over Chelsea on Jan. 9 has Tecumseh first in the Southeastern Conference White; the rematch is Jan. 31 at Chelsea.
DIVISION 3
Evart (9-1) The Wildcats have won 19 games both of the last two seasons and are pushing again for what would be a first league title in at least a decade. They are among three teams tied for the first in the Highland Conference, their lone loss to McBain and with that rematch coming up Feb. 7. No other opponent has come closer than nine points, and wins over Manton, Frankfort, Sanford Meridian and Fremont have been the most notable of another solid run so far.
Niles Brandywine (11-0) The Bobcats moved into first place alone in the Lakeland Conference last week with a 42-point win over previously-undefeated Berrien Springs, and the reigning Division 3 runner-up has won all of its games by double digits and nine by at least 30 points. The second half of the regular-season schedule presents a number of challenges as Brandywine gears up for another playoff run – most notably undefeated Division 1 St. Joseph and Division 2 Vicksburg, a Berrien Springs rematch and next week’s game against Division 1 Stevensville Lakeshore.
DIVISION 4
Concord (9-2) The Yellow Jackets made an incredible jump a year ago, finishing 20-6 after going 4-17 in 2022-23. They haven’t slowed down and already have avenged losses from last winter to Hanover-Horton, Bronson and Springport. The only defeats this time came to still-unbeaten Morenci by two points Dec. 9 and Division 2 Brooklyn Columbia Central during holiday break. Concord also leads the Big 8 Conference and can avenge another 2023-24 loss Jan. 27 at Michigan Center.
Kingston (7-1) A 44-40 loss to Division 2 Imlay City on Dec. 10 is all that’s kept the reigning Division 4 runner-up from being undefeated to this point, and a 53-46 win over Cass City has helped Kingston get there as well as it remains Cass City’s only loss. Kingston is tied atop the Big Thumb Conference Blue with Deckerville heading into Tuesday’s first of two matchups between them this season. The Cardinals also have solid February tests against Division 2 Croswell-Lexington and Division 1 Saginaw Heritage.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Monday – Goodrich (9-2) vs. Grand Rapids West Catholic (10-1) at Saginaw Valley State – These Division 2 contenders will face off in the 3 p.m. matchup at SVSU’s Martin Luther King Classic.
Tuesday – L’Anse (10-1) at Ewen-Trout Creek (11-1) – This could decide the Copper Mountain Conference championship as they are two of three teams undefeated in league play and this their only matchup.
Wednesday – Indian River Inland Lakes (9-1) at Gaylord St. Mary (9-1) – These Division 4 statewide hopefuls also are tied for first in the Ski Valley Conference heading into this first of two meetings.
Friday – Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart (8-0) at St. Charles (7-1) – These two are undefeated atop the Mid-State Activities Conference heading into this first of two matchups this season after St. Charles won the league and Sacred Heart finished second a year ago.
Friday – Holt (8-3) at DeWitt (10-1) – As noted above, DeWitt has one of its toughest weeks ahead, but a rematch win would be a rewarding way to finish it as the Rams lead the Capital Area Activities Conference Blue after winning their first meeting 47-39.
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) DeWitt's Tara Kurncz (14) drives to the basket during her team's 48-38 win Friday over Lansing Waverly. (Middle) Detroit Edison's Isis Johnson Musah (2) make her move toward the lane during her team's 50-48 loss to Detroit Renaissance on Dec. 21. (DeWitt/Waverly photo by Terry Lyons. Renaissance/Edison photo by Team Arreguin Photos.)