Today in the MHSAA: 12/7/16

December 7, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Today’s report could be renamed “buzzer beaters” as the first full Tuesday of girls and boys basketball season produced plenty of gutsy deciding shots during the final seconds of play.

Each weekday during the school year, we’ll gather and post media links covering the most significant and intriguing high school events from all over the state.

Girls Basketball

Ella Bontrager’s layup with three seconds to play after her steal with 21 seconds left gave Jackson Northwest a 44-42 win over Grass Lake – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Grace Reinhold’s game-winner gave Muskegon Oakridge a 47-45 win over Grand Haven – Muskegon Chronicle

Bloomfield Hills Marian emerged from its latest matchup of top Class A teams, downing Waterford Kettering 37-34 in overtime – Oakland Press

Mount Pleasant built an early 14-2 lead and held on to defeat McBain 44-39 – Cadillac News

Utica Eisenhower earned an impressive early-season victory downing Grosse Pointe South 53-42 – Macomb Daily

DeWitt came back to down East Lansing 59-58 in a matchup of top Lansing-area teams – WLNS

Boys Basketball

Battle Creek Pennfield downed Olivet 85-83 in overtime on Ronald Jamierson’s bucket with one second to play – Battle Creek Enquirer

Keyed by a strong perimeter shooting night by Carson Charvat, Three Rivers outlasted Niles 74-72 – Kalamazoo Gazette

Austin Harless’ free throws with three seconds to play gave Holly a 55-53 win over Flint Powers Catholic – Flint Journal

Ann Arbor Pioneer rose above playing without three injured starters to edge Southfield Christian 66-62 – Ann Arbor News

Lansing Waverly rode 21 second-half points from Jaden Sutton to a 51-47 comeback win over Holt – Lansing State Journal

Benton Harbor earned an impressive 57-36 win over Dowagiac in a matchup of frequent Class B powers – St. Joseph Herald-Palladium

Hillman’s Gunnar Libby went over 1,000 points for his career scoring 30 in a 68-51 win over Cedarville – Alpena News

After going 1-20 last season, Troy Athens is 1-0 with a nail-biting 46-45 win over Rochester Adams – Oakland Press

Today in the MHSAA: 1/27/16

January 27, 2016

By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor

Tuesday evening was arguably the most highlight-filled of any so far this basketball season, with plenty of important results and intriguing performances making headlines across the state.

Girls Basketball

Utica Eisenhower has gotten the attention this season with an 11-1 record heading into this week, but Utica is undefeated in the Macomb Area Conference White after downing Eisenhower 34-30 – Macomb Daily

Southfield-Lathrup remains the team to beat in the Oakland Activities Association Red and among contenders in Class A after defeating Clarkston 57-44 – Oakland Press

One-loss Frankenmuth dealt Ithaca its first this season in a Tri-Valley Conference crossover, 45-44 – Saginaw News

Saginaw Nouvel also dealt a first loss to an undefeated power, downing Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart 46-41 – Saginaw News

Jackson Northwest’s Lexie Khon scored her 1,000th career point in the Mounties 72-32 win over Stockbridge – Jackson Citizen-Patriot

Pewamo-Westphalia picked up a key Central Michigan Athletic Conference win by handing Bath just its second loss, 53-40 – Lansing State Journal

Mendon won a matchup of Class D contenders, carrying a one-point lead at the start of the fourth quarter to a 45-39 win – Sturgis Journal

Grosse Pointe South earned an upset over rival Grosse Pointe North, handing GPN its second loss, 60-55 – Detroit News

Muskegon’s Mardrekia Cook, this week’s Michigan National Guard “Performance of the Week” honoree (see story posted on Second Half today) led the Big Reds to a 63-19 win with a quadruple-double – 19 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists and 10 steals – Muskegon Chronicle

Boys Basketball

Arthur Lyons helped keep Lake Linden-Hubbell undefeated with 39 points in a 76-73 double overtime win over Ewen-Trout Creek – Houghton Daily Mining Gazette

Holly coach Lance Baylis tied the school coaching record for wins with his 148th in a 72-42 victory over Flushing – Flint Journal

Alma had three buzzer-beating shots in moving to 10-1 with a 78-77 overtime win over Freeland – Saginaw News

Wyoming Godwin Heights broke free during the final quarter to hand Grandville Calvin Christian its first loss, 64-50 – Grand Rapids Press

Petoskey took sole possession of first place in the Big North Conference with a 62-57 win over former co-leader Traverse City Central – Traverse City Record-Eagle

Demetrius Lake, featured on Second Half last week after a buzzer-beating performance, finished another with 48 points and the winning shot in a 79-77 win over Hudsonville Unity Christian – Holland Sentinel

Negaunee won a battle of undefeated teams by a basket, edging Iron Mountain 51-49 to take over first place alone in the Mid-Peninsula Athletic Conference – Iron Mountain Daily News