Photo Credit: Lou Murray
The second week of the MHSAA boys basketball season is underway. Below are the scores from around the area, with highlights of some of the best games between Saturday December 11 and Tuesday December 14.
SATURDAY DECEMBER 11
Benton Harbor 78 Fennville 49
Grand Rapids Sacred Heart 44 Wyoming Lee 24: Sacred Heart captured a 20-point win over Lee on Saturday afternoon. It was a balanced team effort, with nine players finding the basket. Noah Northon had 15 points and 7 rebounds to lead the way, while Pete Ugolini (10 points) joined him in double figures. Jack and Sam Blouw controlled the glass with 12 and 11 rebounds respectively.
Rockford 79 Lansing Everett 73: The Rams held off the Vikings in a thrilling Saturday showdown. Caden Pokorzynski had 35 points for Rockford, while Colin Williams added 15. Everett saw three players score in double figures, including Daniel Chandler who led the way with 18.
MONDAY DECEMBER 13
Fruitport Calvary Christian 81 West Michigan Academy of Environmental Science 27: The Eagles travelled to Walker and tripled up WMAES. Bradley Richards led FCC with 22 points and 12 boards, with Jacob May added 16 points and 7 assists. Quinn Swanson (15) joined the double-digit scoring crew for FCC, while both Ethan Cammenga and Karsten Sutherland finished with 10 rebounds. Marx Oeces led WMAES with 15 points.
Tri-County 66 Lakeview 28
Newaygo 71 Wellspring Prep 61: The Lions bested the Wolves in a non-league game on Monday. Josiah Long paced the victorious Lions with 24 points. Bryce Decker (17) and Jada Osawabia (10) were also in double digits for Newaygo. Wellspring was led by Artez Haley Carter (18), Caleb Schwer (14) and Zeckeal Jackson (11).
TUESDAY DECEMBER 14
Battle Creek Calhoun Christian 67 West Michigan Lutheran 27
Benzie Central 69 Ludington 61: The Orioles fell behind by four after the first quarter and got within a point at the break. Playing this game close the entire way, they ultimately bowed out eight points short. David Shillinger led Ludington with 19, while Peyton LaCombe added 16. Levi Laman was also in double figures with 11. Nate Childers paced Benzie with 22 points, while Michael Wooten (16) and Jaxon Childers (14) joined him in double figures.
Coopersville 51 Byron Center 33
Covenant Christian 71 Caledonia 57
Edwardsburg 71 Paw Paw 27: The Eddies cruised past Paw Paw in Wolverine Conference action on Tuesday. Four Eddies finished in double digit scoring, as Brendan Byce (15), Jake Moore (12), Owen Eberlein (11) and Luke Stowasser (10) led the way. Ashton Toliver paced Paw Paw with 8 points.
Fennville 57 Coloma 41
Forest Hills Eastern 53 Lowell 41
Fruitport 53 Muskegon Catholic Central 42: The Trojans took down the Crusaders on Tuesday. A strong third quarter allowed Fruitport to expand on their lead, after MCC trimmed the deficit to three pints. Tramel Caviness, a freshman, led MCC with 11 points and 8 rebounds. Elliot Kalisz added 10 points and two charges taken off of the bench. In total, MCC had 11 different players score.
Fruitport Calvary Christian 70 Hesperia 19: The Eagles took down the Panthers in a non-league game on Tuesday evening. It was 25-5 FCC in both of the opening quarters, creating a 40-point halftime lead. Gabe Gould led Hesperia with 5 points. Bradley Richards had 18 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists for FCC. Jacob May added 16 points and 8 assists, while Ethan Cammenga finished with 15 points and 5 steals.
Godwin Heights 85 Wyoming Lee 42
Jenison 64 Cedar Springs 57: The Wildcats edged the Red Hawks at home on Friday night to advance to 2-1 on the year. Jenison led 18-14 after the first quarter, and 37-27 at the half. Cedar Springs rolled out a 1-3-1 zone in the second half, slowing down the Jenison attack. They were able to cut the deficit to just five with a quarter to go. Cedar Springs went on a 7-2 run to start the fourth frame, tying the game at 45, but Carter VanManen scored 16 points in the fourth to will Jenison to victory. VanManen finished with 24 in this game, while Gage Chatfield added 11. Cedar Springs was led by Ivan Winters (18), Aiden Brunin (11) and Logan Williams (9).
Kelloggsville 64 West Michigan Aviation Academy 58
Kenowa Hills 80 Greenville 41: Javion Otten scored 16 points to lead the Knights to victory. They are now 2-0 on the year.
Kent City 49 Central Montcalm 39: The Eagles took down the Hornets in a CSAA crossover battle. The offensive fireworks started the game, with 31 total points between the teams. At the break, it was knotted up at 24. Kent City put together a strong second half to emerge victorious. Kyler Larson led Kent City with 21 points, while Hayden Carlson added 18. Mitch Herald (16) and Kaleb Crooks (10) were in double figures for Central Montcalm.
Lawton 60 Martin 44: The Blue Devils won their division opener against Martin. Cooper Geib led Lawton with 19 points, while Chase Mitchell (12) and Luke Leighton (10) joined him in double figures.
Loy Norrix 67 Mattawan 66: A thrilling showdown took place between the Knights and Wildcats on Tuesday evening. Loy Norrix led by 10 with two minutes to play, before a miraculous run put Mattawan ahead 66-65 with mere seconds to play. With 1.7 seconds to go, Loy Norrix got a tip-in to fall, giving them the victory. Ryan Kiesling led Mattawan with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocks. Connor Walsh (16) and Noah Vanlaningham (13) also finished in double figures.
Manistee Catholic Central 75 Big Rapids Crossroads Academy 44
Mason County Central 57 White Cloud 33
Mason County Eastern 76 Bear Lake 28
Morley Stanwood 55 Tri-County 49
Muskegon 59 Traverse City Central 35: The Big Reds won the old-school LMAC battle on Tuesday night. It was close at halftime, just 23-15 in Muskegon’s favor, before they pulled away in the second half.
Muskegon Heights 72 Kalamazoo Phoenix 52
Oakridge 66 Grant 45: The Eagles captured a victory over the Tigers in non-league play on Tuesday. It was close at halftime, 32-27 Oakridge, but the Eagles pulled away with a strong second half. Ethan Jozsa led Oakridge with 29 points and 12 rebounds. Garrett Wever added 13 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. Seth Schuitema paced Grant with 29 points.
Orchard View 55 Big Rapids 49
Rockford 54 Union 51: The Rams took down the Red Hawks in thrilling fashion. Charlie Deutsch led Rockford with 16, while Jack Lamancusa added 15. Andrew Landis had seven points, all in overtime. Watch his final three points below.
Andrew Landis called GAME for @RockRamsHoops! pic.twitter.com/GX0edbdF6S
— Mitch Lyons (@mlyons85) December 15, 2021
Genesis Kemp led Union in defeat with 16 points. D’Nairo Paul added 12.
South Christian 98 Wyoming 91
West Catholic 71 Wayland 39: The Falcons took down the Wildcats in a non-league battle with a strong team performance. Michael Morris led the way with 20 points, 5 rebounds and two thunderous dunks. Kobe Kambestad added 14 points, 6 assists and 6 rebounds. Caleb Tuttle tossed in 16 points to go along with 5 rebounds. Noah Arsulowicz joined the scoring party with 13 points of his own.
West Ottawa 57 Zeeland East 34
Whitehall 63 Fremont 48: The Vikings took care of the Packers in a Tuesday night non-league battle. Fremont struggled from deep, shooting 3/22. Whitehall was led by Nate Bolley (21 points, 8 rebounds), Brodie Fogus (12 points, 15 rebounds) and Red Watson (11 points). Jordon McDonald led Fremont with 22 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals. Gavin Richards chipped in 9 points and 10 rebounds.
Zeeland West 71 Hamilton 66: The Dux played their first game with a full crowd in over a year, and they sent the fans home happy with a victory. Zeeland West led early 27-13, and their hot shooting continued as they led 42-22 at the break. Hamilton rallied back, trimming the deficit to a single point with eight minutes to go. It was an exhilarating fourth quarter, with the teams separated by a point with a minute to play. Zeeland West’s Kylan Arnold hit a crucial three to pad the lead, before free throws sealed the win. Arnold led the Dux with 19 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. Merritt Alderink added 14 points, while Luke Bakker had 10 points and 9 rebounds.
Zion Christian 51 Holland Black River 34