**ARTICLE BY JOSH LONGSTRETH**

**Photo Credit: Lou Murray**

DOUBLE DRIBBLE: BOYS BASKETBALL RECAP 2/5/2023

1/30/23

  • Benton Harbor picked up a win over Battle Creek Central, 71-54. Grant Gondrezick led the Tigers with 19 points. Brian Gillespie had 18. Antwan Callahan Jr., added 17.
  • Kalamazoo Central pulled off a tight win over Loy Norrix, 59-58. The Maroon Giants looked like they might pull away in this one early as they held a 13-point lead after one quarter of play but the Knights battled back. Central was led by a balanced scoring attack in Hutch Ward (21 points and 10 rebounds), JP Spybrook (15 points) and Terrance Jones (11 points). Cedric Huntley finished with 22 points on the night to lead Loy Norrix. Taveon Vaughn had 14. Justin Proctor added 12. Central moves to 11-2 and 4-1 in the SMAC East.
  • North Muskegon pulled out a tight battle over Oakridge, 43-40. The Norse move to 11-2 on the year. Both defenses really settled in in this one to make things very difficult for the others offenses. Troy McManus was solid for the Norse with 10 points and 6 rebounds. Lamarkis Graham chipped in 10 points and 6 rebounds.Peyton Ruel was big for the Eagles with 16 points on the night. North Muskegon moves to 11-2 overall and 4-2 in conference.

1/31/23

  • Caledonia put together a big OT period to grab a win over Forest Hills Northern, 51-43. The win will move the Fighting Scots to 5-7 on the season.
  • Coopersville put together an incredible defensive effort in their win over Kenowa Hills, defeating the Knights 54-25. The Broncos will look to see if they can do it again Friday night when they take on Spring Lake. Kenowa Hills will look to bounce back when they take on Ottawa Hills.
  • Frankenmuth fell to Flint Hamady, 59-75. The Eagles will have to respond in a hurry as they take on a tough Bridgeport team in their next game. Frankenmuth put together a solid comeback but wouldn’t be able to get much going by way of offense late. Riley Hubbard led the Eagles with 16 points and 4 steals. Travis Brenner added 12 points. Aidan Hoard chipped in 11 points and 5 rebounds. Amari’Yunn Blythe led Hamady with 19 points.
  • Kalamazoo Christian lost on the road at Battle Creek Lakeview, 58-62. The Comets fall to 7-5 on the season. With the win the Spartans improve to 10-3.Christian will take on Hackett on Friday night. Lakeview will take on Battle Creek Central in their next outing.
  • Fremont was able to knock off Grant, 65-56. Holding a big lead heading into the 4th quarter, the Packers were able to get over some sloppy play to hold off the Tigers. Jordon McDonald led the way for the Packers with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Gavin Richards ended the night with 12 points and 9 rebounds. Chaz Miller did nearly everything for Fremont to finish the night with 10 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals. The Packers have now four games in a row and improve their overall record to 8-3 and 3-3 in conference. They would welcome in a very good Ludington team on Friday.
  • Grand Rapids Christian put together a big win, defeating Grandville 62-39. Dono Thames and Jaylan Ouwinga both led the Eagles with 16 points apiece who are now 9-3. Tyson Mann finished with 12 for the Bulldogs. They will be back in action on Friday to take on Byron Center. The Bulldogs will look to end a 2-game losing streak when they take on Holland West Ottawa in their next outing.
  • Grandville would survive a scare from West Ottawa, knocking off the Panthers 43-35. With the win the Bulldogs stay atop the OK Red. West Ottawa will fall to 3-12. Tyson Mann scored all of his 16 points in the 2nd half to lead Grandville. Cameron Regerus added 12 points.
  • Hamilton grabbed their 7th win in a row as they knocked off Byron Center, 58-51. They improve to 12-2 on the season. JD DeGroot (17 points) and Brady Tebo (15 points) led the Hawkeyes.The loss will move the Bulldogs to 7-6. Ben Heagle (14 points) and Austin Buckley (11 points) paced the Bulldogs.
  • Hart would move to 14-0 on the season as they picked up a 62-45 win over White Cloud on Tuesday. Parker Hovey led all scorers with 32 points for the Pirates. The loss moves the Indians to 7-6. Hart will look to see if they can continue to keep the win column growing when they take on Shelby in their next game. White Cloud will look to end a 2-game skid when they welcome in Newaygo.
  • Hopkins put together a big win over Saugatuck, 56-29. The Bulldogs will put their 3-game winning streak on the line when they face Sparta on Friday. The Trailblazers will need to respond fast as they would take on Gobles the following night.
  • Kalamazoo Hackett Catholic Prep couldn’t pull off the win over South Haven, falling to the Rams 41-44. The Irish would look to bounce back when they face Kalamazoo Christian on Friday.
  • Lowell ended a 3-game losing streak to improve to 7-6 on the season, defeating Allendale 63-59. The Red Arrows will look to see if they can keep it going when they take on a tough Northview team on Friday.Things won’t get much easier for the Tigers as they face a stiff test in the Hamilton Hawkeyes in their next outing.
  • Mattawan came away with a hard fought road win over West Catholic, 63-51. Noah Vanlaningham (18 points) and Connor Walsh (18 points) both led the way for the Wildcats. Ryan Kiesling was big in every facet with 14 points, 16 rebounds and 2 blocks. Mattawan now sits at 12-1 on the season.
  • Montague pulled out a gritty win on the road over Mason County Central, 63-60. Owen Raeth was big on the night to lead the Wildcats with 15 points. Isaiah Atchison put together a solid performance with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 6 blocks. Owen Peterson finished with 11 points and 6 rebounds. Paul Olson added 11 points. The win improves Montague to 8-5. The Spartans now sit at 10-3. Central had a chance to tie this one up late but missed with just under 14.8 seconds left in the game. Jayden Perrone (22 points, and 2 steals) and Will Chye (20 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 steals) led the Spartans.
  • Muskegon Catholic Central put together a win over Byron Center Zion Christian, 47-42. Owen Lyonnais led the Crusaders with 12 points, 8 coming in the 4th quarter. Braden Gustin finished with 11 points.
  • Newaygo was off and running to knock off Holton, 69-44. Bryce Decker put together a great night with 30 points. Brodrick Fialek led the Red Devils with 19 points and 6 rebounds. Carter Brant pitched in with 12 points and 7 assists.
  • Otsego dominated Gull Lake, 75-55. Blake Marks had a monster night for the Bulldogs with 18 points.
  • Ottawa Hills dropped Plainwell, 85-58. Isaiah Bradford had a monster night going for 30 points and 7 rebounds for the Tigers. Craig Hureskin added 17 points. Quadir Hatchett finished with 11.
  • Parchment fell on the road to Watervliet, 45-57. Parchment trailed this one 30-15 at the break and couldn’t overcome it in the 2nd half. Parchment drops to 9-5 on the season. Watervliet now sits at 12-1 as they currently ride a 5-game win streak. Darius Baker led Parchment with 15 points.
  • Portage Central lost a close matchup to Marshall, 49-52.
  • Wayland was able to end a 5-game losing streak in their win over Holland, defeating the Dutch 74-56. The win will move the Wildcats to 7-6 (2-5 in conference). Brett Bultsma (24 points) and Kaharrie Pureifoy (16 points) were both big in the win. Jacob VanHekken and his game-leading 32 points weren’t enough to help the Dutch get the win. Holland will look to get off a tough losing streak when take take on Mona Shores in their next outing.
  • Whitehall cruised to a win over Mona Shores, 82-69. Sophomore Camden Thompson had a big game for the Vikings with 31 points, 15 rebounds, 3 blocks and 3 steals. Trannon Aylor put together a great night with 24 points. To lead the Sailors was Mason Hallett who finished the night with 19 points. Ryan Opsommer was solid with 13 points, 6 assists and 3 steals.
  • Wyoming defeated Holland Christian, 73-60. The win moves the Wolves to 5-8 on the season. The Maroons will drop to 4-10. Wyoming will looks to see if they can continue their momentum when they travel to Grand Rapids Union. Holland Christian will take on a Fruitport team that is playing solid basketball when they take the court again in their next game.

2/2/23

  • Kalamazoo Central celebrated Senior Night on Thursday and defeated Gull Lake, 72-46. Hutch Ward put in a huge night to finish with 33 points (5 three-pointers) and 15 rebounds.Terranace Jones had a big night of his own with 15 points. The Maroon Giants now sit at 12-2 on the season. They would have a quick turnaround the following day when they take on Detroit Renaissance in the 2K23 Showcase.

2/3/23

  • Byron Center picked up a win over Grand Rapids Christian, 50-43. In what was a big upset, Austin Buckley led the Bulldogs with 18 points on the night.
  • Calvin Christian picks up their 12th win a row as they defeat Belding, 66-21. They now sit at 13-2 on the season.
  • Forest Hills Central earned a big road win Friday night by defeating Forest Hills Northern, 74-37. The win moves the Rangers to 5-2 in conference play. Jonas Vanderwoude led the way for Central with 16 points on the night. Jake Koning and Quincy Henry both added 10 points apiece. Ty Hudkins was big on the defensive side with 7 steals in the game.
  • Frankenmuth would fall in a heart breaker to Bridgeport, 44-43. The Eagles didn’t shoot the ball well in this one but their defense led by 25 forced turnovers kept them in the game. Carson Knoll had a big night for Frankenmuth with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 6 steals. Zalyn Martin led the Bearcats with 10 points.
  • Galesburg-August put together a solid win over Saugatuck, 56-50. The Rams are now 13-2 on the year. With the loss the Trailblazers fall to 9-5.
  • Grand Haven pulled off a wild game over Rockford, 52-51. The win completes the sweep of the Rams this season. Harrison Sorrelle knocked down two big FT’s and a Rockford shot that just missed helped Grand Haven put together a big win. Sorrelle, a Mr. Basketball candidate, finished with 27 points for the Bucs who are now 12-3 overall and 5-3 in the OK Red. Michael DeKuiper finished with 13 points for the Rams.
  • Grand Rapids Catholic Central Friday night was the scene of Grand Rapids Catholic Central taking on Thornapple-Kellogg. The game started as all expected with the Cougars coming out hot and stepping big on the defensive side. The Trojans were held to 19 total points in the 1st half while GRCC scored 19 in the 1st quarter. The half time score had CC up big, 44-19. Th 3rd quarter saw more of the high-powered offense on the Cougar sideline putting up 24 more points and holding TK to 10. At the end of 3, 68-29 Catholic Central. The 4th quarter was slow offensively for CC, but their lead sustained early propelled them to the win 73-43. Phat Phat Brooks led the way with 20 points and right behind him was his running mate KK Brown with 19 points. TK was led by Draaisma with 16 points.
  • Hackett Prep put together an impressive win over Kalamazoo Christian, 65-51. They’ll look to grab another a week from now when they take on a solid Schoolcraft squad. The Comets will have the task of taking on a Covenant Christian team who has been impressive on the season.
  • Hart beat Shelby, 63-38.
  • Hamilton would need OT to get past Allendale as they would survive, 47-42. Justin McIllwain was a problem all night as he finished 13-14 from the FT line. Brant Goodpaster added 12 points. The Hawkeyes now sit at 13-2 on the season.
  • Holland would hold on for a win over Mona Shores, 65-57. The Dutch found themselves up big at the half but the Sailors would make a big comeback to make this one tight. JT Foster led Mona Shores with 21 points and 7 rebounds. Ryan Opsommer finished with 13 points and 5 assists. Mason Hallett added 13 points. Jacob VanHekken was big for the Dutch with 15 points. Cameron Ferguson chipped in 11 points. Josiah Van Hekken added 10 points.
  • Kent City grinded out a win over Chippewa Hills, 49-37. In what was a tie game at the half, the Eagles were able to put together a big 3rd quarter to hold off the Warriors.
  • Lowell pulled off a thrilling win over Northview, 51-50. The win improves the Red Arrows to 7-6 on the season. With the loss the Wildcats move to 12-2.The Cats were led by freshman Cam Ryans with 23 points. Sophomore Brady Swartz added 13. Ben Gaskin led Lowell with 21 points (5 three-pointers). Drew Veldman was big with 16.
  • Ludington put together an impressive win over Fremont, 64-48. After losing their first game of the season on Monday, the Orioles (14-1) bounced back in a big way. With the loss the Packers will fall to 8-5. Ludington will have a week off before they take on Oakridge in a week. Fremont looks to get over this one in a hurry as they take on Muskegon Heights on Monday.
  • Mattawan knocked off Portage Central on Snowcoming, 65-45. Ryan Kiesling was sensational on the night to lead the Wildcats with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists. Ryan Van Liere finished with 13 points. Noah Vanlaningham added 13 points and 5 rebounds.
  • Muskegon grabbed a win over Reeths-Puffer, 69-34. The Big Red had everything going in this one as they held a 52-26 lead after three quarters of play.
  • Otsego improved to 12-1 on the season after their win over Niles, 61-38. The Bulldogs would have a quick turnaround as they would take on Grand Rapids Union the following day.
  • Ottawa Hills beat Kenowa Hills, 56-30. Derrick King Jr. was big on the night for the Bengals with 24 points (5 three-pointers). Isaiah Bradford finished with 16 points. Willie Duke added 10. Ottawa Hills improves to 10-6 and are now 6-2 overall in the OK Gold.
  • North Muskegon got off to a quick start en route to a 58-40 win over Mason County Central. Troy McManus led the Norse with 19 points on the night. Jaxon Lisinski added 14 points. Will Chye was dominate for the Spartans to lead them with 21 points. Jayden Perrone added 10 points. North Muskegon is now 12-2 overall and 5-2 in conference play. They travel to West Michigan Aviation on Tuesday.
  • Paw Paw bounced back to pick up a win over Vicksburg, 61-56. The Red Wolves had a balanced attack on the night as Ashton Toliver (17 points), Troy Vandenberg (14 points), Truman Brennan (10 points) and Aydn Roth all had big nights.
  • Ravenna put together an impressive win over Holton, 56-30. Caleb Forsythe led the Bulldogs with 17 points and 6 assists. Carter Schullo had a big night with 15 points and 16 rebounds. Brodrick Fialek finished with 12 points for the Red Devils.
  • South Christian knocked off Forest Hills Eastern, 73-61. Jake DeHaan (25 points) and Sam Medenorp (17 points) led the way for the Sailors who improve to 12-3 on the season.
  • West Michigan Aviation picked up a win over Muskegon Catholic Central, 67-46. Bryan Convertini was solid for the Crusaders with 10 points on the night. The Aviators were really able to take control of the game in the 2nd quarter as they outscored Catholic Central 25-8 to take a 41-24 halftime lead.
  • White Cloud pulled off a thrilling OT win over Newaygo, 64-62. The Indians will face Holton on Tuesday. The Lions will head to Big Rapids Crossroads Academy on Monday to take on the Cougars.
  • Whitehall dropped a tough game to Covenant Christian, 71-75. The biggest difference in this one was the Chargers getting to the FT line as they went 23-28 on the night. They were able to force the Vikings into 18 turnovers in the game. Camden Thompson was solid again to lead Whitehall with 22 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assists and 4 blocks. Jack Houtteman finished with 14 points. DJ Jamison added 11 points and 2 steals.
  • Zeeland West would prevail in their rivalry game over Zeeland East, as they would defeat the Chix 56-53. Myles Steffen (19 points) and Merritt Alderink (16 points) led the way for the Dux.Orion Yant notched 12 points and 10 rebounds. West improves to 11-3. Layne Risdon finished with 17 for East. BJ Walker added 11 while Will Baker helped with 10.