As the greatest weekend in sports draws to a close, I get to look forward to next weekend and the High School Basketball State Finals. That’s right people, its finals week here as each class in the MHSAA will have a champion by Saturday night. It all begins with 16 Quarterfinal games tomorrow night. Let’s get to the predictions.
Class A
Rockford vs Okemos
This game will be played at a familiar site for Okemos (Lansing Eastern) and I just don’t think the Rams are that good this season. Okemos rolls on to the semis for the first time since Jonathan Jones took them to the finals in 2006.
Detroit Pershing vs Romulus
This is a matchup of 2 of the top 3 teams remaining in Class A. Pershing is the more talented team, with the D1 back court and tougher tests up to this point. But they have a tendency to come out flat and take some very bad shots, and they don’t have Keith Appling there anymore to score 49 for them. Romulus is very talented themselves, but they have little to no discipline and I think you have to have some in this time of the year to advance. I will go with Pershing in a close one. The winner of this game should be playing in the Finals on Saturday.
Orchard Lake SM vs Saginaw
The 23-2 Saginaw team vs the 14-10 average Catholic school league team. If OLSM is within 10 something went very wrong for Saginaw.
Lake Orion vs L’Anse Creuse North
This game is tough to pick because they are both barely average. Hopefully Saginaw can keep their run going so neither of these teams sniff the finals on Saturday. I will go with L’Anse Creuse in this one because they have beat tougher competition so far in the tourney.
Class B
GR Christian vs Stevensville Lakeshore
This one should be a pretty competitive game tomorrow night. Both teams have some very talented players, but SL plays in a tougher conference and is better defensively. I will take them in a low scoring game.
Cadillac vs Muskegon Heights
Heights might not be as good as they have been in years past, but they are head and shoulders more athletic than their Cadillac counterparts. They haven’t had a close game yet in the playoffs. I think this one will be under 20, but the Tigers still move on to the Brez.
Goodrich vs Detroit Country Day
Country Day has been playing their best basketball over the past month of the season. They are probably the 2nd best team left in Class B. They should roll over Goodrich to get back to the Breslin for the 3rd year in a row. The problem here will be that they will run into the best team in the state regardless of class in the semi finals.
Lansing Sexton vs Dearborn Heights Robichaud
The real question here is that can Sexton keep winning by 40? Or, how soon does papa Valentine take out his son and the rest of the starters? Sexton wins big.
Class C
Flint Beecher vs River Rouge
River Rouge lost some close games this year and also played some top notch talent in bigger classes. Their record is not as impressive as Beecher’s. Beecher has the best player in the class to go with the best overall team. Something tells me that Money Monte will not stop until he leads his team to the Class C championship.
Pewamo-Westphalia vs Schoolcraft
Schoolcraft is still the defending Class C champions, at least for another couple of days. Pewamo-Westphalia is the 2nd best Class C team remaining. Luke Ryskamp will have to have a huge night to overcome Pewamo’s depth. I think the Pirates are too much, and another champion will be crowned in this class.
Negaunee vs Traverse City St. Francis
The UP teams are fun to root for in Class D, but they usually have no chance of competing in Class C. I don’t the Miners are as good as in years past, and I really cant see them beating Coach Haskins and their 6’9” William & Mary commit tomorrow night. The Crusaders move on to the semi finals in basketball… maybe they are more than just a football school.
Shelby vs New Haven
I picked against New Haven in the last game vs Nouvel, and I don’t think I should do it again. Shelby has some talent, but I don’t think they have enough to match New Haven. This should set up a very exciting semifinal matchup Thursday afternoon.
Class D
Bellaire vs Muskegon Catholic Central
Another standard football power is surprising people on the hardwood here as well (MCC and TCSF). Fulton knocked off the Class D favorite (Tri-Unity) last Monday, then MCC turned around and knocked off the new favorite for the championship. Does this make MCC the new favorite? I doubt it. 1 loss Bellaire should move on.
Southfield Christian vs Saginaw Michigan Lutheran Seminary
Will SC be a little rusty for not playing in over a week? It is possible, but I think they are vastly more talented than SMLS. Southfield has 4 all state guards, and I think the high pressure defense will get to the over matched SMLS. Plus, I want to see 3 Lindsay Hunters on one team. J
Allen Park Inter-City Baptist vs Climax Scotts
C-S just won their first regional title in a long team, even though they are nearly undefeated every season. This year they actually have some size and athleticism down low to win 3 games this week. I am not sure if they can get to the finals, but I think they will be at least making the trek to the Brez on Thursday.
Carney-Nadeau vs Pellston
Pellston hasn’t been this far in quite some time, but Chris Haas has finally turned into a leader and not just a scorer. I think he will lead his team into the semis on Thursday. The 2 Class D semifinal matchups are looking very intriguing right now.
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