GULL LAKE — Three Rivers’ boys’ basketball team hung in with Gull Lake early Tuesday night, but ultimately dropped their first game of the second half of the season to the Blue Devils, 77-59.
Gull Lake led 19-12 at the end of the first quarter and 35-26 at the half. The Blue Devils’ lead expanded to 58-42 at the end of the third quarter.
Jace Gray led the Wildcats with 17 points on a perfect shooting night, going 7-for-7 from the field and 2-for-2 from the free throw line, while adding two assists and two rebounds. Heston Saunders had eight points and five rebounds, Zander Barth had eight points, two assists and eight rebounds, and Alijah Ballentine added eight points and two rebounds.
Kai Watts of Gull Lake led all scorers with 26 points on the evening.
Sturgis remains winless after holiday tourney
PARMA — The Sturgis Trojans, seeking their first win of the season, recently played in the Parma Western Holiday Tournament. Battle Creek Lakeview did not cooperate, as the Spartans soundly defeated Sturgis, 63-21.
Grady Miller put in 10 points to pace the Trojans, and Gavyn Moore and Lukis Bir both tallied three points. The loss dropped Sturgis to 0-7.
In the consolation game, Sturgis faced off against host Parma Western. Although the outcome didn’t favor the Trojans, the final score showed that Sturgis battled hard to the final buzzer. The Panthers came up with a 47-38 victory. Gavyn Moore led the Trojan effort, scoring 15 points. Grady Miller dropped in six points, followed by Carson Eicher and Gibson Cary, who had five points each.
Sturgis will travel to Vicksburg on Jan. 12 in an effort to secure its first win of the season. Tip-off is slated for 7:15 p.m.
White Pigeon wins rivalry contest against Constantine, loses to Hartford
WHITE PIGEON — The White Pigeon boys squared off against county rival Constantine Friday, and the Chiefs got the better of the Falcons, 61-45.
“I thought the boys played pretty good for having two weeks off,” Chiefs coach Shawn Strawser said. “We were a little rusty in some areas, but overall, it was a good effort against a scrappy Constantine team.”
Jordan Pisco paced the White Pigeon offense, popping in a game high 18 points. Wes Roberts and Josh Davidson both hit for double figures for the winners, with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Ty Strawser chipped in with 9 points and 3 assists. The Falcons were led by Isaac Moore, who tied for game high honors, scoring 18 points. Josh Outlaw recorded 10 points, and Caleb Bontrager tossed in 8 points.
Roberts yanked down 11 rebounds for the winners, Pisco grabbed 6 missed shots, and Davidson had 3 rebounds. Pisco also had 3 steals. “Wes had his best game of the year and was a real force on the inside. I’m proud of the way he played,” added Strawser.
Constantine moved to 2-5 with the loss.
The White Pigeon boys hosted Hartford on Tuesday evening, and the visiting Indians returned home with a close 68-63 win. Josh Davidson tied game-high scoring honors, firing in 23 points. Teammate Jordan Pisco wasn’t far behind, as he put 20 points in the scorebook. Wesley Roberts hit double figures in both scoring and rebounding for the Chiefs, with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Pisco grabbed eight rebounds, and Davidson had three steals.
Hartford had a 20-shot advantage at the free throw line, connecting on 23-31 shots, while White Pigeon was 8-11 from the charity stripe.
“We were in foul trouble the whole game,” Chief’s coach Shawn Strawser said. “We didn’t play all that well, and we just couldn’t play the way we’re used to playing.” The loss snaps the Chief’s five game winning streak. White Pigeon now sits at 6-3 overall, 4-2 in Southwest league play.
White Pigeon will travel to Bloomingdale on January 12th to play the Cardinals. Gametime is slated for 7:30 p.m.
Mendon drops contest to Quincy
QUINCY — The Mendon boys faced off against host Quincy on Monday evening and dropped a 56-46 decision.
“It was a tough loss on the road against a solid team,” stated Mendon coach Danny Schragg. The Hornets dropped to 4-6 with the loss.
“We kept it close all game but had trouble scoring consistently after the first quarter. We had two starters in foul trouble, which hurt us, but our bench played strong and kept us in the game,” said Schragg. “We played a lot better tonight, took care of the ball, but came up short in the end.”
Quincy Blair had a strong game for Mendon, scoring 17 points, grabbing nine rebounds, and coming up with two steals, while Owen Gorham added 11 points and five rebounds.
Also for the Hornets, Brayden Crites connected for nine points and pulled down seven rebounds, and Ryder Gorham notched six points, dished out nine assists, and added three rebounds. Jack McCaw rounded out the Mendon effort with three points and three steals.
The Hornets hosted the Burr Oak Bobcats on Wednesday. Coincidentally, Schragg is a former head coach of the Bobcats.
Howardsville winning streak snapped in close contest
HOWARDSVILLE — Howardsville Christian’s winning streak in boys’ basketball continued early last week, but came to an end Tuesday night.
On Friday, the Eagles defeated St. Joseph Michigan Lutheran 61-57 to extend their winning streak to seven games, and improve to 7-1 on the year. Both teams were undefeated in BCS Conference play coming into that game. Colin Muldoon had 23 points to lead the team, with John Paul Rose adding 19 and Kaden Sparks and Dylan Muldoon adding six points each.
“I really wanted this win to start the new year because I believe this team will be our toughest conference opponent,” head coach Ken Sparks said. “I also think they may be the next hardest team on our schedule after our season opener with Division 2 Parchment. It’s what we needed going into the bulk of the season.”
On Tuesday, the Eagles dropped just their second game of the year, losing 65-64 against St. Joseph Our Lady of the Lake. Rose scored 26 points, Kaden Sparks added 18 points, and Colin Muldoon chipped in with 14 points. Owen McLaughlin of Our Lady of the Lake scored 35 points to lead all scorers, and continue his team’s undefeated conference record.
Howardsville is now 7-2 overall, with a 4-1 record in the BCS.
Vicksburg victorious over Portage Northern
PORTAGE — On Tuesday, Vicksburg’s boys’ basketball team eared a 71-53 win against Portage Northern in a road contest.
Carter Brown led the Bulldogs with 18 points on the evening, while Jordan Diekman added 14 points and Gabe Ryder and Mitch Beyer added 13 points each.
Amari Lewis was the leading scorer for the Huskies, scoring 12 points.
Constantine drops game to Allegan
ALLEGAN — Constantine’s boys’ basketball team continued their losing streak, dropping a 57-41 decision to Allegan Tuesday.
No stats were reported for the game.
Burr Oak romps Jackson Christian
JACKSON — The Burr Oak boys had three players in double figures Monday night, enroute to a 53-28 win over host Jackson Christian. The victory improves the Bobcat’s record to 7-2.
Garrett Johnson led the way, scoring 15 points, with Braxton Boyles not far behind, adding 14. Austin Cole also hit double digits, tossing in 10 points. Rounding out the scoring for Burr Oak was Ethan Boyles with six points, Kaynen Ledyard and Luis Gutierrez with three points each, and Camrin Hagen with two. “We were able to capitalize off of our press, and our defense came up big with 23 steals,” stated Burr Oak head coach Ryan VanDosen.
Austin Cole totaled seven steals, while brother Kayden Cole had six thefts to his credit. Ethan Boyles and Kaynen Ledyard had three steals each, and Johnson added two. Braxton Boyles and Hagin both recorded one steal in the win. Johnson and Austin Cole were the leading rebounders for the Bobcats, with seven each, followed by Braxton Boyles and Kaynen Ledyard, who both grabbed five missed shots. Ethan Boyles had two rebounds, while Hagin and K. Cole both added one.
Rounding out the stats for Burr Oak, Kayden Cole and Austin Cole both had five assists, and Braxton Boyles, Ethan Boyles, Kaynen Ledyard and Hagin all chipped in with one assist each. Braxton Boyles and Austin Cole also added one blocked shot in the victory.
The Bobcats were in Mendon on Jan. 10 to take on the Hornets.
Fourth quarter propels Cassopolis past Marcellus
MARCELLUS — Marcellus hung in with Cassopolis through three quarters Tuesday, but it was not enough to defeat the Rangers, losing 71-53 at home.
Cassopolis led the Wildcats 16-15 after the first quarter, 32-29 at the half, and 49-45 after three quarters. However, a 22-8 advantage for the Rangers put them over the top in the final stanza.
Beau Ferguson had 20 points to lead Marcellus, while Nathan Mihills had nine points and Parker Adams added eight points and seven rebounds.
Colon drops OT contest to Union City
COLON — In a game that went to overtime, The Union City Chargers outlasted the Colon Magi, 48-47.
The game was close the entire way, with both teams scoring 26 points in the first half, and Union City holding a one-point lead after three quarters.
“It was a very competitive game, but we came up just a little shy in the end,” Colon coach Steve Vinson said, “Nic (Mock) got into some foul trouble, and he’s our second leading scorer. He had to sit for half the game and losing that point production hurts.”
Dalton Williams paced the Colon effort with 16 points, Kyle Muntain added 12 points, and Nic Mock booked 11 points. Maverick Downs totaled six points for the Magi, and Colin Trattles finished with two points. Payne led the winners with 13 points, followed by Austin and Decker, both with nine points. Snyder tallied seven points for the Chargers, while Shoop added six points. Hughes rounded out Union City scoring with four points.
Vinson also added that “Overall, I’m proud of our guys, and I’m very happy with how this team is progressing,”
The Magi host Bellevue on Parent Night January 12th. Gametime is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.