Class C and D Semifinal Preview

Well, championship weekend is here.These young men have worked hard and made strides towards this goal from the point they started to dribble a

Well, championship weekend is here.These young men have worked hard and made strides towards this goal from the point they started to dribble a basketball.It’s time to put up or shut up.I could give 50 more clichés about how important these games are, but we all understand the gravity of the situation.Today I will focus on Class C and Class D, tomorrow on Class A and Class B, profiling all the semifinal games.

Class D

Cedarville vs. Lawrence (Thursday 6pm)

Cedarville has really played well the past couple of seasons.Last year, they made it to the semifinals before falling to eventual champion Muskegon Western Michigan Christian.Head coach David Duncan has his team back to the Breslin and ready to battle again.They won the state title in 2007 and played in the semi finals in 2006.6’4” senior C.J. Paquin has over 500 points (523) on the season and 251 rebounds as the team’s leader.He will need a good game to get Cedarville into the championship.They are the only team from the UP still standing.

Lawrence has a big man of their own.Shayne Wittington is their 6’10” senior center.He has taken and made more shots than anyone else on the team.During the season, he blocked 79 shots.When you are that big and play in Class D, it’s not very often you see someone of your size.Mike Salvano has been in this position before; last year they won a quarterfinal game and played at the Breslin.There is no one on Cedarville’s team that can match the size of Wittington, so expect Coach Salvano to exploit his size advantage, pushing the ball down low and letting him post up.

Muskegon Western Michigan Christian vs. Sterling Heights Parkway Christian (Thursday 7:50pm)

Last season, WMC pulled out a 58-57 win over Detroit City to get that Michigan shaped trophy.This isn’t the first dance for 30 year veteran coach Jim Goorman.He’s won multiple state championships (three) and knows a bit about the sport.The team has size.Most of them are 6’0 or taller.Ironically, the guy with the most points for the season is 5’8” guard London Burris.Hopefully the sophomore will be making more trips to the Breslin Center over the rest of his high school basketball career.

Sterling Heights Parkway Christian may be a newer school, but their coach Jim Barker has certainly been around the block in his 36 years of coaching.Their two big scorers are forward Zurlon Tipton (6’1”) and center John Talos (6’6”).They also account for most of the rebounds.Size-wise, SHPC matches up pretty well with WMC.If they can contain London Burris, they should have a good chance to make the first finals in their school history.

Class C

Melvindale Academy for Business & Tech vs. McBain (Thursday 1pm)

It’s not very often that a school like Melvindale ABT makes it this far in the tournament.Michael Talley has his team playing very well.Although he’s only been at it for three years, he has compiled a good record.Talley didn’t take the easy road and scheduled some good games during the season.The Gators have good size and Michael Talley III should be able get the ball to forward KeVonte Foley (6’3”) for quality scoring opportunities.

McBain has come through another season without double digit losses.The last time they lost 10 games was back in the 98/99 season.6’4” center Trenton Boeve did much of the damage, scoring 271 points and pulling down 131 rebounds in his 20 games.Coach Bruce Koopman, a McBain graduate in his 15th season as coach, already has one state title (02) and plenty of district and conference championships in his pocket.They will need to shut down the potent offense of ABT in order to have a chance.

Montague vs. Schoolcraft (Thursday 2:50pm)

The Wildcats of Montague, coming in with a 23-2 record, are ready to play.Second year Coach Dave Osborne has a fantastic record so far in his young career.His team had a sparkling 14-0 conference record this season.Cody Kater and Matt DeJong, names you might remember from football season, are starters on the basketball team as well.Center Michael Mack is a monster in the middle at 6’8” with 270 points and 218 rebounds on the season.With a starting lineup of big and athletic players, it will be difficult for Schoolcraft to match up consistently without wearing down.

Coach Randy Small of Schoolcraft marched his team through his regular season and into the playoffs.None of the games were very close until the quarterfinals against Grandville Calvin Christian (it went into two overtime periods).Luckily, Schoolcraft has their own 6’8” center in Mike Betcher.The starting lineup is pretty big with the exception of sophomore guard Kody Chandler (5’9”).This team should match up with the big squad of Montague, but can they stay with them the whole game?