Boys Basketball- So Far…

By Ken DeLaat

Our coverage teams have had mixed success in the early season The Tigers are undefeated and sharing the division lead with Big Rapids and the Cloud has won without a consistent offense. Newaygo still has a lot to prove and Fremont?  Well, the Packers have some winnable games ahead and can only improve with experience.

Grant (5-0, 2-0 CSAA Red)
Anyone else see this coming besides Coach George? Phillips, DeLong, Rider, Hatch, and the rest of the Tiger crew have been ice hot, rolling over opponents with a fast paced offense and stifling defense. Their last game, a win over Kent City, was the first time an opponent came within 10 points. After watching their girls team get throttled in the rivalry series against Newaygo the boys dismantled the Lions in a game that was over by halftime. Can the team keep it going?
Well, if they keep on averaging over 70 a game they are going to be tough to beat.
Mark Jan. 17 on your calendar. They will host Big Rapids, the other contender in the title race, and if they knock off the Cardinals it will be tough to see anyone stopping them from securing some hardware at season’s end.

White Cloud (6-2, 1-1 CSAA White)
Coach Jones’ team puts a formidable defense on the court every game. 
A good thing because there are nights when his offense seems to be struggling to get points. In their 6 wins they are averaging just under 50 a game. Not bad, but not enough against some of the better teams. The average in their two losses? 35 points.
Their offense caught fire in the title game at the Holton Tourney with a season high 61. Maybe it’s the traction the offense needed but the schedule ahead should show whether they can be contenders for the White Division title. Cruzan and Robinson can get hot while Canning, Strait, Zimmer, et.al. can put points in the book as well. With three games next week, including a Friday night home tilt against division rival Kent City, they will be facing teams who score a bunch of points. The defense will hold but the shots are going to need to fall with more consistency if they are going to continue their winning ways.

Newaygo (4-3, 2-1 CSAA Red)
Coach Long’s squad has been a bit up and down in the early part of the season.
Statistically enigmatic, they have lost by an average of 28 points and won by an average of 15.
Of course the opponents in those games have a lot to do with this. The Lions have struggled against the better teams on their schedule and are able to run away from the less talented squads. Reyburn, Kerr, Yearsovich and Miedema provide most of the offense so far and the defense isn’t shabby if you toss out the Grant game. After opening the new year with a winnable home game against Montague on Tuesday they have to travel to Big Rapids Friday. The matchup with the division leading Cardinals will reveal if the Grant game was just a blip in the season or a sign that the Lions haven’t got what it takes to contend in the Red.

Fremont (2-6, 1-3 WMC Lakes)
Talk about your rebuilding years. The Packers graduated their entire starting 5 plus a couple of key bench players and Coach Powell is guiding a squad with little varsity experience and few consistent shooters. 
No wonder they are taking their lumps. Outside of a 71 point performance over a Montague team that has no defense, they are averaging less than 50 a game. Their 2 wins came against teams with a combined 2-12 mark in the early season. Powell  and Green got help in that Montague game, but that needs to happen when facing a tougher defense.
In this basketball crazy town it looks to be a long season, but the experience gained will hopefully set the stage for future success. After a trip to Kent City they face 2 muscle teams in Whitehall and Big Rapids. Both are at home  and unless Coach Powell can find some magic it doesn’t look like it’s going to be pretty for the Packer faithful.