Five boys district basketball openers involving West Michigan Conference teams were played Monday night.
Here is a roundup of the action from March 6, 2023:
DIVISION 2 AT BIG RAPIDS
BIG RAPIDS 62, LUDINGTON 61: Ludington lost a district-opening heartbreaker against a tough Big Rapids squad on the Cardinals’ home court, as Gage Jones’ 3-point attempt from the top of the key at the buzzer rimmed in and out.
Ludington rallied from a seven-point deficit early in the fourth quarter to take a 60-57 lead with 2:40 remaining. Big Rapids’ Mason Dunn answered with a 3 to tie the game at 60. With 49 seconds left, Owen Gammons scored his lone basket of the game to put Big Rapids up 62-60. Ludington’s Matthew Westhouse split a pair of free throws with 9 seconds left to pull the Orioles with a point. Ludington fouled and Jack Ruggles missed the front end of a one-and-one, giving the Orioles a shot to win it.
David Shillinger led Ludington (20-3), co-champion of the WMC Lakes Division, with 15 points. Westhouse scored 14 and Jones 13.
Dawson Dunn paced Big Rapids with a game-high 19 points, while Karlito McKinney had 14. Big Rapids (20-2) advances to Wednesday’s 5:30 p.m. district semifinal against Hart (22-0), which defeated the Cardinals 92-84 Dec. 15 at Hart.
DIVISION 2 AT FRUITPORT
FRUITPORT 48, MONTAGUE 35: District host Fruitport jumped on Montague 17-8 in the first quarter and built a 28-16 halftime lead en route to the first-round victory. Montague defeated Fruitport early in the season, 47-39 Dec. 13 at Montague, but the Wildcats have been shorthanded in their last few games.
Owen Raeth and Cortland Schneider paced Montague with seven points apiece, while Rodney Brassfield scored six and Hunter Osborne five. Raeth and Schneider also had five rebounds each. Brassfield grabbed 10 rebounds to go with two assists, while Isaiah Atchison had nine rebounds and had two blocks. Montague finishes its season with a 12-11 record.
Grade Anspach paced Fruitport with 12 points, four rebounds and three steals. DayDay Williams and Andrew Sypke scored 10 points apiece for the Trojans (14-9), who face WMC Lakes co-champion Whitehall (17-5) in Wednesday’s 7 p.m. district semifinals. Whitehall defeated Fruitport early in the season, 57-53 on Dec. 9 at Whitehall.
OAKRIDGE 76, ORCHARD VIEW 54: Oakridge completed a three-game season sweep of neighboring rival Orchard View with the first-round district victory. The Eagles jumped on the Cardinals early, taking a 23-7 first-quarter lead and extending the margin to 42-19 by halftime.
Matt Danicek led Oakridge with 21 points, while Peyton Ruel scored 15 and dished six assists. Ty Maitland and Evan Jozsa grabbed nine and eight rebounds, respectively, while Ryan Cribbins added four assists for the Eagles.
Oakridge (11-12) advances to face Spring Lake (12-8) in Wednesday’s 5:30 p.m. district semifinal. This is the first meeting of the season for the Eagles and Lakers.
No stats were submitted for Orchard View, which finishes its season 2-21.
DIVISION 3 AT HOLTON
RAVENNA 52, WESTERN MICHIGAN CHRISTIAN 49: Four days after Ravenna beat Western Michigan Christian by 10 points (44-34) in the regular-season finale at home, the Bulldogs pulled out a tight district-opening victory against the Warriors.
Caleb Forsythe led Ravenna with 19 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals. Carter Schullo had 12 points, seven rebounds and two steals. Blake Homoly added nine points, four rebounds, five assists and five steals for the Bulldogs. Hunter Hogan is out for Ravenna as he’s battling mononucleosis.
Kevin Jackson led Western Michigan Christian (7-16) with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Ben Moorhead had 13 points for the Warriors.
Ravenna (9-14) advances to face WMC Rivers Division rival North Muskegon (17-4) in Wednesday’s 7 p.m. district semifinal. North Muskegon beat Ravenna twice in the regular season, 64-35 and 49-39.
DIVISION 3 AT MASON COUNTY CENTRAL
SHELBY 53, MANISTEE 36: Shelby trailed 9-7 after the first quarter and took a 27-24 halftime lead before the Tigers pulled away in the second half in this district opener.
Bishop Lee led Shelby with 19 points and four rebounds. Wyatt Dickman had 14 points, four rebounds and two blocks, while Phillip Hayes added 10 points, four rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Mason Garcia finished with seven points, seven rebounds and six assists, while Carson Claeys grabbed six rebounds to go with five assists and two steals.
Shelby (12-11) advances to Wednesday’s 7 p.m. district semifinal against host Mason County Central (15-7), which lost at home to the Tigers, 54-44 in the regular-season finale on Feb. 28.
No stats were submitted for Manistee, which closes with a 5-18 record.
RELATED CONTENT
See 2023 boys district basketball scores, schedules for West Michigan Conference teams
