From staff reports

BUCHANAN – To say there was a slight advantage at the free throw line for one team at the Class B District final at Buchanan High School might be a bit of an understatement.

The Lancers went to the line 35 times and converted on 24 of them in a 46-38 victory over Berrien Springs.

The Shamrocks, who bow out of the tournament at 18-4, shot only 17 times from the charity stripe and converted just seven.

Berrien Springs held a 14-10 advantage in made field goals and a 3-2 advantage in 3-pointers.

But Lakeshore was able to knock down enough free throws to take the victory.

The Shamrocks held an early 7-4 lead and were up 22-15 at the intermission.

But in the third quarter, Lakeshore outscored Berrien Springs 14-6 to take a 29-28 lead into the final quarter.

Jordan Kauffman paced the Lancers with 11 points, while Hayden Davis added 10.
Matt Little led the Shamrocks with 11 points. Oluwaseunt Idowu finished with 10 points.

LAKESHORE 46
TJ Moneta 8; Adrian Tatrauit 6; Colin McKey 0; Lee Meyers 0; Jordan Kauffman 11; Josh Lange 8; Loren Johnson 1; Hayden Davis 10; Ryan Avery 2. TOTALS: 10 24-35 46
BERRIEN SPRINGS 38
Matt Little 11; Nolan O’Brien 0; Anthony Johnson 0; Tyrice Carter 2; Mark Westendorp 3; Steven Felusme 6; Oluwaseunt Idowu 10; Jeffery Gumbo 6. TOTALS: 14 7-17 38

Lakeshore 4 15 29 46
Berrien 7 22 28 38
3-point baskets: Lakeshore 2 (Lange 2), Berrien Springs 3 (Westendorp 1, Idowu 2). Total fouls: Lakeshore 17, Berrien Springs 22. Fouled out: None. Varsity records: Lakeshore 13-9, Berrien Springs 18-4

Class C at Brandywine
The outside shooting of Bridgman proved to be too much for Watervliet Friday night in the Class C District Tournament championship game at Brandywine High School.

The Bees connected on seven 3-pointers compared to just two by the Panthers in a 51-33 Bridgman victory.

The Bees opened up an early lead and then cruised home in the second half with the victory.

Bridgman led 13-7 after one quarter of play and bumped up its advantage to 30-13 at the intermission.

The two teams scored 11 points in the third quarter, but Bridgman held a 10-9 advantage in the final eight minutes to account for the final margin of victory.

Michael Kamp led a balanced Bridgman attack with 14 points.

The Bees also got 10 points from Parker Mojsiejenko and nine points from Conner Magro.

Watervliet did not have a single player reach double figures. The Panthers were led by Cory Quinn’s seven points.

Bridgman now advances to the Gobles district where it will face the district champion from Parchment.

WATERVLIET 33
Tim Flagel 2 0-1 4; Cullin Nangle 0 0-0 0; Marco Montejano 2 0-0 4; Brad Rose 0 2-2 2; Travis Bolin 2 1-1 5; Cory Quinn 2 2-2 7; Travis Taylor 2 0-0 5; Jake Teunissen 1 0-2 2; Jake Cowsert 0 2-2 2; John McCarthy 0 0-1 0; Aaron Sill 1 0-0 2; Cody Burtchett 0 0-0 0; D.J. Howley 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 12 7-11 33
BRIDGMAN 51
Cameron Magro 1 2-2 5; Mark Haukereid 1 0-0 2; Branden Crowder 0 0-0 0; Zane Copeland 0 0-0 0; Josiah Badger 0 3-4 3; Michael Kamp 5 2-2 14; Conner Magro 3 1-4 9; Parker Mojsiejenko 5 0-2 10; Josh Bachleda 0 0-0 0; Brandon Ashley 0 2-3 2; Justin Weber 0 0-0 0; Noah Allred 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 17 10-18 51

Watervliet 7 13 24 33
Bridgman 13 30 41 51
3-point baskets: Watervliet 2 (Quinn 1, Taylor 1), Bridgman 7 (Ca. Magro 1, Reeves 2, Kamp 2, Co. Magro 2). Total fouls: Watervliet 16, Bridgman 17. Fouled out: None. Varsity record: Bridgman 19-4

Class A at Portage Central
PORTAGE – At no point in Friday night’s district final at Portage Central High School did the Niles boys’ basketball team look intimidated.

Despite Kalamazoo Central’s sparkling 21-1 record, three consecutive district titles, freakish athleticism, suffocating full-court trap defense and it distinct size and quickness advantage, the Vikings looked confident through most of the game.

In fact, Niles played the No. 3-ranked Maroon Giants close for most of the first three quarters.

But with 2:30 remaining in the third quarter and momentum beginning to swing in Niles’ favor, Myles Busby missed a runout layup with no K-Central defender near him that would have brought the Vikings within three points.

The play seemed to awaken the sleeping Maroon Giants, as K-Central went on a 7-2 run to close the quarter to open up a 37-27 lead.

The Vikings were able to stay within striking distance until midway through the final quarter.

“We were down nine with five minutes left to play (in the third quarter) and we turned it over four straight times,” Niles coach Todd Pawielski said. “And that’s too much to recover from.”

Those four turnovers led to five straight K-Central points, including a throwdown by Dayton University-bound Devin Oliver that sent the Kalamazoo fans into a frenzy.
The Giants (22-1) closed out the game on a 14-3 tear that ended a solid season for the young Niles (17-6) squad.

The Vikings got out of the gate strong and was able to break the aggressive K-Central trapping defense to open up a 14-9 first quarter lead.

The Giants offense found its rhythm in the second quarter battling back to take a 19-16 lead into the locker room.

Turnovers were the difference in the second half, according to Pawielski.

“We just stressed passing the ball and attacking the rim, and we were marginally successful in the first half,” Pawielski said about handling K-Central’s attack ‘D.’ “We turned it over too much in the second half. In the fourth quarter … they’re just awfully good. And they showed it.”

Oliver, who had several razzle dazzle plays, including an alley-oop dunk, led K-Central with 13 points and seven boards. T.J. Buchanan gutted out an early ankle injury to drop 11 points for the Giants.

Niles was again led by senior David Garner with 12 points, despite playing with foul trouble through most of the second half.

“David Garner has had a sparkling career,” Pawielski said. “Kids like him don’t come around very often.”

Busby, who struggled with foul trouble throughout, was held to three points but pulled down six rebounds for the Vikings.

Sophomore Matthew McLaughlin, who scored nine points and played physical defense against players with a significant size advantage, earned his coach’s praise after the game.

“Matthew McLaughlin was awesome tonight,” Pawielski said. “We wouldn’t be anywhere near where we’re at without his toughness and intelligence. He is a terrific point guard.”

It’s sophomores like McLaughlin, Busby and sharpshooter Austin Parks that have Pawieiski looking forward to making another run next year.

“We’re awfully young. We have 17 wins with only two seniors,” Pawielski said. “It was very gratifying for us to win the SMAC West at 6-1. We’re going to try to be greedy and do the same thing next year.”

NILES 36
David Garner 5 2-6 12; Austin Parks 1 0-0 3; Matt McLaughlin 3 0-0 9; Myles Busby 1 1-2 3; Nick Lucero 1 2-2 4; Quinton Irby 1 0-0 2; Jordan Pothoff 1 0-0 3.
KALAMAZOO CENTRAL 53
Daquavion McCants-Wilson 3 0-0 6; T.J. Buchanan 5 0-0 11; Devin Oliver 6 1-1 13; Tyler Bell 3 0-0 6; Dyland Hughes 2 3-4 7; Angelo Griffis 1 1-2 3; Darius Norman 3 1-2 7

Niles 14 16 27 36
Central 9 19 37 53
3- point baskets: Niles 4 (McLaughlin 3, Parks 1); Kalamazoo Central 1 (T.J. Buchanan). Varsity Records: Kalamazoo Central 22-1, Niles 17-6