The Grudge Report: League Rivals Clash Throughout State

One of the state’s iconic venues, Holland’s Dutch Dome, will play host to an intra-city rivalry game between the Dutch and Holland Christian.

Friday, Feb. 3 has a full plate of games featuring games with conference consequences and local bragging rights.

Ann Arbor Huron 11-2 @ Ann Arbor Skyline 9-4: The home team is a game behind Huron and Saline for the lead of the SEC. It will be hard to top the first game between these two, which Skyline won 95-92 … in triple overtime. Future college guards galore here, then there’s a much improved forward 6-6 Huron junior Avery Lewis.

Detroit East English Village 11-2 @ Detroit King 10-2: East English represents MLK’s only PSL loss. Two different approaches, King with blue-collar seniors playing for offers like point guard Jesse Scarber, wing Kemon Bassett and Treveon Orr, while EEV has the flash and big-time reps with Mr. Basketball favorite Greg Elliott and U-M commit David DeJulius in the backcourt.

Flint Hamady 7-4 @ Flint Beecher 9-3: Buctown is again the class of the GAC Red, 7-0 in the league including a 63-54 defeat of Hamady the first time around. Beecher has another star rising, 6-2 freshman Jalen Terry who had 13 points, 10 assists last week against Lake Fenton.

Holland Christian 2-9 @ Holland 8-6: This rivalry was better when Holland Christian was an independent, so they’d only play once a year, instead of as members of the O-K Green; and when, well, at least one of the teams was actually good. But any time Demetrius Lake plays, there’s a chance to see history.

Milan 6-5 @ Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central 11-0: This will go a long way towards determining the Huron League title, as SMCC is 7-0, Milan 6-1. SMCC got ’em good the first time around, at Milan, which doesn’t have an answer for 6-7 senior Nick Welch.

Detroit U-D Jesuit 9-3 @ Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 9-3: The Cubs handled OLSM easily the first time around, but the Eaglets’ 6-6 junior Caden Prieskorn keeps getting better.

Saginaw Arthur Hill 6-5 @ Saginaw 9-3: Arthur Hill is 5-2 in the Saginaw Valley (North), while The High is in first place at 7-0. Arthur Hill has one of the state’s top big men, 6-10 junior Jimmy Bell, but high school ball is a guard’s game as evidenced by Saginaw’s earlier 62-49 win.

Taylor Truman 5-6 @ Taylor Kennedy 4-6: Truman won the first round of this Democratic presidential primary, the very first game of the season, 57-54.

Saturday

Walled Lake Western 10-2 @ Walled Lake Central 8-5: Straight from Spinal Column country, prime scouting for juco coaches with WLW guard Delano Smith and WLC guard Runako Ziegler.