MUSKEGON – Anything can happen in basketball in March.
That’s why they call it “March Madness.”
A year ago the Muskegon Big Reds suffered a loss to Grand Haven in the district finals, ending their season on a disappointing note, and they were looking forward to a rematch on Friday in this year’s championship game.
The Big Reds did their part to set up the rematch, plowing past Kenowa Hills 68-37 on Wednesday in a Division 1 district semifinal contest on their home court.
[1]But Muskegon will not get to play Grand Haven, because the Buccanners were upset by Coopersville earlier in the evening, setting up an unexpected title matchup between the Big Reds and Broncos.
Muskegon Coach Keith Guy admits he wanted another crack at Grand Haven, but says the championship game is still the championship game.
“We definitely wanted it for sure,” said Guy, whose team is now 21-2 on the season “But we will play whoever is in front of us and we will take care of business. We can’t control who we are playing, we can only control how we play.”
For most of the game against Kenowa Hills, the Big Reds played flawlessly, leading throughout the contest.
Muskegon quickly jumped out to a 6-1 lead and led 14-7 after the first quarter. Anthony Sydnor led Muskegon with six first quarter points, while Maurice Sain and Ethan Hill each added four.
[2]The Big Reds took a double-digit lead early in the second quarter and never allowed Kenowa Hills back in the contest. They outscored the Knights 16-10 in the second and led 30-17 at halftime.
David Day scored five second quarter points for the Big Reds while Hill added four.
The Big Reds had their best quarter in the third frame, outscoring the Knights 23-6 to take a commanding 53-23 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Jordan Briggs exploded with nine third quarter points for Muskegon while Sydnor scored five.
“I thought we played with more intensity during the second half,” Guy said. “I didn’t think we finished at the rim well during the first half. I thought we defended decently, but not the way we are capable of defending.”
[3]The Big Reds outscored Kenowa Hills by a slim 15-14 margin during the fourth quarter to close out the contest. Briggs and Sydnor each had four points in the fourth.
The Big Reds were led by Briggs with 17 points while Sydnor added 15 and Hill scored 14.
“This is the tournament,” Guy said. “It’s why they call it March Madness, because anybody can be beaten in one night. You must play your best basketball in March. And any time we can play for a trophy we want it.”
Kenowa Hills was paced paced by Javion Otten with 17 points while Sutton Tutas added 12.
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