EAST LANSING – This is supposed to be a nervous, nail-biting time of year for high school basketball teams that remain alive in state tournaments.

But the Muskegon Big Reds haven’t seemed very nervous at all.

On the contrary, they have appeared confident and businesslike as they take each step toward what they hope will be a Division 1 state championship.

That was certainly the case on Friday, when the Big Reds controlled the game from the beginning and rolled past Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 65-42 in the state semifinals at the Breslin Center on the campus of Michigan State University.

The Big Reds (26-2) have now won a berth in Saturday’s Division 1 state championship game against Detroit Cass Tech (26-1) at the Breslin Center at 12:15 p.m.

Jordan Briggs looks to finish at the rim with his left hand. Photo/Andrew Johnson

Cass Tech earned its way into the finals with an exciting 62-56 overtime victory over Grand Blanc in Friday’s other semifinal.

While Cass Tech hit a dramatic three to force OT and then win, the Big Reds went about their work like it was another day at the office.

The last time Muskegon faced any real adversity in the tournament was back in districts, when the Big Reds scraped out a close 51-47 victory over Reeths-Puffer in the title game.

Since then no opponents have really threatened to get in their way.

There was a 38-point victory over Grand Rapids Union in the first round of regionals, then a 27-point win over Hudsonville in the regional final.

David Day dribbles up the court. Photo/Andrew Johnson

The state quarterfinals were not a huge challenge either, with Muskegon beating East Lansing 59-43.

Maybe it’s their deep lineup with seven or eight players who can score consistently. Maybe it’s the tough defense they play that keeps opponents from doing much offensively. Maybe it’s the way they always get to the line late in games and make so many free throws.

Whatever it is, the Big Reds have remained pretty calm during March Madness, and are one victory away from their first state title since 2014.

“I think it has a lot to do with our senior guards,” Muskegon Coach Keith Guy said about Jordan Briggs, David Day and Anthony Sydnor, who also happen to be the only three seniors on the Big Reds roster.

“They’ve been through a lot of ups and downs. There is nothing in the game of basketball these guys haven’t seen. They’ve experienced it all over the last three years, which has helped us come out and play.”

Anthony Sydnor celebrates a three-pointer in front of the opposing student section. Photo/Andrew Johnson

The high point of the game for Orchard Lake St. Mary’s came early in the first quarter when Trey McKenney hit a three-pointer to give his team the first points of the game.

After that it was all Big Reds.

Muskegon responded to that first triple with a 15-1 run in the first quarter, highlighted by a pair of three-pointers from David Day and a single triple by Anthony Sydnor.

The Big Reds led 15-6 at the first buzzer and 39-27 at halftime. Day had 12 points in the first half while Jordan Briggs added eight.

Anthony Sydnor attempts to finish over the defender attempting to take a charge. Photo/Andrew Johnson

Muskegon had an 11-7 edge in a slower third quarter and lead 39-27 heading into the fourth, then finished off the Eaglets with a huge 26-16 advantage in the final quarter.

The Big Reds scored 16 points from the free throw line in the fourth, with Briggs hitting 9 of his 10 attempts.

Briggs finished with 19 points while Day totaled 16 and Sydnor added 11.

“I felt like we were ready to go,” Briggs said. “We’ve played in front of big crowds and had tough games all year. I feel like we were ready to go tonight, and coach told us to just play our game. We did that and came out with the victory.”