Denny Belmonte follows through on his buzzer-beating shot for North Muskegon. Photo/Tonya Pardon

 

LocalSportsJournal.com

Denny Belmonte nailed a shot from half court at the buzzer to propel the North Muskegon boys basketball team to a 53-52 win over Oakridge in a West Michigan Conference game on Friday. 

Garrett Weaver led the Norse with 18 points, 12 coming on three-point baskets, while teammate Ethan Josza added 17 points and over 10 rebounds in the win.

Oakridge led the first quarter 10-4, the game was tied 21-21 at halftime and the Eagles led 37-35 at the end of third quarter.

The Eagles broke a 50-50 tie with 2.6 seconds left in the game on a pair of free throws before the game-winning shot by Belmonte.

Troy McManus led the Eagles with 14 points while Brennen McManus had 13.

North Muskegon is now 2-4 overall while the Eagles fell to 3-5 on the season.

North Muskegon players swarm Denny Belmont after hitting the game-winning shot. Photo/Tonya Pardon

WEST MICHIGAN CONFERENCE

WHITEHALL 72, MASON COUNTY CENTRAL 42-The Vikings remained undefeated in West Michigan Conference play with a win on Friday night. 

Whitehall outscored the Spartans 20-7 in the first quarter, and 18-10 in the second quarter to take a 38-17 lead at halftime.

The Vikings expanded their lead, outscoring Mason County Central 14-12 in the third, making the score 52-29 at the start of the fourth quarter. 

Red Watson, Dayton Cole, Casey Lownds and Evan Mikkelsen all scored nine points each, while the duo of Brodie Fogus and Andrew Durbin recorded eight points apiece.

Oakridge’s No. 11 Ethan Jozsa goes to block a Will Gallo shot. Photo/Tonya Pardon

The Spartans were led by Will Chye with 15 points, while Jordan Perrone added 10 and Kolden Myer finished with nine.

The Vikings improved to 6-2 overall and 5-0 in conference play, while Mason County Central is now 0-8 on the season and 0-7 in league action. 

MONTAGUE 52, HART 46-Montague’s Coach David Osborne picked up his 200th victory on Friday as his Wildcats won a West Michigan Conference contest on Friday night. 

The Wildcats outscored the Pirates 12-11 in the first quarter and 10-9 in the second quarter to take a 22-20 lead into halftime.

Montague extended its lead, outscoring the Pirates 14-12 in the third to take a 36-32 advantage into the fourth quarter.

Drew Collins paced the Wildcats with 14 points, while Lance Grattafiori had 11 and Colton Blankstrom chipped in with eight. 

The Pirates were led by Kellen Kimes with 15 points, while Parker Hovey scored 11 and Tony Rayo finished with 10.

Amarion Dickerson drives baseline for North Muskegon. Photo/Tonya Pardon

The Wildcats improved to 6-1 overall and 6-1 in conference play, while Hart fell to 2-6 on the season and 1-6 in the league.

RAVENNA 56, SHELBY 48 – A strong fourth quarter led the Bulldogs to a West Michigan Conference win on Friday night.

Ravenna led 14-13 at the end of the first quarter before the Tigers tied the game 25-25 at halftime. The Bulldogs had a slim 40-39 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.

The Bulldogs closed out the game with a 16-9 run during the final stanza.

Joel Emery led Ravenna with 19 points while Kyle Beebe added 15 points and six assists. Carter Schullo pulled down a team-high six rebounds.

The Tigers were led by Logan Claeys with 18 points and five assists, while Bishop Lee added eight points and 10 rebounds.

LAKES 8

LUDINGTON 52, MUSKEGON CATHOLIC CENTRAL 33-Peyton LaCombe’s 21 points propelled Ludington to a Lakes 8 Conference victory on Friday. 

The Orioles outscored MCC 16-8 in the first quarter and 11-7 in the second quarter to take a 27-15 lead into halftime.

The Crusaders cut into the lead, outscoring Ludington 10-8 in the third quarter to make the score 35-25 to start the fourth quarter. 

David Shillinger chipped in for the Orioles, scoring nine points. 

The Warriors were led by Tommy Kartes with 10 points while Jaden Johnson finished with seven. 

The Orioles improved to 4-4 overall and 2-3 in conference play, while MCC fell to 1-5 on the year and 0-3 in league action.

CSAA

KENT CITY 53 WHITE CLOUD 41-Kyler Larson’s 16 points helped the Eagles overcome a four-point halftime deficit in a CSAA Silver Conference battle. 

The Eagles caught fire in the third quarter, outscoring the Indians by a 23-7 margin to take a 12-point lead into the fourth quarter. 

Hayden Carlson finished the evening with 12 points while Casen Armstrong chipped in with 11. 

The Eagles improved to 4-3 overall and 3-1 in conference play. 

HOLTON 69, HESPERIA 21-The Red Devils stayed undefeated in CSAA Silver conference play win an easy victory on Friday.

Holton jumped out to a 25-0 lead after the opening quarter and led 41-8 at halftime. 

Bret Hosmer paced the Red Devils with 18 points. Aidan Poling chipped in with 13 points, while the duo of Austin Fowler and Carter Brant recorded nine each. 

The Red Devils improved to 8-1 overall and 5-1 in conference play, while Hesperia is now 0-7 on the season and 0-4 in the league.

FREMONT 64, REED CITY 37-The Packers pick up a road win in CSAA Silver play on Friday night. 

Fremont outscored the Coyotes 16-6 in the first quarter and 24-15 in the second quarter to take a 40-21 halftime lead.

The Packers continued their strong play and led 51-31 heading into the fourth quarter. 

Braiden McDonald paced the Packers with 20 points and10 rebounds.

Josh McDonald added 10 points and seven rebounds, while Lane Converse chipped in with nine points for Fremont. 

The Packers improved to 7-2 overall and 6-1 in conference play.

ALLIANCE LEAGUE

FRUITPORT CALVARY CHIRSTIAN 75, HOLLAND BLACK RIVER 40-Bradley Richards 24 points and eight rebounds led the Eagles to an Alliance League matchup.

The Eagles used a strong first half to jump out to a 46-26 halftime lead. They continued their strong play pushing the lead to 65-34 at the end of the third quarter.

Braden Cohea recorded 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Jacob May added 12 points and 10 assists and Braden Swanson scored 14 points. 

The Eagles improved to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in conference play.

WEST MICHIGAN D LEAGUE

PENTWATER 56, MASON COUNTY EASTERN 43 – The Falcons were led by Khole Hoffman, who scored 22 points and pulled down 13 rebounds.

Blake Brigindahl added 12 points, six rebounds and four steals, while Tyler Plummer Eisenlohr chipped in with 11 points, four rebounds and four steals.

The Falcons are now 5-2 on the season and 3-2 in league action.