Mountaineers eye regional championship
Boys Basketball
MARQUETTE — Iron Mountain hopes to end a 24-year boys basketball regional title drought tonight.
The Mountaineers (22-1) and Calumet (18-5) will meet at 6 (Central time) at Marquette High School for the Class C Region 24 championship. Iron Mountain last won a Class C regional title in 1994.
In Monday’s regional semifinals, Iron Mountain downed Westwood 49-33 and Calumet ousted Indian River Inland Lakes 70-26.
“It was a good game as far as our defense goes,” said Mountaineers head coach Bucky Johnson, an assistant under Rick Olds on the 1994 team. “Westwood is pretty patient. We got the tempo in our favor early in the game and controlled that tempo and that’s the key when you play Westwood.”
Freshman Foster Wonders led the Mountaineers with 21 points and sophomore Marcus Johnson had 19.
“Did we play our best basketball? Probably not, but did Iron Mountain have a lot to do with that? I believe they did,” said Westwood Coach Chad Hewitt. “They’re a really good team. They’re long, they’re athletic, their basketball IQ is high, they’re coached well and they’re going to be good for a long time with a freshman, a sophomore and two juniors on that squad. So it’s back to the building blocks and moving forward.”
Iron Mountain-Calumet winner advances to Petoskey on Tuesday for the state quarterfinals. Awaiting there will be Maple City Glen Lake (21-2) or Whittemore-Prescott (18-5).
Just down the road in Negaunee tonight, unbeaten Dollar Bay (24-0) and Carney-Nadeau (16-7) will collide for the Class D Region 32 championship.
In Monday’s regional semifinals, Carney-Nadeau spilled Ewen-Trout Creek 51-45 and Dollar Bay squeezed past Rapid River 63-60.
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