Glen Lake graduates and brothers Reece and Luke Hazelton will be squaring off at the collegiate level Saturday Jan. 25 at 3 p.m. in Big Rapids at Ferris State University.
Reece is a fifth-year senior at Ferris State University, and Luke is a red-shirt sophomore at Michigan Technological University.
Todd and Joanie Hazelton split time running all over the state, including the far west portion of the Upper Peninsula, to cheer on their hardworking boys as they turned into men.
“It’s the combination of all the sacrifices that they have made,” Todd said. “What a perfect thing to have both your boys potentially planning against each other in college.”
Luke and Reece succeeded at Glen Lake as Reece graduated in 2019 and Luke graduated in 2023.
Reece’s Bulldogs (18-1) are currently on an 18-game winning streak as they welcome in the Huskies (9-4) on Jan. 25. Ferris State is also ranked No. 5 in NCAA Men’s D-II basketball.
“It’s been a fun ride,” Reece said. “We’ve been playing some good defense and holding teams to some low shooting percentages. There are games where our offense clicks, and we erupt for about 90 to 100 points. We play a fun style; it’s up and down. We press a lot and we hope to continue to keep it rolling.”
Reece and Luke stay in contact constantly through text and calls. As an older brother, Reece is proud to see Luke making his way through the ranks after red-shirting at Michigan Tech last year.
“(Luke) is starting to see some time, just like I went through it. It takes time to get onto the court. He’s going to go through his progression of becoming a college basketball player, and it’s gonna be awesome,” Reece said. “Not many people can say that we’ll be able to play against each other at the collegiate level; there’s not many people who can do that. There’s not too many words that I can put into it, but it’s gonna be fun, and it’s gonna be competitive like always,” Reece said.
Luke and Reece played together for one season in high school when Luke was a freshman and a senior.
During his fifth year, Reece has found another level of confidence in his game after recovering from a back injury last year that kept him out for nearly six weeks.
The Huskies are coming off a big win against their rival, Northern Michigan. Michigan Tech is 9-4 on the season.
“It’s been pretty fun so far,” Luke said. “(Playing against my brother) that will be fun. Especially since (Reece) is the older one, I’ve always looked up to him. But now, just getting to compete against each other will be fun, and obviously, it just says a lot about how hard we both have worked to get to the point that we’re at.”
Luke scored 12 points in a game this year, the first of many career highs as a Husky. Luke admits it was hard to get acclimated to college basketball, given the game’s speed and everyone’s strength.
“It was really good to have that year where I could just work on my body and my game to keep expanding. One of the most important parts for me was getting as strong as I could compete against some of the older guys because when you come in as the 18-year-old freshman, you can be playing against men 24-25 years old,” Luke said.
So far this season, the Huskies have been slinging it from deep and focused on getting stops.
“We focus on a one-shot possession, then we can get out and get on the fast break and push the ball, and that opens up everything else when you can get some buckets in transition,” Luke said.
Both Todd and Joanie will be in the stands. Deciding what to wear is a different story.
“I said maybe I’ll just wear a Glen Lake shirt or something like that,” Joanie said. “We’re gonna have some good family support down there, and so it’s exciting more than anything.”
Joanie is a mother of three, including the baby, sophomore Gabe Hazelton, who is carving his own path.
Joanie is proud of how Reece has grown into a man through hard work.
“He’s never even been on a spring break trip, those are the kinds of things that I think sometimes people don’t realize the commitment that it takes us as college athletes,” she said. “I’m just proud of him, and he’s a great oldest child and has set a great example for his brothers and basketball in life.”
Joanie is equally proud as Luke, who has worked hard to get an opportunity at Michigan Tech.
“He had to transition to be up in the UP, which is far from home, and we had a lot of conversations with him, getting him through that freshman year and helping him. He just has continued to work so hard at school,” Luke said. “He tries so hard, so I'm just super proud of him too.”
As the youngest, Gabe looks up to his brother and cares about their thoughts.
Reece is nearing the end of his career, and he sees every game as the last game he plays in any particular gym.
On the other hand, Luke is trying to crack the rotation fulltime for the Huskies.
Ferris State fifth-year senior Reece Hazelton and Michigan Tech red-shirt sophomore Luke Hazelton greet each other after playing against each other last year. The brothers will meet at Ferris State University Jan. 25 at 3 p.m. Courtesy photo
“They learned from each other. You know Reece is giving Luke advice on what you know he should do to get some playing time.”
Todd will always remember the intense one-on-one games in the family driveway. He would have to come ref the games, which would turn into more than a physical game.
“It ended up, and probably most of the time, they were rolling in the lawn with each other,” Todd said. “My brother Ross, who played Glen Lake, was good, and that sparked me to get better, and then I see it in them as well. Gabe and Luke look up to Reece and how he does things. They teach each other all the good things and the work ethics and being part of the community. I think you hand down to your brothers besides clothing,” Todd said.
