Suttons Bay boys basketball defeated Leland 53-45 in Tuesday’s Northwest Conference game.
Norsemen senior Grayson Opie led Suttons Bay with 17 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists, dominating both sides of the ball.
“This really boosts our confidence,” Opie said. “We have been struggling the past few years to come out pretty strong in the third quarter, so we’re really trying to emphasize that this year,” he said. “We try to prepare ourselves for coming out in the third quarter and trying not to come out flat. We work the ball around and not hang our heads.”
Sutton’s Bay forward Zachariah Raphael chipped in 11 points and eight rebounds, while Austin Vang contributed nine points and dished out an impressive 10 assists to his teammates.
“This is a good momentum game, especially winning at home and having a lot of people coming out, it helped a lot,” Vang said. “We’re gonna keep shooting, practicing, and learning from this game.”
Four other Norsemen scored points, including Niko Franco (5), Nick McCormick (2), Juan Garcia (2), and Isaiah McGrath (2).
Suttons Bay and Leland battled in a tough first half.
The Norsemen went into halftime with a 20-18 lead before exploding for 33 points in the second half.
The Norsemen jumped to a stellar third quarter and built a double-digit lead. The Comets wouldn’t go away without a fight as Leland scored 18 points in the fourth quarter to cut the lead with six points. Bok Molter led the charge with 12 points in the fourth quarter.
Molter led the Comets with 18 points; Ravello Smith 11 points; Brady Keen 6 points; Eli Ulbrich 4 points.
Leland had a chance to cut the game to one possession late in the fourth quarter, but the Norsemen controlled the ball, and Raphael scored a final basket before the Norsemen put the game away at the free-throw line.
The Norsemen bounced back after losing two close games against Buckley and Mesick by two points last week.
“They have a friendly rivalry, and it just means much more to come out and get the win,” Suttons Bay coach Nick Phillips said.
The Norsemen practiced yesterday before playing Thursday. They will then have a makeup game on Saturday against Onekama. Suttons Bay will then turn around and play back-toback games on Monday and Tuesday.
“We’re trying not to cancel games, which is our big thing. We have a full 22-game schedule, and we’re not trying to lose any,” Suttons Bay coach Noah Phillips said. *** Glen Lake (10-1, 6-1 Northwest) defeated Buckley and Onekama Thursday and Tuesday.
The Lakers first took care of business against Buckley 60-45.
Laker junior Jacob Plamondon had a monster night with 19 points and 20 rebounds. Glen Lake senior Benji Allen had 19 points and three assists, followed by Isaac Hlavka (8) and Keaton LaCrosse (6), combining for 14 points and nine rebounds. Senior guard Michael Houtteman chipped in five points and two assists during the contest.
Buckley guard Landon Kulawiak had another insane night with 38 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists.
On Tuesday, Glen Lake defeated Onekama 60-42.
In the win against Onekama, Plamondon had another doubledouble with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Allen also had a double- double with 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 points. For Onekama, Carson and Luke Bradford led with 15 and 11 points.
The Lakers will be looking to avenge a loss to Frankfort earlier this month tonight at 7 p.m. *** Last week, Lake Leelanau St. Mary defeated Grand Traverse Academy 61-13.
The Eagles were led by Josh Bunek, 19 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, 4 steals; Avery Bunek, 18 points, 5 rebounds; Oliver Mitchell, 15 points, 9 rebounds; Luke Bramer, 7 points, 8 assists.
The Eagles (10-2) play Friday at home against Bear Lake for Homecoming.
