Peterson: Big Ten hoops absorbs beating

March 24, 2021

All season long, college basketball observers have been wondering if the BIG 10 was really as good as it appeared on paper. The recent NCAA tournament provided an answer, if an incomplete one. No, the conference wasn’t that great. Strong, but not the juggernaut many pundits had it pegged as. Of the nine league teams that landed a spot in the Big Dance, only one, Michigan, will be playing in the Sweet 16. In contrast, the PAC 10 has three teams still going. People are looking for reasons for the failure of the conference in what has been the strangest season of all. You have ...

Peterson: What it takes to be elite

March 17, 2021

I’ve seen many high school athletes who could be considered to be either great, very good or just plain good. But to be classified as elite is to reach the upper plateau of sports. Now, I know the word elite is one of the most overused nowadays — especially in the world of professional sports. The category in high school has to be applied very carefully. I’ve seen more than a few individuals who had the stats to qualify. But stats can sometimes be misleading and I’ll cite the case of a basketball player (no names) who played a couple of decades ago. He averaged well ...

Peterson: Even COVID can’t dim ‘Madness’

March 10, 2021

In the wacky and wild year that COVID 19 has imposed on all of us, it seemed that “March Madness” was also in peril. But that wild and crazy time is still in effect. Sure, the players are still required to wear masks on the basketball floor, at least for the prep cagers. And they still have those ridiculous cardboard figures in the stands for college and pro events. But there were real, live people in the stands at Dollar Bay High the other night for the matchup of the Blue Bolts and Jeffers. Those two are top-level teams in our area, both capable of going deep in the ...

Peterson: MTU now dominates NMU

March 3, 2021

It was one of the more memorable sports events I can remember from my younger days. In the winter of 1964, the Michigan Tech men’s basketball team (there were no girls sports then) upset Northern Michigan University at Sherman Gym. What made the 85-82 win so special was that it came against a Northern team that had often dominated the Huskies over the years. Under coach Verdie Cox, the Tech cagers had struggled to reach the .500 mark. The 1962-63 season was a notable exception when a team led by Doug Schueneman and future NFL player Bob Lurtsema, the team went 17-6 and won ...

Peterson: There’s only one Kevin Luke

February 24, 2021

I’ve dealt with countless coaches in my some five decades on the sports scene. The majority of them have been courteous and cooperative, willing to go the extra mile to ensure their team gets the right coverage. I’m talking about people like late Ontonagon football coach Bob Carlson. Now, upon first meeting Carlson, I was taken aback a bit by his brusque nature. But after we got to know each other and he knew I wasn’t going to betray his trust, there was no problem. He dutifully supplied the stats that are required for any story. And if his quotes weren’t always long ...

Peterson: Today’s Tigers lineup a mystery

February 10, 2021

There was a time when I could readily tell you the starting lineup of the Detroit Tigers. Take the 1968 World Series champs: Don Wert at third; Ray Oyler at shortstop; Dick McAuliffe at second; and Norm Cash at first base; Al Kaline, Mickey Stanley and Jim Northrup in the outfield; and Bill Freehan at catcher. Denny McLain and Mickey Lolich were the pitching mainstays. Or even the 1984 Tigers, one of the best teams never to repeat as champions. But aside from Miguel Cabrera, who might or might not be healthy enough, at designated hitter, I really couldn’t come up with the ...