Chassell’s Meg Hokenson drives to the basket against Ontonagon on Dec. 19, at Chassell. (Bryce Derouin/Daily Mining Gazette)

HOUGHTON — With the 2017 portion of the prep basketball schedule completed, it’s becoming clear which teams are legitimate threats for conference and district titles. There’s still plenty of time for more teams to emerge, but based on what has transpired so far, these are the top five basketball matchups to watch for in 2018. 

– – – 

Honorable mention

Boys basketball

Feb. 9, Hancock (1-3, 0-1 West-PAC) at Houghton (2-3, 2-1 West-PAC)

The Wing Ding rivalry traditionally brings the most spirit of any high school basketball game, so it automatically deserves a mention. It’s too early to say if it will have any major bearing on the West-PAC title. 

Houghton was victorious, 64-31, in the first matchup as Brad Sirard scored 35 points to outscore Hancock all by himself. 

Girls basketball

Calumet (4-0) at Chassell (4-1)

This nonconference game pits two of the best — if not “the” best — girls basketball teams against each other. Each team features experienced cores that have won district titles, and each team is a favorite in their district and conference this season.

Both teams excel with their full-court pressure, which should make this an up-and-down affair. The only reason it doesn’t crack the top five is that it has no conference implications. 

Calumet won last season’s matchup 58-43.  

– – – 

5. Girls

Jan. 16, Chassell (4-1, 3-0) at Jeffers (3-2, 3-0)

Feb. 12, Jeffers (3-2, 3-0) at Chassell (4-1, 3-0)

Jeffers coach Joe Romano had the preseason quote of the year when asked about Chassell coming in as the conference and district favorites. 

“That might put the hunger into our kids,” he said. “Our kids hear it; they’re handing both trophies to Chassell already, and maybe that’s the right way to do it, but we’re not going to just give it to them, that’s for sure.”

While Jeffers’ motivation is fueled by proving that last year’s district title was no fluke, these two meetings for Chassell will be revenge opportunities after Jeffers topped the Panthers 61-50 in last season’s district semifinal. 

Since a 62-58 loss to the L’Anse Purple Hornets to start the season, Chassell has won its next four games by an average of 26 points per game — thanks in large part to a 64-8 over the Republic-Michigamme Hawks.

The Panthers have the luxury of returning everyone from last season’s 15-6 squad, while Jeffers has looked to replace the 40 points per game from the graduated duo of Julia Nordstrom and Alexa Clouthier. So far, it’s been Julia’s sister, Marissa, who has paced the Jets’ scoring, averaging 9.6 points per contest. 

Both teams have started 3-0 in conference play and figure to be the top two teams in the Copper Country division. Adding Jeffers’ desire to prove themselves and Chassell’s revenge mentality only adds to the intrigue between the two teams.

– – –

4. Girls

Jan. 9, Ewen-Trout Creek (5-1, 2-0) at Chassell (4-1, 3-0)

The Ewen-Trout Creek Panthers are the defending champions of the Porcupine Mountain division and off to a 5-1 start. I don’t have to reiterate everything I just said about Chassell, but given what I mentioned, this game could determine the overall Copper Mountain Conference champion. 

Chassell is the favorite in the Copper Country division of the conference, and if E-TC and the Panthers should tie, this contest could be the tiebreaker. 

This matchup also features two Class D All-U.P. Second Team guards in E-TC freshman Elise Besonen and Chassell senior Milly Allen. Besonen was the first-ever eighth-grader to be named All-U.P. after she averaged 15.9 points, 2 assists and just 1.4 turnovers per game while shooting 52 of 129 from 3-point range (40 percent). Allen put up impressive numbers of her own, averaging 14 points, 6.4 assists, 6.1 steals and 4.7 rebounds per game. 

With this game being rescheduled from Dec. 5, it will be the second game of a back-to-back for each team. E-TC goes to Bessmer the night before, and Chassell travels to Dollar Bay.

Chassell won the lone matchup between the two teams last season, 43-32. 

– – –

3. Boys

Jan. 2, Chassell (4-0, 4-0) at Dollar Bay (3-0, 2-0) 

After winning their first four games by an average of 32 points per game, the Chassell Panthers will face their first real test of the season on Tuesday against the Dollar Bay Blue Bolts. 

Considered one of the top teams in Class D, the Blue Bolts have had to persevere on the road to make it to 3-0 after blowing out Jeffers 69-39 in the season debut at home. Dollar Bay trailed for much of the game at Bessemer before prevailing 65-58, and against Ontonagon, the Blue Bolts were down 37-27 entering the fourth quarter before holding the Gladiators to three fourth-quarter points to earn a 45-40 victory. 

The two-point loss in last season’s regional semifinals to the eventual three-time state champion North Central Jets created a lot of hype and expectations for the Blue Bolts this season. But with all that extra attention comes the proverbial target — with every opponent treating a matchup with Dollar Bay as the premier game of the season. 

“The bull’s-eye is there; let’s be honest,” Dollar Bay coach Jesse Kentala said before the season. “I think every night we’re going to get people’s best. They’re going to want to beat us.

“That’s what we want. We’ve proven ourselves last year in the conference, district and made a strong showing in the regional, but we can’t bank on that. This year is this year. We have to put that behind us and see what can happen this year.”

With Chassell’s returning athletes such as Abe Gockenbach, Grant Hokenson, Aaron Barnes, and varsity newcomers Blade Warren and Elijah Soumis, the Panthers have the athletes to run and compete with Dollar Bay. But the question will be if Chassell can score enough to keep up. Dollar Bay has the luxury of returning All-U.P. Class D First Teamer Devin Schmitz and All-U.P. Second Teamer Jaden Janke, who have both shown the ability to consistently score when Dollar Bay needs a basket. 

And with both teams utilizing their full-court presses, this has the makings of an uptempo shootout. 

– – –

2. Girls

Jan. 16, Houghton (3-3, 2-0) at Calumet (4-0, 3-0)

Feb. 12, Calumet (4-0, 3-0) at Houghton (3-3, 2-0)

This rivalry doesn’t need any introduction. The two teams are responsible for the last 18 West-PAC championships, thanks to Houghton winning 17 of those conference titles. But with Calumet returning everyone except one player from last season’s district championship team, they could be looked at as the favorite for this season’s West-PAC crown — especially with Houghton attempting to work back in Madi Dillinger, who made her season debut on Wednesday against Westwood after being sidelined with an injury.

– – –

1. Boys

Feb. 6, Ewen-Trout Creek (6-0, 3-0) at Dollar Bay (3-0, 2-0)

I’m not sure how the logistics of it would work, but this game should be played at Michigan Tech. The main reason is that Dollar Bay’s gym is simply not big enough to house the number of people that will show up to watch this game. I’ve already texted each coach about the idea of moving the game to Tech, and they were both on board. Also, E-TC athletic director Shawn Brown said he would agree to move the game to Tech in a heartbeat. 

Here are the reasons why it should be moved to Tech: 

• This could be the Game of the Year in the U.P., and I’m not saying that for hyperbolic purposes, either. If E-TC can beat Calumet on Tuesday and overcome Ontonagon’s length on Jan. 30, there’s a strong chance the Panthers enter this matchup 14-0 and could be as high as No. 2 in the U.P., and perhaps even warrant a top-five ranking in the state poll. As for Dollar Bay, the Blue Bolts have showdowns with Chassell on Tuesday and visit the Wakefield-Marenisco Cardinals on Jan. 15 as their toughest tests in trying to get to 11-0 by the time they meet E-TC. 

Dollar Bay “should” earn the No. 1 ranking in the U.P., based on who they have returning from last season’s team that nearly upset North Central. Southfield Christian will likely always sit at No. 1 in the state poll, but a top-five ranking for the Blue Bolts is a realistic idea. 

Given all of this, you could potentially have No. 1 and No. 2 in the U.P. going against each other — E-TC could be No. 3 behind the Rapid River Rockets –and two top five teams in the state, too. 

• How big is this game? Dollar Bay coach Jesse Kentala has already went up to Ewen to scout E-TC on two different occasions. That’s a 77-minute drive one way from Dollar Bay.

• The matchup will feature three All-U.P. players from last season, with E-TC’s All-U.P. Class D First Teamer Jake Witt joining Dollar Bay’s Devin Schmitz (First Team) and Jaden Janke (Second Team). And to extend that even further, Witt and Schmitz are clear-cut All-U.P. Dream Team selections this season. If they don’t earn that honor, it’s a crime. Anyone with two eyes can see that they’re two of the best players in the U.P. Just look at Schmitz’s 40-point performance against North Central last season, and watch Witt dominate both ends of the court with his 6-foot-7, 240-pound athletic frame. 

So far, Witt is averaging 28 points and 15 rebounds per game, despite being consistently triple-teamed, and he’s scored at least 27 points in five of the six games. A 13-point performance against Drummond, who took the air out of the ball, made his average much lower. 

In three games this season, Schmitz is averaging 16 points per game while shooting 53 percent from the field.

• It’ll be the first time Witt — a Michigan Tech signee — can play on his future home court. It will also be a chance for more locals to get a chance to see him in high school, whereas the smaller Dollar Bay gym will not be able to hold as many fans and will deter people from going. 

• According to the Michigan Tech facilities schedule, the only thing scheduled for the Wood Gym on that night are intramurals (8-10 p.m.) and men’s club volleyball (10-midnight). I’m sure those could be moved to the multipurpose room.

• Tech is no stranger to hosting high school events. The Holiday Classic and Region 17 tournament is annually held at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena. The Jeffers Jets also host their home hockey games at Tech, too.

When the high school regionals were still held at Tech, I had the chance to play there. In a bit of irony, our team, Bark River-Harris, ended up handing current E-TC coach Brad Besonen his first loss as we captured the regional title. Playing at the Wood Gym remains the best facility I ever competed in, and the Dollar Bay/E-TC matchup would give more kids the opportunities to experience what it’s like to compete on one of the bigger stages in the U.P. 

A game of this magnitude would deserve such a venue.