MATTAWAN — Visiting Niles used a balanced scoring attack Friday night to upset Mattawan in a Big 16 West Division girls basketball contest.

The Wildcats came into the game tied for second place with Kalamazoo Central in the West Division at 7-3.

The Vikings (5-12, 3-8 West) scored from both inside and outside against Mattawan.

Michelle Briand did the damage on the inside, scoring a game-high 15 points. Niles also got 19 rebounds and a basket by Lashonda Greene.

Maureen Craig did the scoring from the outside as she hit a trio of 3-pointes and finished with 13 points. Alexis Arnold had a pair of 3-pointers and finished with six points.

Taylor Brandstatter was 8-of-15 from the free throw line to account for all of her points. She also had six rebounds and five assists.

Mattawan (12-5) got 15 points from its standout center Allie Havers. Kara Harrison added nine points.

NILES 44

Taylor Brandstatter 8; Alexis Arnold 6; Kylee Myer 0; Maureen Craig 13; Anna Sikkink 0; Lashonda Greene 2; Michelle Briand 15. TOTALS: 14 11-18 44

MATTAWAN 36

Kara Harrison 9; Mallory Lee 2; Amanda Mohney 8; Allie Havers 15; Alyssa Conklin 2. TOTALS: 14 11-13 36

Niles 10 19 32 44

Mattawan 9 21 28 36

3-point baskets: Niles 5 (Arnold 2, Craig 3), Mattawan 1 (Havers). Total fouls (fouled out) Niles 14 (none), Mattawan 14 (none). Varsity records: Niles 5-12, 3-8; Mattawan 12-5, 7-4

Niles…62

Mattawan…53

The final hurdle before the big showdown with Lakeshore Tuesday night was cleared with only a bit of trouble by the Niles boys basketball team.

The Vikings overcame nine 3-pointers by host Mattawan Friday night to post a 62-53 Big 16 Conference West Division victory.

Niles (14-1, 11-1 West) led only by a basket midway through the final quarter, but hit a few shots and came up with a couple of turnovers to turn that two-point lead into a 10-point advantage.

From there the Vikings kept the Wildcats at bay for the final four minutes to pull out the victory.

“I thought our kids showed a lot of poise tonight down the stretch,” Niles coach Todd Pawielski said. “We had multiple people step up and make big shots. Everybody did their job tonight.”

Clinging to a 24-20 halftime advantage, Taylor Campbell scored the first eight points for the third quarter for the Vikings.

“He did a great job for us down low,” Pawielski said.

Niles led by just three points, 42-39, as the two teams headed to the fourth quarter.

The Vikings outscored the Wildcats 20-14 in the final eight minutes to escape with the victory.

“I give Mattawan a lot of credit for the way they played tonight,” Pawielski said. “They shot the ball real well, but we just gave them too many open looks.”

Matthew McLaughlin and Austin Parks each scored 17 points to lead the Vikings. McLaughlin also had four steals and three assists. Myles Busby grabbed 10 rebounds and had four assists to go along with six points.

Campbell finished with 14 points.

Thomas Hoff led Mattawan with 15 points. Darek Ditto added 14.

NILES 62

Myles Busby 6; Matthew McLaughlin 17; Austin Parks 17; Logan Harpenau 4; Aaron Pierce 0; Alec Brown 0; Arias Williams 0; Anthony Bice 0; Taylor Campbell 14; Quintin Irby 4. TOTALS: 22 12-15 62

MATTAWAN 53

Zach Cornish 8; Darren Jacks 8; Thomas Hoff 15; Kyle Bitzer 6; Dylan Plachta 2; Darek Ditto 14. TOTALS: 20 4-6 53

Niles 12 24 42 62

Mattawan 12 20 39 53

3-point baskets: Niles 6 (McLaughlin 3, Parks 3), Mattawan 9 (Cornish 2, Hoff 3, Ditto 4). Total fouls (fouled out): Niles 7 (none), Mattawan 14 (none). Varsity records: Niles 14-1, 11-1 West; Mattawan 7-10, 2-10 West