The Buchanan Bucks have had a great year, but in order to win the Class B district championship it will need to figure out how to beat Lakeshore in the title game.

To get there, Buchanan (15-3) will have to beat Coloma (10-11), which defeated South Haven 37-35 Monday night in Berrien Springs.

Lakeshore (16-5) defeated the host Shamrocks 73-28 Monday night to advance to the semifinals, where it will face Benton Harbor (1-17).

Buchanan and Lakeshore played earlier in the season, with the Lancers winning 55-32.

However, Lakeshore senior El Tyler has been lost for the season with a knee injury and starting point guard Sarah Dubbert left the regular season finale against Niles with a head injury.

Lakeshore defeated Niles 54-35. Dubbert scored 20 points in the contest, while Taylor Wagner added 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds.

“In order for us to win a district championship we need to be proactive defensively and force our opponents into uncomfortable situations,” said Buchanan coach Gabe Miller. “We also need to make sure that every player on the court understands their responsibilities on defense and jump to the ball, not react once it gets there.

“Additionally, on the defensive end we need to have everyone box out to neglect the lack of size we have and limit the opposition second chance points. On offense we need to execute our sets, value the ball and not have unforced turnovers.”

Brooke Wesner and Jayla Bibbs, the Bucks’ top scorers, will have to turn in big games, as will Buchanan’s other scoring options Myeshia May and Morgan Zelmer.

Not playing on the first night of the tournament has its pros and cons according to Miller.

“The pro would be it will limit the wear and tear on Brooke Wesner as she continues to recuperate from ACL surgery less than a year ago,” he said. “Having her as close to 100 percent as possible makes a big difference on both the offensive and defensive ends. However, when we play Wednesday we will not have seen competition in 11 days. In a way it will be like coming out of Christmas Break, so hopefully we can limit the amount of ‘game rust’ so to speak.”

The Bucks will play at approximately 7:30 p.m. The first semifinal is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. Winners advance to Friday’s 7 p.m. championship game.

Tickets are $5 each and no passes will be accepted.

 

Class B at Edwardsburg

Wolverine Conference champion Edwardsburg is hosting the Class B girls district basketball tournament.

The Eddies are the lone team with a winning record heading into the postseason.

Edwardsburg (18-2) will face Dowagiac (4-16) in the second semifinal Wednesday night. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

Three Rivers (9-12) defeated Paw Paw (8-13) to opened up tournament play Monday night to advance to face Vicksburg (9-11) in the first semifinal at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.

The championship game is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday night.

“We have to continue to take it one game at a time and keep doing the things that we do well for us to win a second straight district championship,” said Edwardsburg coach Jon Pobuda. “There is a lot of pressure playing at home especially when you accomplish what this group has to this point. Everyone is coming for us and we have to be ready to respond, but it is nice we get to start at home.”

The Eddies defeated Otsego 46-39 Thursday night to win the Wolverine Conference championship.

The Eddies trailed 9-6 after one quarter, but rallied to beat the Bulldogs by outscoring them 40-30 over the final three quarters.

Sophomore Kaitlyn Zarycki scored 14 of her game-high 18 points in the second half for the Eddies. Edwardsburg also got 15 points from Brayden Curtis.

Dowagiac was not as fortunate to end the regular season on a high note.

The Chieftains dropped a 45-42 decision to host South Haven in their crossover contest Thursday night.

Dowagiac took a 36-28 lead into the final quarter, but was unable to hold on as the Rams outscored the Chieftains 17-6.

Amiyah Smith had her streak of three straight games with 20 or more points snapped, but still led Dowagiac with 18 points.

Tania Wilson and Taylor Hulett both finished with nine points.

“We have to take care of the ball and limit our turnovers,” said Dowagiac coach Brent Nate. “And when we do turn it over, it cannot lead to direct scores for them. We have to do our best to contain (Savannah) Dixon and Zarycki and limit them to one shot offensively. Lastly, we need to keep getting the ball to Amiyah Smith and feed off her inside touches and hopefully knock down shots.”

Nate said that despite the fact that the Eddies have won 18 games this season and the conference title, it only takes one bad game to be eliminated from the tournament.

“Everybody’s record is 0-0 right now and Edwardsburg is a great team and conference champs, but in the tournament you only have to beat them once,” he said. “We just need to believe in ourselves and believe that we can win. We’ve been playing our best basketball lately and hopefully we can carry it over this week and give it our best effort.

“We are by far the biggest long shot in our bracket, so there is no pressure on us and we just need to go out and play loose, keep the game close into the third and fourth quarter and see what happens.”

The Chieftains continued to struggle from the free throw line as they were just 10-of-23.

Tickets are $5 per person and no passes will be accepted.