By Staff
The Dowagiac and Niles basketball teams began making their push toward the post season Tuesday night with wins.
If you asked most people, they would have picked Sturgis and Lakeshore to win those games.
But now is the time for both squads to begin preparing for the upcoming Class B District tournament which will be held at Dowagiac Union High School.
The draw for the tournament was held this morning (see related story this page).
Unless the Chieftains and Vikings draw each other in the first round, both squads could play a factor in just who wins the district title.
Last year the Chieftains reached the finals against Lakeshore as they upset defending district and Lakeland Conference champion Coloma.
I can see something like that happening again this season.
It may not be the Comets and it may not be Dowagiac with the upset, but someone who is expected to win is going down in this tournament.
It should come as no surprise that both Niles and Dowagiac are primed to pull off an upset.
Both teams have struggled this season, but at times, have shown flashes of what is possible.
Such was the case Tuesday night for the Vikings and Chieftains.
While Niles was playing Lakeshore at home, Dowagiac earned its victory on the road.
I have spoken with both Dowagiac coach Greg Blomgren and Niles coach Denny Parks recently and both said they where hoping that their squads would start playing better as the tournament neared.
Both coaches feel their squads are capable of making a run in the post season if they can put it all together.
It would be great if Niles and Dowagiac were able to square off in the district championship game.
I guarantee that it would be a packed house and that both squads would more than likely play their best game of the season.
Of course it is all in the luck of the draw today.
No one can predict what will happen when the tournament begins, but one can dream of how they would like to see it progress.
Regardless of the draw, I wish both teams good luck in the post season. I hope both play to the best of their abilities.