Cadillac at Essexville Garber – – Boys Basketball – – The Bleacher Denizen – – December 21, 2021 – – by Chuck Krafft

Christmas Eve is coming soon, but the Vikings from Cadillac and the Dukes from Essexville Garber are not waiting for Jolly Old St. Nicholas to bring stuff on Christmas Eve. Instead they are getting ready to play a non-conference boys basketball game.

And because none of us have heard enough Christmas music so far this December, here is a link to a Christmas song my You Tube page!! Besides, I need to connect “Jolly Old St. Nicholas” to something to justify the first paragraph and this link!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15alGV17hKI

My drive from Lansing to Essexville for the game was relatively issue-free for a December evening game in Michigan. I was able to get to the gym to see the JV game and had plenty of time to talk to both coaches.

While this is the first time I have ever blogged a Garber game, it turns out that the Ghost of Bleacher Denizen Past remembered a game from 2014 when Cadillac played in the state semifinal. Here is a link to that game.

https://thebleacherdenizen.blogspot.com/2014/03/benton-harbor-vs-cadillac-class-b.html?fbclid=IwAR1g7z_N0lM5exfFgfNpxtTOu97js_CPzKMk0i5yCJtYoNwNTNrHdCAxcKA

Cadillac is 3-1 entering this game. Coach Ryan Benzenberg shared the following information about his Viking players. Cole Jenema is a 6′ 9″ player who can defend in the post but is also a devastating presence on the wing with his long arms and surprising quickness. On offense, he has really strong passing and dribbling skills as well as the ability to pull up for midrange jumpers and hitting three pointers. He is able to play primarily on the perimeter because Cadillac also has 6’7″ Connor McGowan to handle post defense and rebounding. Both of them have the shot blocking skills like the tall men of the days of Bleacher Denizen past who used to frequently send the Bleacher Denizen’s layups to the Great Airball in the Sky.

Jaden Montague is a Junior Guard who is also tall at 6’3″. He usually runs the point for the Vikings. He is a tough perimeter defender and a strong ballhandler and passer; he is also a big threat slashing to the basket for layups. Aden Gurden was the quarterback on Cadillac’s football team. He does all the unsung things like setting picks and moving the ball that every good team needs. He is an exceptionally tough player who excels in perimeter defense.

Garber enters the game at 1-1. Coach Chris Watz told me this about his Duke players. Hunter Jatczak has a lot of post moves and gets a lot of points in the paint. He is also a tough rebounder and defender in the post. Jack Mularz brings an excellent three point shot and midrange shot to the Dukes. He is a strong leader and perimeter defender as well. Breandan Newsham is a fantastic three point shooter who has an great basketball IQ; especially when you realize that he is only a sophomore with two more years to gain skill and knowledge.

Here is a summary of the JV game. Garber got off to a 6-2 lead after one quarter. The teams battled evenly in the second quarter; each team scored 12 points. At halftime, Garber had an 18-14 lead. Cadillac earned a 20-12 advantage in the third quarter to take a 34-30 lead. Garber outscored Cadillac 13-11 in the fourth quarter, but it was not quite enough. The game was tied at 43-43 with four seconds to go when Nate Roberts passed to Grant Williams, who hits a layup to score the winning basket for Cadillac. The Vikings won the JV game 45-43.

Bryce Talaga led the Garber JVs with 11 points. Bryan Hernandez-Alaniz added 8 points and Victor King-Dawson tossed in 6 points. Hayden Steele, Isaiah Ciesla, Lukas Neering and Blake Wittbrodt each scored 4 points. Reece Rau tallied 2 points.

Nate Roberts led the victorious Cadillac JVs with 13 points. Grant Williams joined his teammate in double figures with 12 points. Kyle McGowan added 8 points. Bailey Wade contributed 6 points. Colin Clous and Danial Puiggros each scored 3 points.

It is now time to look at the events of the varsity game through the aging, occasionally open eyes of a Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league when he attempted to hoop in the days of yore. Alas, his bricks destroyed far too many of the peach baskets that we shot at back in ancient times. Your poor Bleacher Denizen never was able to figure out that while bricks are an asset when constructing buildings, most basketball coach really frown on players who release them during games.

Cadillac wins the opening tap. The Vikings miss a driving layup. Garber throws a pass out of bounds. Camren Rowley hits the floor to steal the ball for the Dukes. Garber misses a reverse layup. Hunter Jatczak pulls down the offensive rebound for the Dukes. Garber turns the ball over. Hunter Jatczak blocks a Viking shot. Charlie Howell picks up the loose ball and hits a layup to give Cadillac a 2-0 lead.

Jack Mularz hits a jump shot from the free throw line to give Garber its two points. Cadillac misses a threeball from the corner. Charlie Howell forces Garber to miss a layup. Cadillac misses a layup; Connor McGowan hits a putback for the Vikings. Aden Gurden steals the ball for the Vikings and passes to Connor McGowan for a layup that gives Cadillac a 6-2 lead.

Garber misses a three pointer from the wing. Cadillac misses a three point shot from the side. Camren Rowley hits a putback for Garber. Jack Day blocks a Cadillac layup. The loose ball goes out of bounds and the Vikings get another opportunity. Breandan Newsham knocks the Cadillac inbound pass out; the Vikings get another possession. Cole Jenema catches the inbound pass and hits a layup to give his Vikings an 8-4 lead.

Charlie Howell knocks the ball away from Garber and it is tied up. The Possession Arrow coldly ignores the evidence of Mr. Howell’s aggressive defense and awards the ball back to Garber. Jack Day passes to Hunter Jatczak, who hits a layup for the Dukes. Cadillac misses a layup. Jaden Montague is fouled on a putback and hits one of his two free throws to boost Cadillac to a 9-6 lead with 3:40 to play in the first quarter.

Cole Jenema blocks a Garber jumper; the Dukes are able to recover. Breandan Newsham leans back and hits a threeball from the side for Garber to tie the game. Cadillac misses a ten footer in the lane. Garber misses a jump shot from the side. Cadillac is fouled on a driving layup, but misses two free throw. Hunter Jatczak uses some fantastic footwork in a post move to free himself and hits a layup to give the Dukes an 11-9 lead.

Charlie Howell hits a layup for Cadillac to tie the game. Garber misses a jump shot. A Cadillac dribbler steps on the baseline. Garber misses a twelve footer in the lane. Gavin Goetz drives from the top of the key and hits a layup to give Cadillac a two point lead. Hunter Jatczak is fouled on a driving layup; he makes two free throws to tie the game at 13-13 with 41.6 seconds to play in the quarter.

Jack Mularz knocks the ball out of bounds; Cadillac retains possession. Cole Jenema hits a ten foot fallaway shot from the side of the lane at the buzzer for Cadillac.

After one quarter, Cadillac holds a 15-13 lead.

Cadillac inbounds the ball to open the second quarter. The Vikings miss a three point shot. Riley Wade gets the offensive rebound for the Vikings. Charlie Howell hits a two point shot for Cadillac. Breandan Newsham hits a three point shot from the top of the key for Garber to trim the Cadillac lead to one point. Riley Wade throws in a threeball from the wing to give Cadillac a 20-16 lead.

Hunter Jatczak hits a well-defended layup for Garber. Cadillac misses a layup. Eli Main steals the ball and hits a layup for Cadillac. Garber turns the ball over. Eli Main passes to Charlie Howell, who hits a layup for Cadillac and is fouled. He misses his free throw. With 6:12 left in the second quarter, Cadillac has a 24-18 lead.

Jack Day drives the baseline and passes to Hunter Jatczak, who hits a layup for Garber. Cadillac misses a ten foot shot from the sideline. Cole Jenema knocks the ball away from Garber and Jaden Montague picks it up for Cadillac. Cadillac is assessed with a traveling violation. Garber misses a layup. Cadillac fouls on the rebound. Riley Wade knocks the ball away from Garber, but the Dukes are able to recover. Charlie Howell knocks a Garber pass out of bounds; Garber gets the ball back. Jack Mularz passes to Breandan Newsham, who hits a three point shot from the wing to chop the Viking lead to 24-23.

Riley Wade responds by hitting a three point shot from the side for Cadillac. Garber misses a three point shot from the corner. Cadillac is fouled on the rebound, but misses the first shot of a one and one free throw opportunity. Cole Jenema steals the ball for the Vikings; Cadillac misses a six foot shot in the lane. Eli Main knocks the ball away from Garber, but the Dukes recover. The Dukes misfires on a triple try from the corner. Cadillac misses a jumper from the free throw line. Connor McGowan pulls down the offensive rebound for the Vikings. Cadillac misses a layup. Charlie Howell hits a putback for the Vikings, is fouled and hits his free throw to give Cadillac a 30-23 lead with 2:44 to play in the first half.

Garber misses a driving layup. Camron Rowley gets the offensive rebound for the Dukes. Garber misses a layup. Max Fellows is fouled on a putback and hits one of his two free throws for Garber. Davin Brown drives and hits a layup for Cadillac. Garber misses a layup. The Dukes get the offensive rebound. Breandan Newsham hits yet another threeball from the wing to trim the Cadillac lead to 32-27.

Cadillac misses a layup; Jaden Montague hits a putback for the Vikings. Gavin Goetz gets a hand on the ball and the Vikings take possession. Breandan Newsham steals the ball for the Dukes. Max Fellows hits a layup for Garber. Cadillac misses a ten foot runner. Garber travels with the ball. (Basketball cliches can be interesting. I personally doubt that traveling without the ball would be terribly newsworthy.) Camren Rowley knocks the ball away from Cadillac, but Cole Jenema is able to recover the ball for the Vikings. Cole Jenema hits a five foot shot in the lane for Cadillac. Garber misses a heave at the halftime buzzer.

Cadillac holds a 36-29 lead at halftime. If basketball conventions are observed, Cadillac will also lead 36-29 at the start of the third quarter.

Charlie Howell leads Cadillac at halftime with 11 points. Riley Wade and Cole Jenema each have 6 points.

Breandan Newsham leads Garber with 12 points and Hunter Jatczak has 10 points.

The Garber cheerleaders perform a nicely choreographed and well-executed routine at halftime to entertain the crowd.

Your observant Bleacher Denizen is proud to note that as the third quarter begins, Cadillac still has its 36-29 lead.

Garber inbounds the ball to get the third quarter underway. Breandan Newsham passes to Hunter Jatczak, who hits a layup for Garber. Jaden Montague drives and dishes the ball to Connor McGowan, who hits a layup for the Vikings. Cole Jenema steals the ball for the Vikings. Cadillac misses a layup. Cole Jenema steals the ball for the Vikings. Cole Jenema is fouled on a layup and hits two free throws to give his Vikings a 40-31 lead with 7:09 to go in the third quarter.

Jack Mularz saves the ball to prevent a Duke turnover. Garber commits an offensive foul. Jaden Montague drives and hits a layup for Cadillac. Garber misfires on a threeball from the corner. Cole Jenema drives and hits a layup for Cadillac. Garber misses a three pointer from the wing. Cadillac misses a three point shot from the top of the key. Jack Mularz makes a great fake, takes a dribble and hits a twelve foot shot from the baseline for Garber. Cole Jenema is fouled on a driving dunk shot and hits two free throws to boost the Vikings to a 46-33 lead with 5:31 to play in the quarter.

Camren Rowley drives and hits a layup for Garber. Cadillac throws a pass out of bounds. Jack Mularz passes to Breandan Newsham, who is cutting to the basket. Breandan Newsham hits a layup, is fouled and makes his free throw to chop the Viking lead to 46-38 with 4:59 remaining in the quarter.

Cadillac misses a three point shot from the corner. Charlie Howell gets the offensive rebound for the Vikings; he spins and hits a reverse layup. Gavin Goetz blocks a Garber shot. Breandan Newsham steals the ball for the Dukes. Jack Day drives and hits a layup for Garber. Eli Main drives and hits a five foot shot in the lane for Cadillac. Garber misfires on a trey from the side. Hunter Jatczak knocks the ball away from Cadillac and Camren Rowley picks it up for Garber. Jack Day hits a fast break layup for Garber. Charlie Howell hits a layup to give Cadillac a 52-42 lead.

Eli Main kicks Garber’s inbound pass out; Garber retains possession. Garber commits an offensive foul. Cadillac misses a driving layup. Garber misfires on a three point try from the top of the key. Jack Day hits a putback for Garber. Jaden Montague goes into the lane and hits a twelve foot runner for Cadillac. Garber commits an offensive foul. Breandan Newsham’s tight defense causes a Cadillac travel. Jaden Montague taps the ball away from Garber; the Dukes commit a foul trying to recover the ball. Jaden Montague drives in for a layup and is fouled. He hits two free throws to boost Cadillac to a 56-44 lead with 1:24 to go in the third quarter.

Davin Brown gets his hand on the ball; the ball goes out of bounds and Garber gets another opportunity. Garber bounces its inbound pass out of bounds. Cole Jenema gets into the lane and hits a six foot turnaround jumper for Cadillac. Camren Rowley picks up a loose ball to prevent a Garber turnover and hits a layup for the Dukes. Camren Rowley knocks the ball out of bounds; Cadillac gets the ball back. The Vikings commit an offensive foul. Jack Mularz drives and passes to Jack Day, who hits a twelve foot shot off the dribble in the lane at the buzzer.

After three quarters, the Cadillac lead is 58-48.

Cadillac has the ball to open the fourth quarter. Cole Jenema is fouled and hits both shots of a one and one free throw opportunity for the Vikings. Breandan Newsham hits a nice banked fifteen foot shot off the dribble for the Dukes. Charlie Howell drives and hits a six foot shot from the side for Cadillac. Garber is fouled on a layup, but misses two free throws. With 7:01 remaining in the game, Cadillac has a 62-50 lead.

Hunter Jatczak steals the ball for the Dukes. Jack Mularz drives and dishes the ball to Jack Day, who throws in a threeball from the corner for Garber. Cadillac fouls while the shot is in the air and Garber gets another possession. Cole Jenema gets his hand on a Garber pass, but the Dukes recover. Jack Mularz passes to Hunter Jatczak, who hits a reverse layup for Garber. Breandan Newsham steals the ball and passes to Jack Day, who hits a fast break layup to chop the Cadillac lead to 62-57.

Cadillac misfires on a triple try from the wing. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Vikings get another opportunity. Gavin Goetz inbounds the ball to Jaden Montague, who hits a three point shot from the corner for Cadillac. Garber is fouled, but misses the first shot of a one and one opportunity. Cadillac misses a spinning, driving layup; Cole Jenema hits a putback for the Vikings. Camren Rowley hits a two point jumper for Garber. Cadillac misses a twelve footer off the dribble in the lane. Jack Day inbounds the ball to Breandan Newsham, who hits a threeball from the corner to cut the Cadillac lead to 67-62.

Cole Jenema makes a three point shot from the wing for Cadillac. Cole Jenema steals the ball for the Vikings. Cole Jenema takes the ball into the lane, spins and hits a twelve foot jumper for Cadillac. Eli Main steals the ball for Cadillac. Charlie Howell passes to Cole Jenema, who hits a layup for Cadillac. He is fouled on the play and sinks his free throw to give the Vikings a 75-62 lead with 3:17 left on the clock.

Garber is fouled, but misses the first shot of a one and one opportunity. Cadillac misses a layup. Davin Brown hits a putback for the Vikings. Cadillac misses a jump shot. Camren Rowley is fouled and makes two free throws for Garber. Cadillac misses a layup. Garber loses the ball out of bounds on a fast break. Jaden Montague drives and hits a layup for Cadillac. Garber misses a three pointer from the wing. Cole Jenema is fouled and hits one of his two free throws to boost his Vikings to an 80-64 lead with 1:29 remaining in the game.

Garber is fouled, but misses two free throws. Davin Brown passes to Charlie Howell, who sinks a three point shot from the wing for Cadillac. jack Mularz hits a layup for Garber. Cadillac turns the ball over. Garber misses a driving layup with about eleven seconds left. Cadillac dribbles out the clock.

Cadillac wins this game by an 83-66 score.

Sophomore Breandan Newsham led the Dukes with 20 points. Hunter Jatczak supported him with 14 points. Jack Day scored 13 points. Camren Rowley joined his teammates in double figures with 10 points. Jack Mularz tossed in 6 points. Max Fellows scored 3 points.

Cole Jenema led the victorious Vikings with 27 points. Charlie Howell also had a big game with 20 points. Jaden Montague joined his teammates in double figures with 14 points. Connor McGowan and Riley Wade each threw in 6 points. Eli Main and Davin Brown each added 4 points. Gavin Goetz scored 2 points.