The Hartland and Howell girls basketball teams have each won this year in their rivalry.
Tonight they play for the KLAA title in their biggest matchup of the season. Until, maybe, next week.
“When we were at Howell the first time, I was talking to Coach (Tim Olszewski) and he says ‘You know, we’re going to play three games this year,'” Hartland coach Don Palmer said. “It’s for a title, and titles matter, and I think they’ll put their best foot forward and hopefully, we will, too.”
The teams meet tonight in the regular-season finale. The game will be broadcast on The Livingston Post at around 7 p.m. Click here for the link.
“We’re very blessed to be in such a competitive market, with us, Brighton and Hartland and Northville,” Olszewski said. “Playing good quality teams, and we’re going to do it (tonight). Not many teams get to face ranked teams as often as we do. it’s a great challenge and I look forward to it.”
Howell will take the floor without guard Sophie Daugard, who had emerged as a scoring threat but suffered a broken nose in the Highlanders’ win at Wayne on Monday. Daugard’s nose was broken in two places and will require surgery, Olszewski says she will be out for two weeks, if the Highlanders are alive in the state tournament that long.
But the coach is optimistic his team will find a way without her.
“It’s definitely an opportunity for other people to step up,” he said, “and I’m sure that’s what these girls have waited for and wanted. They prepared appropriately and they ill be just fine.”
Both teams like to get out to fast starts.
“You can’t win a game in the first quarter, but you can sure lose it in the first quarter,” Palmer said. “I remember we were down nine at halftime and at our place we were up by eight at the end of the first quarter. And, you know, that’s a big mountain to climb.”
“It’s going to come down to who can execute,” Olszewski said.
Both teams shoot well from the outside, but Olszewski says less-flashy plays are generally the key.
“As long as I’ve coached, the motto is free throws and layups,” he said. “If you make your layups, you’re probably going to do very well, in the game Look at the games teams win, and they’re probably shooting over 45 percent. Look at the games they lose and it’s probably in the 30s. The first time Don played us, their shots didn’t fall. It’s not that they were horrible shots. They just didn’t fall.
“When we played, our shots didn’t fall,” he continued. “Some were a little rushed, but overall, if they don’t go in, they don’t go in. Games don’t end 0-0. Somebody’s got to score. You’ve got to score to win. Make your layups, Make your free throws. Case in point — we go to Wayne and we end up going 12-of-13 at hte line in the fourth quarter and we were 18-of-20 for the game. People said great game, but we hit our free throws.”
The rise of Hartland under Palmer, who is in his 13th season, has the Eagles ranked No. 3 in the latest Associated Press Division 1 poll, and has put the Eagles on at least equal footing with longtime KVC/KLAA powers Brighton and Howell.
“I have great respect for what Howell has done over the decades,” Palmer said. “It seems there’s never a bad team, and it’s always a tough team. Even in my days at Milford, you knew that if you were playing Howell you’d better be ready to play. We’ve been blessed with a lot of good players at all three schools, and that’s a big part of it.”
regardless of who wins tonight, it’s possible there will be a fourth meeting between the teams, who are the top seeds in the Division 1 district at Howell next week. Should they win Wednesday’s semifinals, would meet for a district title a week from Friday at Howell.
But, first things first.
“What a great opportunity to play for another conference championship,” Olszewski said. “It’s a good dress rehearse for districts, what works and what doesn’t. It’s going to be a great game. There’s no secrets. They know us and we know them, and I’m sure it’s going to be a battle at their place again.”
