FENTON — This one counts the most.
The Hartland and Howell boys basketball teams met twice during the regular season, with Hartland winning twice,
Same thing happened last year. Hartland won both regular-season games, but it was Howell that won their tournament matchup, a 67-56 decision at Howell in the district final.
“It’s fueled us all year,: Hartland senior Carson Conrad said after his team eliminated Holly in Wednesday’s district semifinal at Fenton High School. “We really have locked down on the defensive end. Now, it’s kind of our thing. We’re going into it with a different strategy.”
That strategy will be tested tonight when the teams meet tonight in a district final at Fenton High School.
The game will be broadcast on The Livingston Post at 6:50 p.m. Click here for the link.
Howell coach Nick Simon wasn’t sure on Wednesday if his point guard, Carter Bandemer, or if wing Adam Jones would be able to play tonight.
But he definitely knew what he thought of the Eagles.
“They’re a darn good team,” Simon said. “They know their roles, they’re incredibly well-coached, and we’re going to have to do everything we possibly can to slow them down and be patient, deliberate on the offensive end. We respect the heck out of them and what they can do.”
Hartland is a good-shooting team, but when the 3-pointers weren’t falling on Wednesday, they went inside, feasting on layups and put-backs and overwhelming Holly in the paint.
Howell, meanwhile, used its depth and a determined Danny Honkala in the middle to oust Linden. Ryan Cirella stepped in for Bandemer at the point, scoring 12 points and playing a key role on defense, while Beau Eckerle stepped in for Jones, who left after hitting hte floor hard at the end of the first half and did not return.
Jones had been shadowing Linden’s Reichen Lund throughout the first half, and Eckerle picked up where Jones left off in the second.
Honkala had 20 points and 17 rebounds in Wednesday’s win while staying away from foul trouble and leading by example.
Hartland is 17-4, while Howell coms in at 14-7, with both teams staking their rivalry and lifetime memories on the outcome.
“It’s ride or die,” Honkala said Wednesday. “Sophomore season was shut down due to Covid. I saw my brother go through the whole thing and he didn’t get to play his l ast game. I’m doing whatever I can to help us win a state championship.”
Hartland, aching to exorcise a year’s worth of bitterness, will be ready as well.
“It feels like we’re rolling,” Conrad said of the Eagles, who have won 10 of their last 12 games. “We just have to finish it out. One more.”
