Columns

Projecting the All-UP girls Dream Team

Girls Basketball

Projecting the All-UP girls Dream Team

4/1/2020 | Girls Basketball | By Eden Laase |

If you’ve spent time reading Upbeat, you’ve probably noticed that I don’t tend to write columns. Bryce usually does all the opinion-related articles, but this is one that I’ve been looking forward to all season. Despite the Coronavirus-related chaos that halted things, this was an incredible season of girls basketball. The UP was filled with talent, meaning the Dream Team...

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Projecting the All-UP Boys Dream Team

Boys Basketball

Projecting the All-UP Boys Dream Team

3/30/2020 | Boys Basketball | By Bryce Derouin |

If you listened to a podcast or have followed Eden and me long enough, you’re aware of how plenty of our conversations during a season revolve around high school basketball. Teams, players and storylines are regularly discussed, and for the most part, we tend to agree. But of course, there have been points of contention — moments where my stubbornness...

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All-UP selections to be impacted by suspended play

Boys Basketball

All-UP selections to be impacted by suspended play

3/21/2020 | Boys Basketball | By Bryce Derouin |

If you despise the All-UP selections for their occasional reliance on stats, then do I have some bad news for you. Due to the unique circumstances facing our society, the format for the 2019-20 All-UP basketball selections will be changing. The Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association will not meet to make the annual selections, but instead, the preliminary plan...

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What to watch for in boys district play

Boys Basketball

What to watch for in boys district play

3/9/2020 | Boys Basketball | By Bryce Derouin |

So, a confession to start this column. For the first time in eight years as a sports reporter in the UP, I won’t be covering a boys district-opening game tonight. My day job is hosting one of its biggest events of the year, and it’s set to take place from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. I just wanted to let...

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Inside Brad Simonsen's 63-point performance, Gavin Sundberg's coaching debut

Boys Basketball

Inside Brad Simonsen's 63-point performance, Gavin Sundberg's coaching debut

2/10/2020 | Boys Basketball | By Bryce Derouin |

Initially, Jared Lawson was peeved after witnessing one of the worst defensive performances from his Houghton Gremlins. Allowing 88 points would be a good two-game stretch for the best teams he coached, which made Tuesday’s 88-83 loss to Ishpeming even more irritating. “I cannot find a word to describe our defense,” he said after the defeat, “but if I did,...

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Four things to watch for and more: No. 1 Iron Mountain vs. No. 2 Negaunee

Boys Basketball

Four things to watch for and more: No. 1 Iron Mountain vs. No. 2 Negaunee

1/28/2020 | Boys Basketball | By Bryce Derouin

It’s the biggest regular-season game of the year. No. 1 Iron Mountain vs. No. 2 Negaunee. With the teams featuring five of the top seven ranked players in the UP, an impressive array of talent will share the court at the same time. It’s two squads with players that have been playing with and against each other since they were...

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