5 Things for March 5: High School Boys Basketball Wrap Up

1. We had a double-header of high school basketball on our airwaves last night, and both games were very competitive.

In our first game, Eastern edged Everett 45-42 in a defensive battle.  Dre Dentmond had 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Quakers, who finally solved Everett's press in with about five minutes left in the game.  Don'tre Garrett also chipped in with 16 points.  The Vikings played very good defense, and did as good of a job on Dentmond as anyone I have seen this season.  Their effort was very impressive, and they will be very good next season.

Our second game was much more of an offensive battle.  Okemos got 21 points from Edward Smith as they topped Haslett 59-50.  Haslett got a very good performance from Brandon Allen, who will be one of the best players in the area next season.  The Chiefs have struggled with turnovers at times this year, and will have to value the ball against Eastern.

2.  The Red Wings made a splash at the trade deadline yesterday, acquiring Nashville Predators center David Legwand.  The Wings have been ravaged by injuries, particularly at the center position.  Pavel Datsyuk, Stephen Weiss, and Darren Helm are all on the injured list.  The Wings gave up Patrick Eaves, prospect Calle Jarnkrok, and a 3rd round pick.  Legwand is a free agent at the end of this season.

3. The girls regional finals are tonight, and there is a big one between two area teams.  Grand Ledge plays Haslett, with the winner going to the quarterfinals in class A.  Lansing Christian and Eaton Rapids also have a chance to win regions tonight.

4. The Pistons dropped another game last night, losing to the Chicago Bulls 105-94. As David Mayo pointed out in that Mlive.com article, Chicago's bench outscored Detroit's 50-12.  D.J. Augustin scored 26 points off the bench, and Joakim Noah had a triple-double.

5. Tonight the Red Wings retire Nick Lidstrom's number.  He will be the seventh number retired by the historic franchise.