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Sterling Heights hosted Lakeview in a MAC crossover tilt last Tuesday night and the Stallions gave their coach plenty to smile about, defeating the Huskies 48-25.

“We’re thinking more in terms of confidence right now,” Griffin said. “We’re taking every practice as if it was a game this week. I want the kids to be sharp every day this week.”

The Stallions celebrated Parents’ Night and started their four seniors - Ivan Djokic, Rani Hermoz, Jacob Carluccio and Josh Hair - playing their final home game.

The seniors, along with junior point guard Sean Mattia, got the Stallions going in the first quarter, jumping out to a 9-6 lead behind five points by Mattia.

Sterling Heights broke the game open in the second quarter outscoring the Huskies 17-6 in the period, including a 13-3 run over the first 4:48.

Seven Stallions scored in the quarter with Greg Grant leading the way with four points. Julian Vettraino added a three-pointer as Sterling Heights entered the half with a 26-12 advantage.

“We have confidence in all those guys,” Griffin said. “We know that whoever goes in they’re going to play hard and play the way we want them to.”

Sterling Heights sealed the win in the third quarter, outscoring Lakeview 10-4 in the frame, with Carluccio leading the way with three points on a trey. The Stallions cruised in the final quarter with a 12-9 scoring advantage.

“It was a feel-good night,” Griffin said. “That’s what we needed on Parents’ Night and our last home game. A lot of those seniors I’ve coached for four years as they’ve come up the ranks with me.”

Individually, Sterling Heights had a balanced scoring attack with 12 of 14 players scoring in the game. Mattia led the way with eight points, while Carluccio added six points. Vettraino and Hermoz each finished with five, while Grant chipped in four points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal.

The win improved Sterling Heights’ record to 11-8 overall. The Stallions ended the regular season last Friday night with a MAC Blue Division game at Warren Mott.

Lakeview, which fell to 2-18 overall, was led by Nico Conti with eight points, while Adam Czerwinski added four.

Utica 60

Port Huron Northern 56

The visiting Chieftains went on a 24-13 fourth-quarter run, rallying to defeat the Huskies in a MAC Red Division contest last Tuesday night.

Utica led 11-10 after one quarter, before PHN went on a 20-10 run in the second period, taking a 30-21 lead at halftime. The Chieftain started their comeback in the third quarter, outscoring the Huskies 15-13.

Dex Battista led the Chieftains with 25 points, including 17 in the second half. He also had 11 rebounds. Mike Corless added nine points, including six in the fourth quarter, and six rebounds, while Chris Robinson contributed eight points and two steals. Nick Kosovich had all five of his points in the final stanza to go with four caroms and four assists. Bryan Garbarino chipped in six points, including five in the final quarter, and two steals.

The win improved Utica’s record to 13-7 overall, 9-3 league. The Chieftains could still gain a share of the division title if league-leader Romeo lost to host PHN on March 3.

Flint Carman-Ainsworth 53

Eisenhower 48

The host Eagles rolled to a 16-8 lead after one quarter, before FCA went on a 32-18 run over the second and third quarters, en route to the non-conference win over Eisenhower last Tuesday night.

Kyle Pantalone led the Eagles with 11 points, while Chris Blain added 10. Dan Soper and Keith Williamson each added six points, with Soper grabbing six rebounds, and Williamson dishing out eight assists.

The loss ended Eisenhower’s regular-season record at 12-8 overall.