The holidays are about spreading some cheer amongst your family and friends.
If you can do it while watching high school basketball, then the holidays become even better.
The annual Chuck Turner Classic will give us all that chance at the Battle Creek Central Fieldhouse as city hoop fans will be gifted with a day full of holiday high school basketball on Friday.
Battle Creek Central will host six games on Friday, a feast for local high school sports fans looking for something to do during the holiday break. Hoops for the holidays has been a tradition in Battle Creek for over half a century, started by iconic Battle Creek Central coach Chuck Turner.
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Traditionally a two-day event, this year all the games will be played on a single day with five core city high schools all involved with boys and girls teams in action.
“I think playing over the holidays is important. It helps keep you sharp and it gives the guys something to look forward to,” said Harper Creek boys basketball coach Matt Bowling. “It’s good to play down at the Fieldhouse in a friendly rivalry game as well.”
With city teams matching up, rivalry bragging rights will be on the line as well.
Action will begin at 10 a.m. with a girls game, matching St. Philip against Union City. That will be followed by a 11:50 a.m. game between the St. Philip and Union City boys teams.
At 1:40 p.m., the Harper Creek girls will play city rival Lakeview. Host Battle Creek Central will then play Monroe St. Mary’s in another girls game at 3:30 p.m.
A big boys basketball doubleheader will highlight the evening activities with Harper Creek playing Lakeview in boys basketball for the only time this season in a game scheduled for 5:20 p.m. The nightcap will feature host Battle Creek Central playing Pennfield at 7:10 p.m.
A similar schedule had local fans excited last year as Pennfield beat Battle Creek Central for just the second time in school history. And, Lakeview earned bragging rights over Harper Creek for the year with a win between those two boys programs.
“We love playing over the holidays,” Lakeview boys basketball coach Steve Wichmann said. “It’s even better that it’s against Harper Creek, who is obviously a longtime crosstown rival. The fact that Coach Bowling and I have become good friends makes it a perfect matchup for Christmastime.”
Bill Broderick can be reached at bbroderi@battlecreekenquirer.com. Follow him on X/Twitter: @billbroderick.
