Chelsea's 8th Grade Travel BBall Wins Big at the Spartan Classic Championship

By Patrick Smith

The Chelsea 8th Grade Boys Travel Basketball Team competed in the 2024 Spartan Classic two-day tournament in East Lansing last weekend and emerged as the Vincent Division champions after defeating Grand Haven 44-42 in overtime. Saturday's victories against the West Michigan Lakers and The City Elite gave Chelsea a No. 1 seed in Sunday’s "win or go home" bracket. The Bulldogs faced SC Hoops 2028 in the Elite Eight winning 36-29 and then beat the Midwest Braves in the Final Four, 55-38 to advance to the championship game against Grand Haven.

Chelsea jumped ahead early in the game but ended up down by 7 at the half. Grand Haven extended their lead to 16 with seven minutes left in the game. Pressure defense and hot shooting got the Bulldogs back in the game and they were able to regain their lead. With just over two minutes left, a Grand Haven basket tied the game at 42 and they called time out. Coming out of the break, Grand Haven sat in a zone defense allowing Chelsea to hold the ball at mid-court for 1:40 and take a time-out with 20 seconds left in regulation. A missed shot attempt sent the game into overtime.

Winning the jump, Chelsea again held the ball at mid-court with Grand Haven remaining back in their 1-3-1 zone. With the clock ticking down to ten seconds, Josh Stephens’ drive and game-winning floater put the Bulldogs up 44-42 with two seconds left. A Grand Haven desperation shot went wide giving Chelsea the victory and championship. The Bulldogs are 16-2 so far this season with one tournament remaining.

Congratulations to the Chelsea 8th Grade Boys Travel Basketball Team!