The Kingsford boys varsity basketball team poses with its MHSAA Division 3 Regional 9 trophy on Thursday in Gaylord. (Courtesy photo)

LUDINGTON — From the opening tip, it was clear the Kingsford boys varsity basketball team was a step ahead of Ludington on Thursday in Gaylord for the MHSAA Division 2 Region 9 final.

The Flivvers didn’t let that get to their heads and overwhelmed the Orioles en route to a 75-35 win to advance to the D2 quarterfinals. They have won back-to-back regional crowns.

“It was a complete team win,” Kingsford head coach Ben Olsen said. “We out-rebounded them 44-to-13. We were 25-for-39 from the field, we had 48 points in the paint. As coaches, we put together a game plan and the kids executed it to near perfection. I mean a 40-point win in a regional final game almost doesn’t seem real.

“That was a really good Ludington team and we played extremely well. I felt like we let up in the first quarter against Boyne City a little bit. We took ‘our foot off the gas pedal’ and we talked about not doing that tonight and the boys definitely took that to heart.”

Entering the contest the Flivvers knew they had to stop Ludington’s Taj Williams and Johnathon Keith. Williams managed 10 points but Keith was held scoreless.

“We knew they wanted to get downhill to the rim,” Olsen said. “We talk all the time about ‘who hurts us and knowing where they are,’ even if you aren’t guarding them and our kids did an absolute masterful job.”

Kingsford opened the game with an alley-oop layup from senior Gavin Grondin.

It kept its pushing and took a 14-7 advantage into the second quarter.

The Flivvers pushed the lead to 33-18 at halftime, but the third quarter is where they made their mark. They outscored Ludington 25-11 over eight minutes.

Entering the fourth quarter with a 19-point lead, Kingsford didn’t let up. It tacked on 27 points while holding the Orioles to six in the frame.

Although the Flivvers played four hours away from Flivver Gym, you’d have been hard-pressed to tell on Thursday. Which is something they’re not taking for granted.

“Let’s see how far we can push this thing,” Olsen said. “It has been an incredible journey and I’m grateful I’m part of the ride. The community support has also been incredible. We are four hours from home and it felt like a home game. The energy our student section and fan section give us is truly amazing.”

The Flivvers are off until Tuesday when they head back to Gaylord to face Freeland in the MHSAA Division 4 quarterfinals at 6 p.m.

“One more game,” Olsen said. “It’s always just one more game!”

Grondin led all scorers in the contest with 23 points. He also tallied three rebounds, an assist and a steal.

Kingsford also received contributions from Owen Olkkonen (5 points, 6 rebounds), Matt Sundquist (2 rebounds), Jack Kriegl (16 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals), Gavin Trevillian (4 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals), Jack Olson (2 points, 1 rebound), Morgan Sleik (18 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal), Jett Buckley (3 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal), Anders Finley (1 rebound) and Alexander Erickson (2 points, 1 rebound).