The Negaunee High School girls basketball team finished off an unblemished 21-0 regular season with a hard-fought 58-44 victory over Gladstone, their closest challenger in the U.P., on Thursday night at Lakeview Memorial Gymnasium.

In the process, the Miners became the one and only U.P. high school team with an undefeated basketball season for either the boys or girls version of the sport.

Negaunee now heads into the MHSAA Division 2 district tournament at home at 6 p.m. Wednesday night to face the winner of Monday’s opening-round game between Escanaba and Kingsford that will be played at the Eskymos gym.

Gladstone is in the other half of the same Division 2 district and hosts Houghton at 6 p.m. Wednesday.

The Negaunee High School varsity girls basketball team, including head coach Mike O’Donnell at left, point out what number they are after defeating Gladstone 58-44 on Thursday at Lakeview Memorial Gymnasium in Negaunee to finish off a perfect 21-0 regular season. (Journal photo by Caden Sierra)

Winners of those Wednesday games meet for the district championship at either Negaunee, Escanaba or Kingsford at 6 p.m. Friday.

On Thursday, the Braves suffered just their second loss in an otherwise sterling 20-2 season — both coming to Negaunee, the earlier loss 45-28 at home on Jan. 28.

“It’s a testament to the girls’ buy-in…. They work hard, do the right things and … you’ll get rewarded,” Miners head coach Mike O’Donnell said. “… Locked in for a 21-game slate over the course of three-plus months is tough. It’s a hard thing to do, and there’s a reason it doesn’t get done a whole lot.”

Negaunee had the maximum 22 games on its original schedule, but a home game at Manistique scheduled just before the first Gladstone game was postponed due to weather and was unable to be made up.

Thursday’s game was a highly anticipated matchup between the No. 1 and No. 2 girls teams in Divisions 1-3 in just about all the weekly polls conducted by the U.P. Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association this winter.

And it lived up to those expectations, with both squads battling back and forth in the first half.

The Miners’ Madison Pekrul got things rolling with an opening basket, but Gladstone’s Lillie Johnson responded immediately with an and-one opportunity.

Clare O’Donnell finished inside for Negaunee before Addy Blowers answered for the Braves with a layup of her own, setting the tone for a tight first quarter. The Miners found a slight edge after a buzzer-beater by Gretel Johnson, giving them a 13-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The second period saw the Braves surge ahead thanks to sharpshooting and aggressive defense. Lillie Johnson knocked down a 3-pointer to give Gladstone a 15-13 lead, then added a steal and fastbreak layup moments later.

The Braves’ defensive pressure forced Negaunee into difficult outside shots, but the Miners stayed within striking distance by capitalizing on second-chance opportunities. Late buckets from Pekrul and O’Donnell helped Negaunee keep pace, but Lillie Johnson’s clutch free throws just before halftime gave Gladstone a slim 25-24 lead headed into the break.

“I think we played some pretty good defense until the last few minutes,” Gladstone head coach Andy Cretens said about the first half. “But we gave up way too many offensive rebounds, and that was the difference-maker.”

In the second half, the Miners began to impose their will on the glass, a trend that would prove decisive down the stretch. Lillie Johnson opened the second half with another 3-pointer for the Braves, but Negaunee responded with a balanced attack.

O’Donnell and Keira Waterman each got to the free throw line and converted to keep the Miners within one. Then with under two minutes left in the third, Aubrey Johnson drilled a huge 3-pointer to put Negaunee ahead 35-34. Another late bucket from O’Donnell helped extend the Miners’ lead to 40-36 entering the final frame.

The fourth quarter was all Negaunee, as its depth and rebounding dominance took center stage. Waterman muscled inside for a layup, and O’Donnell delivered a crucial and-one play, stretching the home team’s lead to double digits, 47-37, with 4:30 to play.

Aubrey Johnson then put the game out of reach, knocking down back-to-back 3-pointers to push Negaunee over the 50-point mark. Despite a late push from Lillie Johnson and Blowers, the Braves couldn’t overcome the deficit.

The Miners’ balanced scoring proved crucial, with four players reaching double figures — Pekrul led NHS with 12 points, followed by Gretel Johnson with 11, and O’Donnell and Aubrey Johnson each with 10.

Meanwhile, the Braves leaned heavily on Lillie Johnson, who finished with a game-high 21 points.

“We’re glad to have a game like this before playoffs,” Cretens said. “Our last few games have been very lopsided games. We’ve won by quite a bit in our last couple games, so it’s nice to play a competitive team, and hopefully we get to see them again next Friday (in the) finals.”

Caden Sierra can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 551. His email address is csierra@nmu.edu.