It's hard to believe it's almost the end of January.

And thankfully unlike last January we've already been able to play actual games and not have the season start in February.

From the start ofbasketball games being played this season (late November) until now, we've had some teams impress, while others haven't quite found their footingjust yet.

So, I've decided to go through what teams I've been impressed with so far.

These aren't power rankings or anything like that, but it will put together bothboys and girls basketball teams who havedelivered the most on the court so far. Thankfully, we've quite a few teams that have stood out so far.

Mackinaw City Girls Still undefeated, still dominating their conference, and still playing with so much fluidity, unselfishness and confidence, the Lady Comets check in at the top. Already with so manydouble-digit victories under their belt, Mackinaw City has crushed just about every opponent its faced this season.

The first real testfor the Comets came in a clash against Cedarville-DeTour at home last week. Cedarville-DeTour actually handled the Comets in a win last year, but the Mackinaw City girls got the upper hand this time around, thumping them with a double-digit victory.

Whether it's been the dominant post presence of junior Madison Smith, the stellar guard play of fellow juniors Marlie Postula and Larissa Huffman, or atremendous supporting cast, the Comets lookpoised to not only record another unbeaten Northern Lakes Conference campaign, but challenge for that elusive regional title they've been craving for years.

There's still plenty of work to be done, but the NLC looks like it's going to Mackinaw City once again.

Once we hit the end of February, we can really start talking about how far this team can go.

Right now, the Cometsjust continue to do their thing until that time comes. With the exception of possibly St. Ignace, I don't see where the Comets will slip up in theregular season. Like Cedarville-DeTour, that'll be another great matchup to watch.

Onaway Boys Oh, yes, the Mackinaw City girls have some company at the top.

I couldn't pick one over the other here because bothteams have been incredible so far, both are insanely talented, both are in the driver's seat to capture a conference crown, and both are, of course, undefeated.

I don't think I or Onaway head coach Eddy Szymoniak, for that matter ever thought the Cardinals would start this season out 9-0.

But here we are with the Cardinals, who have benefitted from the return of senior center Jager Mix, a player who was just out for nine months because of aknee injury. What a memorable night it was for Mix last Friday night (Jan. 24), when he became the most recent Onaway playerto surpass 1,000points for his career.

But if you thought Mix was the only star on this Onaway team coming in, think again.

There's lots of them.

How about the emergence of junior guard Bridger Peel, who's become one of the team's top scorers. Or the smooth play of sophomore guard Austin Veal, who's transformed into a deadly perimeter shooter and a gritty defender as well. Or the strong two-way play of sophomore guard Jadin Mix, another capable shooter and tenacious defender. In addition to Jager Mix's experience, the Cardinals have another two-way talent in seniorHunter Riley, who's shown an ability to knock down a big shot andgive a good offensive opponent problems defensively.

I always thought the Cardinals would be a good team, but I didn't imagine them being this good. There's still so much work to be done, but if this Onaway team continues to play at this level, they're going to win something. Or maybe a few things, who knows.

Either way, they've been so fun to watch so far. May it long continue.

Mackinaw City Boys I had no idea what the Mackinaw City boys would look like without arguably the best player in theschool's history Kal O'Brien graduating last season.

Butthe Comets have really done a good job of compensating for O'Brien, an all-state performer a season ago.

The junior guard tandem of Lars Huffman and Cooper Whipkey has really stood out so far, with Huffman being more of the aggressive driver-to-the-basket type players and Whipkey being the deadly outside shooter. Either way, each have helped the Comets get off to a decent start in the Northern Lakes Conference.

Mackinaw City has also been helped out by players like Lucas Bergstrom, Noah Valot, Trystan Swanson and many others, who have all made nice team contributions throughout the campaign. If Mackinaw City's supporting cast continues to improve, the Cometscould be a tough out come postseason time.

While the Comets did suffer a tough loss to NLC favorite Ellsworth earlier this winter, they'll still have a shot to knock them off in a rematch when that time comes.

That game is one I really don't want to miss, because it'll basically determine the conference again. So buckle up with the Comets!

Inland Lakes Girls After a slow start to the season, head coach Daryl Vizina's squad has really shown improvement, compiling victories in five of their last seven games.

Behind the terrific play of junior guard Natalie Wandrie, the Bulldogs went on a five-game winning streak to help put them near the stop of the Ski Valley Conference standings.

Although the offense struggled in a recent loss at Cheboygan, the Bulldogs bounced back a couple days later with a dominating win at Central Lake. The Bulldogs also showed they can hang with the top of the Ski Valley aftermaking things interesting against the Gaylord St. Mary Snowbirds, despite suffering defeat.

Wandrie has been the standout for the Bulldogs, but they also have other weapons to go to. Offensively, seniors Alyssa Byrne and Olivia Monthei have shown they're solid shooters, while junior forward Hannah Robinson has impressed defensively.

They'll be another team to keep an eye on once the postseason arrives.

Plenty of potential

Cheboygan Boys The Chiefs don't have the best record right now at 2-7, but they recently had their best performance of the season in a narrow 52-51 home loss to rival St. Ignace.

This was the tightest game I've covered all season and, while it didn't go Cheboygan's way, I came out of it so impressed with the fight and grit the Chiefs showed.

The key now for head coach Jason Friday and his players will be building off it and turning things around.

The Chiefs have plenty of talent at their disposal, led by seniors Henry Stempky, David Heyer and Carson Mercer, so they're more than capable of getting hot at some point and maybe pull off an upset along the way.

Inland Lakes Boys The start to the winter wasn't a good one for Lee Nash's Bulldogs, but they've really started to come along herethe last few weeks.

About a week-and-a-half ago, the Bulldogs battled against a terrific Onaway team, and now it appears they're starting to find their stride, especially offensively.

One of the standout performers has been sophomore Sam Schoonmaker, whose scoring and rebounding numbers have been strong.

Inland Lakes also has experience with seniors Austin Brege and Andrew Kolly, while junior Connor Knight, sophomore Payton Teuthorn and a few others have also made their impact known.

This could be one of those surprise teams come postseason time, so we'll see if the Bulldogs can keep improving.

Others to keep an eye on: Cheboygan Girls, Onaway Girls, Pellston Boys, Pellston Girls

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Area hoops teams who have impressed so far - Cheboygan Daily Tribune