Vandercook Lake High School Boys Basketball Program

Let’s go!!

“Playoffs or Bust” for Vandercook Lake in 2026 Season Photos by Hannah Tacy & Henry Black, JTV Sports Trey Richmond | JTV Sports Wednesday August 12th   (8-12-2026, 12:00PM): Following a 3-6 record in 2025, the Jayhawks look to build consistency and make the playoffs for the first time since 2016. This is Dan Midena’s fourth year coaching for Vander...

We’re excited to announce that on February 20, 2027, we’ll be traveling to Knightstown, Indiana, to play at the historic gymnasium where the movie Hoosiers was filmed!

Our JV and Varsity teams will take on the Grass Lake Warriors.

🏀 Game Times
• JV – 3:00 PM
• Varsity – 4:30 PM

We’re still finalizing a few details regarding pricing, but here’s what we know so far:

🚌 We’ll be traveling on a Blue Lakes 56-passenger charter bus, departing from Vandercook Lake High School at 10:00 AM and returning at approximately 11:30 PM that evening.

Parents will have the opportunity to purchase a seat and ride with the team. Space will be limited, and tickets will become available in November on a first-come, first-served basis. Payment must be made through the high school office to reserve your seat.

We have been incredibly blessed by the unwavering support of our community and alumni over the years. Because of that support, we’ve been able to create unforgettable experiences and lifelong memories for so many of our student-athletes.

When you stop and think about everything this program has accomplished—the places we’ve played, the opportunities we’ve had, and the memories we’ve made—it’s truly humbling.

I can’t thank everyone enough. Having the opportunity to lead, mentor, and empower our young people has been one of the greatest privileges of my life. It has brought some of the most rewarding—and at times most challenging—moments, and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

A reminder for all of us:

“Servant leadership is about putting the needs of others first and empowering them to achieve their goals. As a leader, your success is measured not by your own accomplishments, but by the success of those you serve.”

Thank you for believing in our program and our kids.

Go Jayhawks!

Golf outing is coming soon! 9 team spots left! Don’t miss out!!
Today we received one heck of a donation to our program from a good friend of mine! John Yu at Pro Sports Zone in Livonia. He was very generous to us! If you’re a Michigan fan football or basketball…..YU DO NOT WANT TO MISS THIS!
Bo Schembechler, Dusty May, Devin Bush autographed and each one custom framed!

Incredible donation by John! I can’t THANK YU enough!
It’s a great reminder to support those who support you!

If you need any jerseys, swag or pretty much anything sports related Pro Sports Zone is the spot!

🚨EXCITING TIMES COMING UP🚨

We have some exciting road trips planned for our 2026-2027 season!

We will disclose one today and one tomorrow!!

Today’s news- We will be playing East Jackson again at Little Caesars Arena. The date is TBD but we have secured our spot. This will be a varsity only event.

Tomorrow’s announcement will be a little more interesting! This will be a JV & Varsity event!

We will have to take a 3.5 hour bus ride out of state on a Saturday morning! We can’t wait to share the info tomorrow!

"If you put your effort and concentration into playing to your potential... I don't care what the scoreboard says... In my book, we're gonna be winners!".

Mr Powers was a tremendous person who always treated people with respect!

He was also one of the most hard nosed competitors I’ve ever been around.
Thank you for everything that you did for not only me as a student, but for the entire community my friend!

https://www.desnoyerfuneralhome.com/obituaries/john-pete-powers?fbclid=IwZnRzaAS2j1FwZG9mAWZkaWQWUJ-1elKh9J1MfEquFbjgugAnRex-SGV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkCjY2Mjg1NjgzNzkAAR7mZrjwdP1HY57TQibjilwO6gSOhZBMNLpqRNIamvwjxwcr4rs3QjbLg8yh3A_aem_SyQwHUAGdO-OY3eFiLTO5w

John "Pete" F. Powers Obituary Jun 29, 2026 - Desnoyer Funeral Home View John "Pete" F. Powers's obituary, send flowers, find service dates, and sign the guestbook.

While I am proud of the locker room that we have built and transformed for our program, I always try to remind myself that we can always do more with the right support.

I just wanted to share the photos of a B1G basketball locker room that I spent some time in while umpiring baseball at Rutgers this year.

It’s absolutely incredible, and a cool little sneak peak at what a Big Ten locker room looks like.

Just incredible from top to bottom.

🤞LONG POST 🚨 BUT A MUST READ

Last night at open gym we stopped and had a conversation at half court about the projections of this upcoming season. Our coaching staff gave your student athletes who were present the most honest assessment of what is going to come in the next 5 months in regards to who’s getting playing time and not getting playing time.

1. We are projecting numbers to be better than we’ve ever had which is great.

2. With those projected numbers comes competition, with competition comes choices for our staff.

If you think because you’re a junior or senior you’re guaranteed something. That’s just not going to be the case. You are going to have to prove yourself and earn it every single day in the classroom, hallways, in the public setting and in practice.

I’ll get this out of the way early here in June also. There will be juniors playing on JV and there will be opportunities for incoming freshman and sophomore’s to earn a spot on varsity. If you can check all of the boxes we need checked you’ll be on the varsity squad.

If I bring you up as a freshman or sophomore you will play.

I cannot reiterate the importance of competing every single time you wake up. Mindsets need to change dramatically in our program. We need to understand the reality of “You get what you earn”.

Example: Yesterday we had a team competition, loser runs a double su***de.

Team A won- so they didn’t have to run the double su***de. So they watched Team B run , after Team B finished their running, Team A then earned the right to run 17 touches side to side which is much harder than a double su***de.
They thought I had lost my mind, they won. Why are we running? Answer- You earned the right to do more work and be better than Team B. Take this opportunity and bust your butt. Maybe you’ll win bigger the next time because of this….Again, this is all about mindset.

We want and have wanted the competition and numbers as a staff. Now we have it…
Now we need a flip in mindset from the parents and kids. Everyone needs to understand the importance of realistic goals, showing up on time and competing.

Last thing I’ll add since it’s summer. Competitors don’t wake up at 11am or noon, if you’re doing that. You’ve already lost the day because everyone else has already put their work in while you’ve slept half the day away.

BE REALISTIC

Reminder

Open gym 6/15 & 6/16 4-5:30pm

OPEN GYM for boys in grades 9-12
Monday and Tuesday 6/8 & 6/9 from 4:30-6:00pm

We will have a scrimmage vs East Jackson and Grads Lake on 6/11 for Varsity boys only starting at 5pm until 7:00pm.

(Only players who are capable of competing at the Varsity level will be asked to play)

The open gyms on Monday and Tuesday are a great opportunity for incoming freshman and sophomore’s to come out and showcase your talents.
We look forward to seeing everyone!!