HANNAHVILLE — Mike Lovell’s varsity coaching debut became successful here Tuesday night, guiding the Superior Central boys to a 57-42 basketball triumph over the Hannahville Soaring Eagles.

The Cougars led 47-42 with less than three minutes remaining in this Central U.P. Conference opener before scoring the final 10 points.

“It was exciting,” he said. “It was the first game for everybody and I was a little nervous. Our guys are working hard. This shows they can finish. Both teams showed potential.”

Eli Valima began the decisive run with a pair of free throws.

Andrew Charlebois added a layup and Valima hit a lay-in and a putback for a 55-47 advantage. Ryder Kroupa then sank a floater to end the scoring.

“They had a lot of second chance opportunities,” Hannahville coach Jon Bintner said. “We definitely didn’t rebound well. We gave them too many chances. We’re still not at full strength, although that’s not an excuse. We also need to move the ball better. We settled for first jump shots too many times.”

A layup by Valima gave the Cougars a 41-33 cushion near the end of the third quarter.

The Soaring Eagles shaved their deficit to 43-38 and were still within 47-42 after sophomore Keenan Smith scored on a layup.

Kroupa hit a layup to give the Cougars a 24-22 lead 25 seconds before halftime.

Hannahville tied the score at 28 on a 22-foot set shot by Dawson Lea early in the third stanza before Superior Central grabbed the lead for good with a pair of gifters.

The Soaring Eagles then got within 32-31 on a 22-foot set shot from the right wing by Dawson Lea midway through the third before the Cougars began to widen their lead.

“We got a lot of second-chance points which helped us a lot,” Lovell said. “We had five guys with seven rebounds or more. They took good care of the ball which is something we need to work on.”

Hannahville led 8-2 after the opening frame before Superior Central answered with a 12-2 run.

The Cougars gained a 14-10 lead on a steal and layup by Charlebois midway through the second.

Superior Central extended its lead to 19-12 when Gavin Vining converted an offensive rebound into a lay-in.

Hannahville regained the lead at 22-20 on Mondo Sagataw’s jumper from top of the key 53 seconds prior to the intermission.

The Cougars then tied the score before Kroupa’s layup sent them ahead before the half.

Valima was Superior Central’s scoring leader with 18 points. Charlebois added 17 and Kroupa had 12.

Superior Central committed 19 turnovers and Hannahville had eight.

Sophomore Leland Anziano paced the Soaring Eagles with 12 points and senior Sam Beaver finished with 10.

“Most of these kids aren’t used to working together,” Bintner said. “I know this is a game that counts, but it was almost like a scrimmage in a way. Although this gave us a chance to see some live action against another team. There’s going to be a lot of learning curves.”

The Cougars, who won the jayvee game, resume in the Battle at the Bridge tournament at Mackinaw City where they’ll face Cedarville-DeTour Friday at 5:30 p.m. and will meet the host Comets or Mio-AuSable Saturday at 1 or 3 p.m.

Hannahville is idle until Dec. 11 when it hosts Rock Mid Peninsula.

Superior Central 2 22 17 16 — 57

Hannahville 8 14 11 9 — 42

Superior Central — Charlebois 17, Spranger 4, Tanner 2, Valima 18, Vining 4, Kroupa 12. FT: 5-9; F: 12; Fouled out: None; 3-point field goals: Kroupa 2, Charlebois.

Hannahville — Sagataw 3, Anziano 12, Arteaga 5, M.J. Smith 5, Beaver 10, K. Smith 2, Trudeau 2, Lea 3. FT: 6-8; F: 12; Fouled out: None; 3-point field goals: Anziano, Arteaga, M.J. Smith, Beaver, Lea.