All the area personnel will, of course, being on the Northern Michigan side, which generally includes players from all over the Upper Peninsula. Northern Wisconsin is a less specific area but usually covers the northern third or half of the Badger State.

The games remain at its home at the Lindquist Center at Gogebic Community College. Times are 6 p.m. EDT for the girls game and 7:30 p.m. EDT for the boys.

Fans in the U.P.’s west end and nearby areas of Wisconsin may be getting their first look at the coaching style of Ishpeming head coach and Associated Press Michigan Division 4 Coach of the Year Ryan Reichel.

Also voted as the U.P. D-4 Coach of the Year by the U.P. Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association during that group’s annual voting, Reichel led the Hematites to their first girls basketball state championship when they defeated Kingston 73-54 in the state title game played in East Lansing on March 23, a game they trailed by double digits in the early going.

From left, Negaunee's Ella Mason is guarded closely by Detroit Edison’s Devin Hagemann as the Miners’ Clare O’Donnell stands behind them during their MHSAA Division 2 state semifinal girls basketball game played at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center in East Lansing on March 22. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)

With this game, like other all-star games, only including already graduated seniors, just one member of the Ishpeming championship team will join Reichel in Ironwood — Jenna Maki. But she’ll provide plenty of star power for Northern Michigan as she was all-state in Division 4 and runner-up in voting for Miss Upper Peninsula Basketball by the UPSSA.

That winner? Ella Mason of Negaunee, who will also be at tonight’s game as her team’s lone representative.

On the same weekend that the Hematites were winning their state title, the Miners made it all the way to the Division 2 semifinals before bowing out to eventual state champion Detroit Edison.

Mason, who has signed to play at Michigan Tech and broke the Negaunee all-time scoring record during the team’s tourney run to East Lansing, scored 25 points in the Miners’ 63-46 loss to Edison, while Maki scored 24 points in the D-4 finals, two days after scoring 30 points in their semifinal win over Fowler.

That pair will be joined by eight other Yoopers, including two who are also from Marquette County — Megan Marta of Westwood and Kyley Elmblad of Marquette.

Negaunee's Gavin Saunders, left, tries to work his way around Kingsford defender Jack Kriegl during their high school boys basketball game played at Lakeview Memorial Gymnasium in Negaunee on Dec. 29. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)

Marta, who will be playing at Northern Michigan University this fall, was voted to the All-U.P. Dream Team in Divisions 1-3 after earning top honors in both the West PAC and Mid-Peninsula Conference.

Elmblad, the Sentinels’ top center, made the All-U.P. Second Team in D 1-3 and was First Team in the Great Northern Conference, averaging more than 14 points and nine rebounds per game last season.

The balance of the U.P. all-stars are Anna Axtell of Menominee, Keira Maki of Escanaba, Danica Shamion of West Iron County, Brooke Stanislawski of Bessemer and Lauren Zawada of Bark River-Harris.

The 10-strong Northern Michigan boys team only includes two area players, but there are two others who will be coming to play on sports at NMU, one in basketball, the other in football.

The local residents are Gavin Saunders of Negaunee and Andrew Niemi of Westwood.

Ishpeming's Jenna Maki, center, goes up for a shot and scores two points over Fowler’s Elizabeth Hufnagel, right, during their MHSAA Division 4 state semifinal girls basketball game played at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center in East Lansing on March 21. (Photo courtesy Cara Kamps)

Saunders was an All-U.P. First Team pick in Divisions 1-3, leading the 15-8 Miners as he was also top honor teams in the West PAC and M-PC, along with those conferences’ Defensive Teams.

Niemi was an All-U.P. Second Teamer after he averaged 16 points and five rebounds a game, making West PAC and M-PC First Teams.

Northern Michigan team members coming to NMU include Jonny Ingalls of St. Ignace, who was not only voted Mr. U.P. Basketball in All-U.P. voting, but the Michigan AP Player of the Year in Division 4. He became the ninth player in U.P. history to reach 2,000 career points this past season, too.

Though he isn’t coming to NMU, an “honorable mention” in this category could be argued for the Northern Michigan team coach, Doug Ingalls, the Saints’ coach and Jonny’s father, who is also retiring after a quarter century leading the St. Ignace bench.

Also coming to play at NMU — but in football — from the Northern Michigan unit is Trevor Theuerkauf of Menominee, who was a key cog in the Maroons’ trip to the MHSAA Division 3 quarterfinals in basketball. That came a few months after Theuerkauf quarterbacked Menominee to the Divison 7 state finals in 11-player football.

The remainder of the nine Michigan players are Theuerkauf’s teammate Connor Coduti, Ingalls’ teammate Ethan McLean, along with Alex Ortman of Norway, Gabe Popko of Lake Linden-Hubbell and Matthew Schutz of Jeffers.

The Northern Wisconsin boys include Will Gretzinger of Rhinelander, Gunnar Greul of Winter, Isaiah Kastern of Solon Springs, TJ Lamb of Almond-Bancroft, Domanyck Schwarzenberger of Bloomer, Brady Stewart of Thorp, Joseph Streveler of Colby, Noah Weier of Bonduel and Toby Volkmann of Three Lakes.

That team will be coached by Curt Lamb of Almond-Bancroft.

The Northern Wisconsin girls are Mackenzie Tarman of Turtle Lake, Jaana Aukee of Hurley, Lauren Hetfeld of Webster, Mia Ott of Merrill, Lily Treder of Rhinelander, Abby Cole of Winnebago Lutheran, Hailey Zernickle of Bonduel, Avery Poppe of Hayward and Scout Spadoni of Amherst.

That unit will be coached by Keefe Tarman of Turtle Lake

Information for this story provided by Ironwood Globe sports editor Jason Juno. Steve Brownlee can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 552. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.