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No. 4-ranked Ichabods bounce back from back-to-back losses with 93-72 romp past UCO
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Most any team in the country would be envious of Washburn University's 22-2 start to the 2024-2025 season.
But after suffering back-to-back road losses that snapped the Ichabods' 22-game winning streak, WU was looking for a bounce back Thursday night in Lee Arena.
And the No. 4-ranked Ichabods got just that, shooting a blistering 64 percent from the field in the second half in a 93-72 MIAA win over Central Oklahoma.
Washburn sophomore Brayden Shorter (20) led all scorers with 25 points in Thursday's 93-72 home MIAA win over Central Oklahoma. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Senior Jacob Hanna scored 22 points for Washburn in Thursday's 93-72 win over Central Oklahoma. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
"It's kind of funny how quickly expectations can change,'' Washburn coach Brett Ballard said. "And if I would have told anybody associated with our program that we were going to be 22-2 coming into this game everybody would have been like, 'Holy cow, you're having the most amazing year.'
"But with what happened last week, sometimes outside of our bubble people thought a certain thing. I think our guys were disappointed by it, but we came back and had three really good practices this week. I was really proud of the intent and I thought we learned from that and it doesn't mean you're going to come out and play well, but I did think we had a great intensity and a want to and a compete to us tonight.''
Sophomore Brayden Shorter, who led Washburn with a game-high 25 points, agreed that Thursday was a good bounce-back performance.
"We emphasized that all week in practice,'' Shorter said. "I feel like our practices have been a lot more turned up, with a lot more energy in practices. Not that we weren't having good practices, we were just on a 22-game win streak and sometimes you just let off the gas a little bit and I think we did a good job coming out tonight of getting back to what we do.''
Washburn (23-2 overall, 14-2 MIAA) trailed for only 26 seconds in the game as UCO (14-11, 8-8) jumped out to a 5-2 lead after the Ichabods scored the first two points of the game.
Washburn women clinch winning 2024-2025 season with 64-52 decision over Hillcats
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University women's basketball struggled on and off throughout Saturday's home finale against seven-win Rogers State.
Junior Payton Sterk scored a game-high 24 points in Washburn's 64-52 Saturday MIAA win over Rogers State. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Freshman Brooke Gomez had eight points, a career-high 11 rebounds and five assists in Saturday's 64-52 Washburn win over Rogers State. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
But in a clear sign of how far the WU program has progressed, the Ichabods were still able to post a double-digit MIAA victory, taking a 64-52 win in Lee Arena.
"It was just one of those days,'' Washburn coach Lora Westling said. "We struggled taking care of the ball. We struggled with some things we usually don't and we just kind of struggled to get going, but we got enough done."
With the win Washburn improved to 16-11 overall and 10-7 in the MIAA with their third straight victory while clinching a winning 2024-2025 campaign, picking up a big win in a game WU might not have won a year ago.
"We don't win that game (last season) I don't think,'' Westling said. "We don't win that game three months ago, so this is a group that has everything going in the right direction. You're going to have ugly wins sometimes and we'll take that. You want them all to be pretty, but they're not.''
The Hillcats (7-19, 1-16) jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead, but the next nine points were all scored by Washburn, with the Ichabods going in front 11-5 at the 6:07 mark after junior Gabi Giovannetti got a jumper to fall. The Ichabod offense worked efficiently in the first quarter, shooting 8-15 to lead 20-13 after one.
Washburn pushed the lead into double digits after a free throw by Giovannetti early in the second. Both teams traded baskets the rest of the way as the Ichabod offense cooled off from the first quarter.
Rogers State cut the lead down to just five points at the 3:22 mark and once again with just over a minute left in the half. Freshman Brooke Gomez ended the frame with a driving layup to make it 31-24 WU after 20 minutes.
Two straight baskets by junior Payton Sterk, the second off a steal, began a 6-0 Washburn run that put the Ichabods in front by 14 at the 5:24 mark in the third stanza.
Washburn got to the free throw line, shooting eight free throws in the quarter and making six to keep the lead in double digits into the final two minutes. The Hillcats then went on a 4-0 run in the final 35 seconds of the quarter to pull within eight at 48-40 going into the fourth.
Shawnee Heights builds 18-point lead, holds on for 53-48 UKC win over Basehor-Linwood
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
In its previous two games Shawnee Heights girls basketball dug itself a first-half hole en route to United Kansas Conference losses to state-ranked Seaman and De Soto.
Shawnee Heights sophomore KK Emmot (1) led the way with 22 points in Wednesday's 53-48 UKC win over Basehor-Linwood. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The T-Birds flipped the script Wednesday night, dominating the opening half before holding off Basehor-Linwood for a 53-48 home UKC win.
"The biggest part of it was just finding a way to grind it out and win,'' Shawnee Heights coach Bob Wells said. "After having this week of no practice, and then coming out and playing, you never know what you're going to get, but this is what we needed to kind of get over the hump and get through the week with this crazy weather.
"We had a tough week last week playing Seaman and De Soto, which I thought we competed well in those games, but we could never get over the hump, so this is big.''
Shawnee Heights, which improved to 12-6 overall and 9-5 in the UKC, led by as many as 18 points in the first half, but Basehor-Linwood (9-8, 8-5) scored the final eight points of the half and opened the third quarter with a 13-2 run to briefly take a one-point advantage and set the stage for a nail-biter the rest of the way.
The T-Birds led 17-13 at the end of the first quarter and built a 34-16 cushion with 2:18 left in the half on a KK Emmot hoop, but Heights was held scoreless the remainder of the half as the Bobcats cut their deficit to 34-24.
Basehor-Linwood continued to rally in the third quarter, holding the T-Birds to just two points over the first five minutes-plus en route to taking a brief 37-36 lead at the 3:10 mark on a 3-pointer from junior Alaina Schwisow.
Shawnee Heights fought right back, however, with senior Haley Bowers connecting on a 3-pointer with 2:18 left in the third to put Heights back in front before both teams were held scoreless over the remainder of the stanza.
