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Highland Park boys improve to 17-0 with 95-53 Meadowlark win over KC-Sumner
By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
The Highland Park Scots don’t have much time to celebrate Friday night’s 95-53 blitzing of Sumner Academy. They will return to their home court on Saturday to take on Atchison in a makeup game.
Senior Ja'Corey Robinson led all scorers with 30 points in Friday's 95-53 Highland Park win over KC-Sumner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
The flexibility of Mike Williams’ Scots is being tested in an odd stretch. After playing on February 10, the Scots went 11 days without a game. Weather restricted their practice time. Now, beginning with the Sumner blowout, they will play four times in an eight-day stretch.
“I think anybody who’s been coaching around Topeka or Kansas, you kind of expect with the winter months, there’s going to be some kind of shutdown sooner or later,” Williams said. “I tell our kids they’ve got to be fluid. They’ve got to flow with it.
“And I’ve got to make sure that when we get gym time, we take advantage of it. It’s causing our kids to make sure, day in and day out, that we bring it.”
The Scots brought it to Sumner Academy Friday, with a running clock the only thing that kept them from blowing past the 100-point mark.
Senior Mikey Williams scored 21 points in Friday's 95-53 Highland Park win over KC-Sumner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Highland Park senior Isaiah Kelley scored 16 points in Friday's 95-53 win over KC-Sumner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Jacorey Robinson tossed in 30 points while missing just five shots from the field. Mikey Williams scored 21 and Isaiah Kelley added 16.
Senior Da'Mykel Hales scored 15 points on five 3-pointers in Friday's 95-53 Highland Park win over KC-Sumner. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Dropping in five 3-pointers for 15 points was senior Da’Mykel Hales, who transferred to Highland Park after playing three seasons at Topeka High.
“I felt like (Highland Park) was a better fit and better for my career,” Hales said. “They brought me in and treated me well. They gave me a role and helped me to get better every day.”
Rural boys clinch Centennial League title, but focused on final two regular-season tilts
By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn Rural boys basketball wrapped up the Centennial League championship with Friday's 55-42 home win over Hayden, but there was zero celebrating.
Junior Simon Rowley led Washburn Rural with 17 points in Friday's 55-42 Centennial League win over Hayden. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
That will come later.
Washburn Rural, which improved to 14-4 overall and a perfect 8-0 in the league, has Centennial road games at Topeka High on Tuesday and Manhattan on Friday and Junior Blues coach Alex Hutchins wants his team concentrating on that and nothing else.
"We've still got two more league games and we'll talk about it after that,'' Hutchins said of the title. "All we're worried about is the next two league games.''
Hayden (10-8, 4-5) scored the first basket of Friday's game, but that was the Wildcats' only lead of the night as the Junior Blues opened up a 16-10 first-quarter advantage and led 32-24 at the half.
The seventh-ranked (Class 4A) Wildcats stayed within striking distance throughout the third stanza, but got no closer than six in the quarter and trailed by nine points (40-31) at the start of the fourth.
Washburn Rural scored the first two buckets of the final quarter, going in front 44-31 on a Kaden Ballard hoop with 6:01 remaining, and put the game away with a Draden Chooncharoen 3-pointer at the 3:07 mark that gave the Junior Blues a 49-35 advantage.
Hayden got no closer than nine the rest of the way while Rural led by 15 late.
Senior Kaden Ballard scored 13 points in Friday's 55-42 Centennial League win over Hayden. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
Junior Simon Rowley led the Junior Blues with a game-high 17 points while Ballard, a senior, added 13 points and junior John Hoytal 10.
Darting earns 600th win as Heights boys roll past KC-Turner
By NICHOLAS GAINEY
Special to TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights boys basketball coach Ken Darting picked up the 600th win of his illustrious career as the Thunderbirds ran past Kansas City-Turner 85-33 on a special Friday night at Shawnee Heights.
Veteran Shawnee Heights basketball coach Ken Darting picked up his 600th career coaching win Friday night in a UKC win over KC-Turner. [Photo by Nichols Gainey/Special to TSN]
The hosts found themselves in an early hole after an opening 3-pointer from Turner’s Jaron Cheatom and a layup from Mekhi Follick, but the T-Birds rattled off 20 straight points to take control of the contest.
Shawnee Heights forced nine turnovers from the visitors in the first quarter, leading to easy baskets at the offensive end.
The T-Birds also crashed the offensive glass, with Cam Ross cleaning up a miss with a putback layup as time expired to give the hosts a 22-8 lead after eight minutes of play.
The Thunderbirds continued their offensive hot streak in the second quarter, starting the frame with a three-point play from Jaret Sanchez.
Shawnee Heights used a balanced attack, as six different players found the scoresheet in the 25-point period. After taking a 47-21 lead at half, the T-Birds put the contest out of reach in the third quarter with an offensive showcase, including an 18-point quarter from Sanchez.
The senior big man caused problems inside and out for the Golden Bears, knocking down three triples and throwing down two fastbreak dunks in the period as Shawnee Heights took a 76-28 lead after three quarters.
As the clock wound down in the fourth quarter, the crowd began to celebrate Darting’s accomplishment. With less than a minute to play, each member of the Shawnee Heights student section held up a “600” sign and chants of “600!” filled the gym.
Sanchez led the T-Birds with 31 points on 12 of 17 shooting, going a perfect 4 for 4 from the charity stripe. Ross added 16 points while Deacon Pomeroy chipped in 12 points and five rebounds. Da’Quan Lee put up 10 points off the bench.
