By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
The boys basketball teams from Topeka West and Seaman couldn’t be much more evenly matched, judging by their two United Kansas Conferencee meetings this season.
Junior Malakyah Duncan (12) hit the game-winning free throws with 8.5 seconds remaining, giving Topeka West a 59-57 UKC win at Seaman. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Avenging a 60-57 loss at Topeka West in mid-December, the Chargers went to Seaman Tuesday night and won in the final seconds, 59-57.
After falling into a huge hole early, the Chargers crept back, taking their first lead of the night with 1:20 left in the third period. The teams swapped leads until Seaman junior sharpshooter Landon Wiltz dropped in a shot from about 35 feet from the basket to tie it at 57-57 with 50 seconds remaining.
Topeka West junior playmaker Malakyah Duncan attacked the goal and drew a foul with 8.5 seconds left. He nailed both free throws to give the Chargers the come-from-behind win.
The win lifted Topeka West to 4-2 on the season and also in the UKC. Seaman dropped to 5-2 overall and in the conference. Seaman was ranked seventh in the latest Kansas Basketball Coaches Association Class 5A rankings, while the Chargers were eighth.
“This was huge, not just for the UKC standings but also sub-state,” first-year Topeka West coach Christan Ulsaker said. “Anytime you can notch a win against the team that you’re kind of battling for a home court (playoff) game, it’s a plus.”
A team can’t start a game much hotter than Seaman did Tuesday. The Vikings hit 10 of 13 attempts in the first period, including five 3-pointers. They bolted to a 26-12 lead that could have demoralized the visiting Chargers.
“I wanted to start hot, but that wasn’t the case,” Ulsaker said. “I told them at the end of the first quarter that basketball is a game of runs. They’ve heard it a thousand times from me that if you can withstand their runs, we’d make our own.
“Seaman is so well coached. They got some great players in (KaeVon) Bonner and (Bryer) Finley and our guys really stepped up and took it to them throughout the game.”
Seaman junior KaeVon Bonner (3) led Seaman with 19 points in Tuesday's 59-57 UKC loss to Topeka West. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Bonner led all scorers with 19 points. Finley added 17. But the Chargers mixed up their defense and clawed their way back.
Junior Keimani Paul (13) led Topeka West with 17 points in Tuesday's 59-57 road win at Seaman. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Duncan finished the game with 14 points, trailing fellow junior Keimani Paul who netted 17 for the Chargers by hitting seven of nine attempts.
The 6-foot-4 Duncan spent a lot of the game attacking Seaman from the point guard spot.
“You’ve got to stay composed. You’ve got to stay in the game. Don’t put your head down and just make runs,” Duncan said about the comeback. “We worked hard over the winter break. We came off a bad loss against Shawnee Heights, but we came back and got the job done.”
“We made a change over the break to play him a little bit more at point guard going forward and I think he’s doing a phenomenal job with the court vision, getting guys involved,” Ulsaker said of Duncan. “In my offense -- the dribble drive – being the point guard is tough because it’s not a ‘point A to point B.’ You’re reading and reacting to the defense and (Malakyah) has done a phenomenal job just learning and growing in the game of basketball that way.”
TOPEKA WEST BOYS 59, SEAMAN 57
Topeka West 12 15 18 14 -- 59
Seaman 26 8 10 13 -- 57
Topeka West (4-2, 4-2) – Ford 2-4 3-3 7, Duncan 5-12 4-6 14, Paul 7-9 2-3 17, Chambers 2-3 0-0 4, Foy 4-8 0-0 9, Lassiter 0-0 0-0 0, Traylor 1-5 4-6 6, Munganga 1-5 0-2 2. Totals: 22-46 13-20 59.
Seaman (5-2, 5-2) – Finley 6-8 4-9 17, Bonner 8-12 0-1 19, Wiltz 4-10 1-2 12, Smith 1-2 0-0 2, McConnaughey 0-1 0-0 0, Zuniga 1-1 0-0 2, Toyne 1-2 0-0 3, Brian 0-1 0-0 0, Brewer 1-2 0-0 2. Totals: 22-39 5-12 57.
3-point goals – Topeka West 2 (Paul 1, Foy 1), Seaman 8 (Bonner 3, Wiltz 3, Finley 1, Toyne 1). Total fouls – Topeka West 13, Seaman 17. Fouled out – None. Technical fouls – None.
