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Details: Created: 15 February 2022

By ISAAC DEER

TopSports.news

Rumor has it, jaws are still dropped in Seaman’s gymnasium after the Class 5A No. 8-ranked Seaman girls delivered Class 6A No. 2-ranked Topeka High its first loss of the year, with the Vikings taking a 50-42 win over the Trojans Tuesday night.

“This is exactly what we have worked for,” Seaman coach Matt Tinsley said. “We have a tremendous amount of respect for Topeka High. Solid defense, two tremendous guards, and a great team

“A few years ago, we emphasized the word ‘beastmode.’ Yesterday, we conditioned extremely hard at practice. We needed to get into beastmode. Typically, we don’t condition a day before a game. The girls worked their tails off at practice. Mentally, we needed to get ready for this game. They truly believed that they could do it. That’s beastmode right there.”

Seaman celebrates at the end of Tuesday's 50-42 win over previously-unbeaten Topeka High. [Photo by Isaac Deer/TSN]

Topeka High had a lead over Seaman for 31:41 in the game, but the Lady Vikes began to build confidence when the Trojans hit the double bonus in fouls with 6:12 in the fourth quarter.

Seaman capitalized on the Lady Trojans' fouls, hitting 13 of 16 free throws, which would be the key to the big victory.

Freshman Anna Becker and sophomore Taylin Stallbaumer would hit 11 out of their 12 free throws from the charity stripe.

“I banked in the first free throw, but after that, I felt more confident,” said Stallbaumer. “The game came down to free throws and we were able to make them. Tonight was a huge win for us and that’s what we’ve been working for.”

Although Topeka High had a lead for a large majority of the game, Seaman kept the game close, riding an outstanding defensive effort.

Topeka High’s Kiki Smith had the hot hand early. When the Trojans struggled to score in the first quarter, Smith was there, scoring 10 first-quarter points, including a pair of 3-pointers.

Stallbaumer locked up with High’s Smith in the second quarter and held the junior guard scoreless while Seaman’s other contributors also turned in a solid effort in preventing the Trojans from lighting up the scoreboard.

Seaman, as well as High, had shooting woes of their own, with Stallbaumer and Ava Esser providing 17 out of the team’s 19 points going into the locker room.

“I reassured our girls that we could do this,” said Tinsley. “At halftime, we talked about the different ways (Topeka High) was guarding us. We just needed to come back out, play our style of basketball and be confident in us.”

The Lady Vikings held Topeka High to back-to-back single-digit quarters from the second to the third.

The Lady Vikes were able to draw fouls at a fast pace. Topeka High fell into the bonus in fouls before the 3:00 period in the third quarter.

Seaman, who hit 21 of 29 free throws in the game, took over once the Lady Trojans hit the bonus.

The game would end up being dictated on Topeka High’s fouls and Seaman’s success from the free throw line.

“Once the clock hit 40 seconds, it felt real,” said Stallbaumer. “We took advantage of the opportunities given to us.”

Seaman would outscore Topeka High 31-20 in the second half.

Smith led Topeka High (16-1, 13-1) with 20 points while senior Tae Thomas added 13.

Stallbaumer had 19 points and Becker 13 for Seaman (12-5, 10-4).

Seaman will host a tough (14-2) Lansing team on Friday while Topeka High will travel to Hayden..

SEAMAN GIRLS 50, TOPEKA HIGH 42

Topeka High 13 9 9 11 – 42

Seaman 6 13 13 18 – 50

Topeka High (16-1, 13-1) – Caryl 3 1-2 7, Thomas 4 4-6 13, Shields 0 0-0 0, Smith 7 3-3 20, Wiley 0 0-0 0, Leesman 1 0-0 2.

Seaman (12-5, 10-4) – Schumann 1 1-2 3, Stallbaumer 5 6-8 19, Becker 2 9-9 13, Gormley 1 4-7 6, Esser 4 1-3 9.

3-point goals – Seaman 3 (Stallbaumer 3), Topeka High 4 (Smith 3, Thomas). Total fouls – Topeka 15, Seaman 17. Fouled out -- non. Technical fouls – none.

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Details: Created: 14 February 2022

By RICK PETERSON

TopSports.news

Obviously, veteran Topeka West boys basketball coach Rick Bloomquist was happy his Chargers found a way to win Tuesday night, pulling out a 51-48 home overtime win over Hayden on Elijah Brooks 3-pointer at the buzzer to remain tied for the Centennial League lead with West's 15th straight win.

opeka West senior star Elijah Brooks scored 25 points, including the game-winning 3-pointer, in the Chargers' 51-48 overtime win over Hayden Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

But Bloomquist was also quick to admit that his team, 16-1 overall, 12-1 in the league, was outplayed by 4-13, 2-11 Hayden for most of the night, a message he conveyed to the Wildcats in their locker room after the game.

"We were out-played, we were out-everythinged,'' Bloomquist said. "We didn't deserve to win. I'm glad we won. I'm happy we won and found a way to win. That's important, but I've been warning this team for the last two weeks about mediocrity and practicing with just going through the motions and it caught up with them.

"It caught up with them on their free throws. It caught up with them on their offense and we just weren't with it. It was a good learning lesson, but we didn't deserve to win that game.''

Bloomquist told the Wildcats exactly that.

"I told them I felt bad for them,'' Bloomquist said. "I told them, 'You outplayed us in every aspect of the game,' and I told them I felt their pain.I felt their pain more than I feel jubilant.''

Hayden coach Dwayne Paul said Bloomquist's talk with his team meant a lot.

"Coach asked me before he left (the gym) if he could talk to the guys and he tipped his hat to our team and told them that we played the right way,'' Paul said. "Playing the right way and having great kids on and off the floor means more to me than any win or loss.

"And to have guy like coach Bloomquist, who's one of the best to ever do it and one of the best Kansas has ever seen, give you a compliment like he gave our team you have to carry weight with that.''

Hayden junior Joe Otting (33) scored 20 points on 10 of 13 shooting in the Wildcats' 51-48 overtime loss at Topeka West Tuesday night. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]

Hayden, which was coming off a win over Tonganoxie Monday night, put itself in position to post its biggest win of the season Tuesday night when junior Joe Otting, who scored 20 points for the Wildcats, put his team up 48-46 with 1:34 left in overtime.

But Hayden committed a couple of costly turnovers and Topeka West junior Carmelo Foy came up with a big offensive rebound off a missed Brooks free throw with 29.2 seconds remaining .

Topeka West called time out with 26.6 seconds left and got the ball to Brooks, who drove to the hoop resulting in an intentional foul call on Otting was called for an intentional foul with 12.2 seconds on the clock.

"Did he foul him? Yeah,'' Paul said. "And I told (Otting), 'If you feel he has the angle on you, foul him and make him earn it from the free throw line.' But to call an intentional ... I get it if he pushed him and Elijah goes flying, you never want to hurt a kid. But of all the people no one has ever said that Joe Otting is going to try to hurt someone on purpose.

"To call an intentional right there at that time ... that's not an intententional foul right there.''

Brooks hit both free throws to tie the game and because of the intentional foul call Topeka West also retained possession and Brooks drained a 3-pointer from the top of the key as time ran out.

Despite scoring a game-high 25 points, Brooks admitted that Tuesday wasn't one of his best games, including a 5 of 13 performance at the free throw line.

But the West senior star said he knew he had to step up late in the OT.

"Coach (Marco) Hunter and coach Bloom were telling me to just lock in mentally so I could get it done,'' Brooks said. "We just had to keep working hard. We knew we could win the game. It was just about the confidence at the end.

"Me taking the shot, I didn't really have any stress on me, so I just shot.''

Brooks was the only double-figure scorer for Topeka West, with junior Sincere Austin adding eight points and 6-foot-8 senior Nathan Bearman giving the Chargers a big lift off the bench with six points and five rebounds while also drawing a charge.

Otting was the only double-figure scorer for Hayden, with junior Jake Muller and senior Trent Duffey both adding nine points.

Duffey and junior Daxton Hamm both fouled out in the late going as Topeka West went 7 of 19 at the free throw line while the Wildcats were 2 of 4.

TOPEKA WEST BOYS 51, HAYDEN 48 (OT)

Hayden 17 7 14 4 6 -- 48

Topeka West 17 12 8 5 9 -- 51

Hayden (4-13, 2-11) -- Bartlett 3-5 0-0 7, Muller 3-9 2-2 9, Duffey 4-12 0-0 9, Ham 0-0 0-0 0, Otting 10-13 0-2 20, Scott 0-0 0-0 0, Foster 1-4 0-0 3, Rice 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-43 2-4 48.

Topeka West (16-1, 12-1) -- Austin 4-9 0-3 8, Brooks 9-20 5-13 25, Alexander 2-3 0-1 4, Berg 2-4 2-2 6, Putthoff 0-4 0-0 0, Robinson 1-1 0-0 2, Foy 0-1 0-0 0, Bearman 3-5 0-0 6. Totals 21-47 7-19 51.

3-point goals -- Hayden 4 (Muller, Duffey, Bartlett, Foster), Topeka West 2 (Brooks 2). Total fouls -- Hayden 19, Topeka West 9. Fouled out – Duffey, Ham.

Details: Created: 15 February 2022

By KEVIN HASKIN

TopSports.news

Musings at the mid-month:

Discussion regarding Bruce Weber’s effectiveness as the Kansas State coach has droned on like a recurring topic on ‘The View.’
Frankly, it has moved the fatigue needle to full while gutting interest in K-State hoops.
Yet another case in point came Monday when a sparse turnout at Bramlage Coliseum rooted on a team coming off an impressive comeback win on the road.
The Wildcats again pulled off a rousing comeback, adding to another familiar refrain that K-State is squarely on the bubble.
So again, the K-State administration is at a crossroads deciding Weber’s future, though apathy could finally be what prompts a coaching move.
Especially when a team that is often enjoyable to watch cannot spur excitement among a conflicted fan base torn about Weber.
Would terminating Weber completely fix the problem?
Depends a great deal on the success of his replacement, though not entirely.
Prolonged apathy can establish deep roots.
Mike Boynton commented Monday on KU’s loyal basketball following, which Jesse Newell first posted on Twitter:
“Our (Oklahoma State) fans have been great, but (Allen Fieldhouse) is packed every night, not because of who they are playing but because they are playing.”
Apathy at KU, of course, is a challenge assigned to Lance Leipold.
If you’re surprised when each of KU’s starters scores in double figures and plays lengthened minutes at this point in the season, you haven’t followed along for 19 seasons.
Bill Self whittles better than your stereotypical Ozark grandpappy when shortening KU’s rotation.
But what happens when/if Remy Martin returns?
Nineteen seasons for Self and still not a home defeat on Big Monday. Let that sink in.
Consistent superiority attracts consistent sellouts.
After much of the discussion about the Chiefs’ collapse in the AFC championship game subsided, we got bombarded by talk radio’s usual offseason staple.
I know there must be rapt interest in cap space, salary restructuring, roster construction and draft moves.
Speculation runs rampant and shapes hours of radio chatter.
Yet it bores me. I can only listen to so much on how the Chiefs should reinvent their defense, or obtain one, two, even three phenomenal receivers
Details about the MLB lockout either bore me or burn me. Weird mix.
To me, some of this is about preserving an aged sport oozing with tradition by concentrating on the top-shelf product.
Would it be possible for independent teams to assume a contractor’s role and fully take over minor-league development?
That would require several more rounds of discussions. (Yawn.)
Is it counter-productive to diminish the minor leagues?
Tradition says keep it, but big-league franchises in other sports get by without many minor-league opportunities.
In general, labor disputes in professional sports seem tone-deaf, given the financial amounts attributed to both sides.
Yes, I understand supply and demand.
I should receive another punch on my “Hopelessly Old” consumer card by admitting my favorite pie, shake or pudding is butterscotch.
Does anybody ever redeem such a card before losing it? Do you think about the $100 you spent to finally get a complimentary burrito?
Imagine the game-has-passed-me-by look on my face when watching numerous Super Bowl ads for cryptocurrency and electric vehicles.
Then at halftime, my wife kept asking me if I’d heard of any of the artists or their songs.
Yes, I told her, but these tunes are just remakes. Bing Crosby sang it better.
Seriously, my wife enjoyed the halftime show, so … yes dear, it’s fine by me.
Glad Snoop Dogg could use his gig at Allen Fieldhouse as a springboard.
I didn’t need The Rock standing on the field to give a five-minute preamble before kickoff.
I did like Tommy Lee Jones outracing the Joneses.
I’d bowl with Peyton Manning, rent shoes from Steve Buscemi, shoot pool with Brooks Koepka and turn my head to watch Serena Williams stroll by the snack bar.
But I won’t drink hard seltzer.
Most of us agreed the Super Bowl resulted in a pretty good game.
Most of us spoke in more glowing terms, however, raving about other NFL postseason games.
Amazing that it took only one futile half for 13 phenomenal seconds in Chiefs history not to mean much anymore.

Rick Peterson, Top Sports News Writer — Rick Peterson

Details: Created: 15 February 2022

By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news

Seven Shawnee County basketball teams continue to be ranked in the latest Kansas Basketball Coaches Association state rankings released Tuesday, with Silver Lake's girls continuing to hold the No. 1 spot in Class 3A.

Topeka West, which has won 14 straight games, remained No. 2 in the 5A boys rankings while Highland Park is No. 4.

Cair Paravel is No. 8 in the 1A Division I boys rankings.

Topeka High and Washburn Rural are ranked No. 2 and No. 3 in the 6A girls rankings behind Olathe North.

Seaman remains No. 8 spot in the 5A girls rankings.

KANSAS BASKETBALL COACHES ASSOCIATION STATE RANKINGS

GIRLS