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By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Very few, if any, of the current Topeka West boys basketball players were even born the last time the Chargers won the Topeka Invitational Tournament championship back in 2004.
But the importance of the moment certainly wasn't lost on the Chargers, who topped Wichita Northwest 64-56 in Saturday's championship game at Highland Park.
Topeka West star Elijah Brooks (left), who had 30 points, celebrates the Chargers' first Topeka Invitational Tournament championship since 2004 with junior teammate Sincere Austin. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Topeka West celebrates its Topeka Invitational Tournament championship Saturday at Highland Park. [Photo by Rex Wolf/TSN]
Topeka West, which improved to 10-1 on the season, won the Topeka Invitational title for only the fourth time in the 61-year history of the event and became the first city school to win the title since 2013.
"Right before the game (the coaches) said, 'Let's go win it for the city,'' said Topeka West 6-foot-4 senior star Elijah Brooks. "I had to get one before I get out of here. This was my last chance.
"It's good to win this tournament, just for the team and the city.''
West coach Rick Bloomquist agreed.
"It's good for Topeka West, it's good for the program,'' Bloomquist said. "It's good for the alumni and the kids that played here in the past that got close to winning it and couldn't win it.
"We finally jumped the hurdle and got what we needed to get done. These kids take a lot of pride in where they're from right now. They know that they're not only representing themselves but they're representing Topeka West High School and that's something they're proud of and we protected that today.''
In what is becoming a common occurence, Topeka West got a monster night from Brooks, who led the Chargers with 30 points and 14 rebounds to give him 94 points in West's three tournament wins.
Junior Xavier Alexander added 13 points, with three 3-pointers, for the Chargers while junior Malachi Berg added nine points and grabbed seven rebounds.
Topeka West, ranked No. 4 in Class 5A by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association, led by as many as nine points (20-11) in the first quarter and never trailed in the opening half, but the Grizzlies, No. 9 in 6A, forged a 37-37 halftime tie on the strength of nine 3-pointers in the half.
Northwest took a three-point lead early in the second half the Grizzlies led 44-42 midway through the third quarter, but West responded with an 8-1 run to take a 50-45 lead into the fourth stanza.
The Grizzlies got as close as four points twice in the fourth, the last time at 60-56 with 1:01 remaining, but Alexander and Brooks hit two free throws apiece to close out the win.
"We adjusted to the type of game we had to play to win,'' Bloomquist said. "That's a good sign.''
Senior Geremiah Moore led Wichita Northwest (9-2) with 17 points and five 3-pointers while sophomore LaSean Williams added 13 points.
HIGHLAND PARK 77, ST. MARYS 50 -- Highland Park rebounded from Friday's semifinal loss to Wichita Northwest with a strong performance in Saturday's third-place game of the Topeka Invitational Tournament, with the Scots improving to 10-2 on the season.
Scots coach Mike Williams said Saturday's solid performance was a positive sign in the wake of Friday's 66-60 loss.
"I just think at this point of time in the year tht's all we're looking for game-in and game-out right now,'' Williams said. "The season's long, so we're kind of in the dog days, but we're also figuring things out about ourselves.
"I'm glad our guys responded that way.''
The Scots, ranked No. 2 in 5A, jumped out to a 22-13 first-quarter lead over the Bears, second-ranked in 2A, and Highland Park led 37-26 at halftime.
Highland Park then put the Bears away with a 20-8 third quarter and outscored 9-3 St. Marys 40-24 in the second half.
Junior Jahmir Kingcannon scored a game-high 18 points for Highland Park with four 3-pointers while juniors Ketraleus Aldridge and Tre Richardson added 15 and 14 points and freshman Jacorey Robinson 12.
Junior Keller Hurla scored 14 points to lead St. Marys while senior Fred Criqui added 12 points.
LAWRENCE 63, SHAWNEE MISSION NORTH 46 -- After dropping a two-point decision to tournament champion Topeka West in the first round, Lawrence won its final two tournament games to finish fifth.
Shawnee Mission North remained within striking distance through most of Saturday's game against its Sunflower League rival before the Lions (9-3) pulled away late.
Lawrence led North 10-8 at the end of the opening quarter and 30-24 at the half before outscoring the Bison 33-22 in the second half.
Sophomore Zaxton King capped a strong tournament performance with 20 points for Lawrence while seniors Avion Nelson and Pearse Long added 12 points apiece.
Senior Vincent Rolls led Shawnee Mission North (2-10) with 15 points.
HAYDEN 43, TOPEKA HIGH 41 -- Hayden rallied in the fourth quarter to top Topeka High and finish seventh in the Topeka Invitational.
Hayden, which improved to 2-8 on the season, trailed 15-10 at the end of the first quarter, 23-18 at the half and 32-29 at the start of the fourth quarter before outscoring the Trojans 14-9 over the final eight minutes.
Senior Trent Duffey tied for game-high scoring honors with 13 points for Hayden while junior Joe Otting added 12 points.
Topeka High, which fell to 1-10, got 13 points from senior Germane Mays and sophomore BJ Canady while sophomore Isaiah Lyons added 11 points.
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By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
Macy Smith and Carly Stuke’s combined 34 points helped lead the Wildcats past upstart Highland Park, 65-33, in Friday’s Centennial League girls matchup at Hayden, with Hayden bouncing back from a 26-point loss to unbeaten Topeka High a night earlier.
Smith, a senior, had 18 points, all in the first half, and set the tone for the game with her two 3-point shots, going two of three from the freethrow line and controlling the fastbreak tempo of the game.
“I had a lot of fun yesterday (against Topeka High),'' Smith said. "I felt like I had a lot of power coming into tonight’s game and we got a great win.
“I was out for half of the season last year and since then I felt like myself and the team are much better. We’re growing together and playing our best as a team.''
Hayden's girls basketball team talks things over on the court during Friday's 65-33 home Centennial League win over Highland Park. [Photo by Isaac Deer/TSN]
Senior Stuke also had a stellar offensive night, finishing the game with 16 points. All of Stuke's points came from aggressive drives to the paint, with Stuke going eight of 10 from the floor.
“We got a lot of easy shots down early,'' Hayden coach Carvel Reynoldson said. "I thought we pushed the ball down the court well. We put ourselves in good situations.''
Hayden’s 21 points in the first quarter came from a variety of different players and areas of the court.
Besides Smith’s eight points, Reagan Huscher, Brylee Meier, Norma Greco and Stuke had a combined 13 points.
The remainder of the half would remain in complete control of the Wildcats, who pushed their lead to 27 points at the half.
Unlike the previous night against Topeka High, Hayden was able to come out of the halftime break and put points on the board.
Even with tough defense from the Lady Scots’, Stuke was able to put up six quick points in two minutes.
Hayden was able to rest some key starters in the middle of the third quarter before they head into their three-game schedule next week at the Wellsville Invitational Tournament.
Despite the lopsided loss, Highland Park got great production from Amelia Ramsey, Aisya Taylor, and Victoria Reed, with the Scot trio combining for 26 points.
Hayden (5-3, 5-3) will take on Baldwin City in the first round of the Wellsville Invitational Tournament. Highland Park (1-10, 0-10) will also start tournament play next Thursday.
HAYDEN GIRLS 65, HIGHLAND PARK 33
Highland Park 5 10 10 8 – 33
Hayden 21 21 16 7 – 65
Hayden (5-3, 5-3) – Smith 7 2-3 18, Stuke 8 0-1 16, Meier 3 1-3 7, Huscher 3 0-0 6, Greco 2 0-0 5, Sandstrom 2 0-0 4, Schmidtlein 2 0-0 4, Grunert 1 1-2 3, Reid 1 0-0 2.
Highland Park (1-10, 0-9) – Taylor 5 (1-2) 11, Reed 3 (3-5) 10, Ramsey 2 (1-4) 5, Sanders 2 (0-1) 5, Gonzales 0 (2-2) 2.
3-point goals – Hayden 3, Highland Park 3. Total fouls – Hayden 12, Highland Park 7.
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By KYLE MANTHE
The Washburn Review
Topeka West and Seaman girls basketball were in action Friday night in both teams' final game before tournament week.
It will be the Vikings who head into the week with momentum as they captured a 49-18 road win over the Chargers thanks to a relentless defensive effort.
“Our effort was great, defensively the girls were flying around,” said Seaman coach Matt Tinsley. “We played great defensively and I thought we executed our offense better in the second half.”
The win moved Seaman to 6-3 on the year while Topeka West fell to 1-11.
Freshman Anna Becker scored a game-high 19 points in Seaman's 49-18 Centennial League win at Topeka West Friday night. [File photo/TSN]
The Vikings took control of the game from the start, with five quick points by freshman Anna Becker in the first four minutes to take a 9-2 lead. The full-court press of Seaman held the Chargers in check, resulting in a 14-4 lead after eight minutes.
The beginning of the second quarter was promising for Topeka West as they outscored the Vikings 2-0 over the first two minutes. In the final five minutes two starting sophomores, Siani Sanchez and Zoe Clark, exited due to injury and did not return.
In that time Seaman’s press intensified, leading to turnovers and easy baskets. Becker again led the charge with eight of the 11 points for the Vikings in the quarter, building a 25-6 halftime lead.
“We were real active on our press. I told them you got to exert all of your effort on the defensive end and our defense can lead to our offense, we got some runouts,” Tinsley said.
Each team had its highest scoring quarter in the third. The Chargers had mixed success against Seaman’s press, as it resulted in some easy baskets along with turnovers going the other way.
Junior Jazmyn Ford led Topeka West with seven points in the quarter, doing all of her work around the basket. On the other side, it was a balanced offensive attack, with five players scoring for the Vikings.
Becker knocked down two 3-pointers to give her a game-high 19 points while both junior Carstyn Anderson and sophomore Taylin Stallbaumer scored two baskets each in the quarter, to boost Seaman's lead to 29 entering the fourth period.
Three early points in the fourth by Seaman freshman Maegan Mills made it a running clock as only eight combined points in the quarter were scored and the Vikings left with a 49-18 road win.
Seaman was led by Becker’s 19 points, Stallbaumer was also in double figures with 11 and Mills added seven from the forward position.
The Chargers got nine points from Ford and had four others score two points.
“We love the opportunity to play and I told the girls at halftime, at this point in the season, midway through the season, teams can go one of two ways. A lot of teams may be ready to pack it in but we've got to be the team that says hungry, and continue to get better,” Tinsley said.
The Chargers will be heading to Lawrence Free State High School beginning Thursday, Jan. 27 to begin the three-day tournament while Seaman will be at Topeka High beginning the same day.
SEAMAN GIRLS 49, TOPEKA WEST 18
Seaman 14 11 19 5 -- 49
Topeka West 4 2 9 3 -- 18
Topeka West (1-11, 1-9) – Hopper 0-0 0-0 0, Valenzuela 0-0 1-3 1, Sanchez 0-2 2-2 2, Mays 1-4 0-0 2, Foster 0-0 0-0 0, Duncan 0-1 0-2 0, Benson 1-3 0-0 1, Clark 0-1 0-0 0, Ford 4-5 1-1 9, Bearman 1-4 0-0 2. Totals 7-18 4-8 18.
Seaman (6-3, 6-3) – Anderson 2-5 0-1 5, Schullman 0-1 0-0 0, J. Stallbaumer 0-0 0-0 0, Spurlock 1-1 0-0 2, E. Stallbaumer 0-0 0-0 0, Smith 0-0 0-0 0, T. Stallbaumer 5-13 0-2 11, Becker 7-13 3-4 19, Wilhelm 0-3 0-0 0, Gormley 1-5 0-3 2, Mills 3-7 1-6 7, Esser 0-3 1-2 1, Stuewe 1-3 0-0 0. Totals 20-54 5-18 49.
3-point goals – Topeka West 0, Seaman 4 (Becker 2, T. Stallbaumer 1, Anderson 1). Total fouls – Topeka West 14, Seaman 12. Fouled out – None. Technical fouls – None.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University's women's basketball team will be looking to extend its three-game home winning streak when the Ichabods host Emporia State at 1 p.m. Saturday at Lee Arena in an MIAA contest between the two longstanding rivals.
Washburn is 6-9 overall and 4-5 in the MIAA after taking a home 58-52 MIAA win over Northwest Missouri on Monday.
The Ichabods have not won its last three home games and is now 3-5 when playing in Lee Arena this season.
Emporia State is 9-7 overall and 4-6 in the MIAA.
Saturday's game will be the 108th all-time meeting between WU and Emporia State, with ESU leading the series, 59-48.
Senior Hunter Bentley averages a team-high 12.7 points for Washburn, which will host Emporia State in a 1 p.m. contest Saturday at Lee Arena. [File photo/TSN]
Hunter Bentley leads Washburn with a 12.7 scoring average, which ranks 13th in the MIAA. Bentley has led the team in scoring in 10 games this season.
Abby Oliver has cracked double figures in scoring in five of her last seven games and averages 8.0 points and 4.3 rebounds. She was six of nine from the field against Northwest Missouri.
Macy Doebele contributes 7.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game for the Ichabods. Doebele is tied with Bentley with an 83.3 shooting percentage from the free throw line.
Nuria Barrientos is Washburn's leading rebounder with 4.9 boards per game and she has registered a team-high 20 blocks.
Bentley is No. 8 on Washburn's all-time scoring list with 1,391 career points and needs 77 more to pass former teammate Reagan Phelan.
Emporia State leads the conference at the free throw line, shooting 80.9 percent.
Tre'Zure Jobe leads the ESU offense with a 19.0-point scoring average and has made a team-high 38 3-pointers while shooting 34.2 percent from beyond the arc, which ranks third in the MIAA.
Jobe is also second in the MIAA with 2.4 steals per game and adds 3.4 assists.
Fredricka Sheats averages 10.6 points and is shooting 43.6 percent from the floor.
Karsen Schultz and Ehlaina Hartman both contribute 10.5 points for the Lady Hornets and Schultz leads the team with a 5.4 rebounding average.
Washburn will continue its homestand and play three home games in seven days starting next Wednesday against Newman.
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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Washburn University's men's basketball team will continue its four-game home stand against rival Emporia State at 3 p.m. Saturday in Lee Arena.
The Ichabods, 10-7 overall, 7-4 in the MIAA, have won four of their last five games, with three wins coming on the road. Washburn fell on Monday night to No. 2-ranked Northwest Missouri, 71-63.
Washburn will be facing an Emporia State team (14-3, 9-2) that has won its last seven games, including an 85-72 win at Missouri Southern last Saturday.
The Ichabods lead the all-time series with Emporia State 110-104 in the most-played series in Washburn's program history.
Washburn is 7-3 in the last 10 meetings with Emporia State and has gone 63-44 all-time in games played in Topeka. The Ichabods have won nine straight games over the Hornets played in Lee Arena. ESU's last win in Lee Arena was on Feb. 23, 2011 in a 73-68 victory over the Ichabods.
Junior Jalen Lewis leads Washburn with a 13.5 scoring average entering Saturday's MIAA game against Emporia State at Lee Arena. [File photo]
Junior Jalen Lewis leads the Ichabods in scoring with a 13.5-point scoring average while hitting 38 of 94 3-pointers (.402).
Senior Tyler Geiman is averaging 12.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists in 10 games this season and he is averaging 13.9 points and 6.9 rebounds in conference play.
Freshman Michael Keegan is scoring 9.8 points with 6.2 rebounds, 1.3 blocks and 1.7 steals per game.
Sophomore Connor Deffebaugh is scoring 9.6 points per game and has averaged 18.5 points in is last two games, scoring 20 against Missouri Southern and 17 against Northwest Missouri.
Red-hot Emporia State is led by the scoring tandem of Tray Buchanan and Jumah'Ri Turner, who rank No. 1 and No. 5 in the MIAA in scoring.
Buchanan is averaging a conference-best 27.8 points while Turner averages 18.4 points. Buchanan scored 40 points against Graceland earlier in the season.
Emporia State coach Craig Doty is 49-49 in his fourth season with the Hornets.
The Hornets are second in the MIAA in scoring at 80.8 points per game and fifth in scoring defense at 69.8 points per outing.
Washburn will be back in Lee Arena to host Newman next Wednesday and Central Oklahoma next Saturday.
