By Rick Peterson
TopSports.news
Playing in a midseason tournament championship game for the fourth straight season, Shawnee Heights' boys basketball team completed the final piece of the puzzle on Saturday, claiming the championship in Shawnee Mission West's Viking Classic with a 68-41 romp past traditional Class 6A stalwart Blue Valley North, No. 7-ranked by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association.
Shawnee Heights' boys basketball team poses for a picture after winning the Viking Classic championship on Saturday. [Submitted photo]
Senior Jaret Sanchez led Shawnee Heights with 21 points in Saturday's 68-41 win over Blue Valley North. [File photo/TSN]
The No. 4-ranked (5A) T-Birds built a 14-12 first-quarter advantage and poured it on the Mustangs from there.
Shawnee Heights used 14-5 second quarter to take a 28-17 halftime lead and outscored North 26-16 in the third quarter to turn the game into a rout.
Heights (8-2) finished off the win with a 14-8 fourth quarter, with Blue Valley North needing a late 3-pointer to top the 40-point mark.
"Probably one of the biggest wins at SHHS,'' said veteran coach Ken Darting, who coached five state championship teams at Silver Lake and Highland Park. "That (Blue Valley North) team is really good. Our defense took them out of everything they wanted to do. Need to build on it now.''
Senior Jaret Sanchez led Shawnee Heights with 21 points while JaiMarion Cook added 12 points on four 3-pointers and Ontarius Emmot added 11.
The T-Birds also got 8 points from Deacon Pomeroy and 6 from DaQuan Lee.
Silver Lake's girls basketball team poses for a team picture after winning the tournament championship in the Burlington Invitational. [Silver Lake basketball]
Silver Lake girls claim Burlington title
Silver Lake's girls, No. 3-ranked in Class 3A, captured the Burlington Invitational championship with a 70-60 win over previously-unbeaten Labette County.
Junior Kailyn Hanni, who was named the tournament's most outstanding player, led the 8-1 Eagles with 22 points, backed by Savannah Wende with19 points and Jaylie Whitehead with 11.
Labette County, No. 6-ranked in 4A, fell to 10-1.
Hanni, who scored 64 points in the tournament, was joined on the all-tournament team by Ella Bolan.
Silver Lake's boys also advanced to the tournament championship game, with the Eagles dropping a 67-38 decision to Ottawa, top-ranked in Class 4A and 10-0 on the season.
Junior Dayne Johnson led Silver Lake (7-2) with 19 points while tournament most outstanding player Aiden McCullough scored a game-high 26 points for the Cyclones.
D. Johnson, who scored 68 points in the tournament, was named to the all-tournament team along with the Eagles' Jared Johnson, who had 57 points in his three tournament games.
Rossville's boys basketball team poses for a team picture on Saturday after winning the tournament championship in the Valley Falls Invitational. [Rossville Athletics]
Rossville boys claim Valley Falls title
Rossville boys basketball downed Perry-Lecompton 49-41 Saturday to cap off its championship run in the Valley Falls Invitational.
Senior Kameron Badura paced 8-3 Rossville with 21 points and averaged 17 points in the tournament for the Bulldawgs.
Juniors Jack Donovan and Cameron Miller both added 9 points for Rossville, No. 8-ranked in Class 2A, with both Donovan and Miller being named to the all-tournament team.
Oklahoma power Owasso tops Rural in tourney final
Defending Oklahoma Class 6A champion Owasso rolled to a 64-38 win over Washburn Rural in Saturday's championship game of the Bill Hanson Memorial Tournament in Pittsburg.
Owasso improved to 15-3 while Rural fell to 8-3.
Vikings finish third in January Jam
Seaman bounced back from a heartbreaking 1-point semifinal loss to Olathe Northwest to top tournament host Valley Center 61-55 in Saturday's third-place game of the January Jam.
The 8-3 Vikings, No. 5-ranked in Class 5A, fell behind 18-9 in the first quarter but answered with a 25-15 second quarter to take a slim 34-33 halftime advantage.
Seaman outscored the Hornets 17-12 to take a 51-45 lead before both teams scored 10 points over the final eight minutes.
Senior Bryer Finley led Seaman with 19 points and two 3-pointers while junior Landon Wiltz added 15 points with three 3s and junior KaeVon Bonner added 13 points with three treys.
Both Finley and Bonner were named to the all-tournament team.
CPLS bounces back with win over Lyndon
After a couple of tough back-to-back losses in the Flint Hills League tournamnt at Emporia's White Auditorium, Cair Paravel Latin's boys bounced back with a 52-37 win over Lyndon in the Lions' tourney finale.
Chase Hastert led the Lions with 19 points, including three 3-pointers, while Caleb Cleverdon added 12 points and Jase Pavlik 8.
"We've been right there in so many games,'' CPLS coach Chip Kueffer said. "Hopefully, we can peak at the right time.''
Lion girls top Council Grove
The Cair Paravel Latin girls basketball team picked up its second win of the season on Saturday, closing out its Flint Hills League Tournament appearance with a 43-32 win over Council Grove at Emporia's White Auditorium.
The Lions improved to 2-10 while snapping a six-game losing streak.
CPLS and Council Grove were tied 8-8 at the end of the first quarter but the Lions took control with a 14-3 second quarter.
Junior KellyAnn Chada led the Lions with 16 points, including four 3-pointers, while junior Karsyn Hastert and freshman London Backman added 9 points apiece.
