By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Shawnee Heights was just fine offensively in Friday's United Kansas Conference home boys game against Leavenworth, with three T-Birds scoring at least 13 points and seven cracking the scoring column.
Shawnee Heights freshman Quincy Dixon (22) scored a game-high 19 points in Friday's 60-24 UKC win over Leavenworth. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Junior Cam Ross scored 18 points in Shawnee Heights' 60-24 UKC win over Leavenworth Friday night. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
But make no mistake about it, defense was the story for Heights in its 60-24 romp past the Pioneers on King and Queen of Courts night.
Shawnee Heights, now 4-4 overall and 3-3 in the UKC, limited Leavenworth (2-5, 1-4) to just five points in a dominating 35-5 first half and never looked back, forcing a running clock throughout the fourth quarter.
"We're not deceived, that's not the Los Angeles Lakers, but they got five points,'' Darting said about the first half. "They're a high school team of really good athletes, so it was great and we were playing so hard.
"We're shooting as a team 52 percent for the year, but you see why, it's coming from the defensive end. They've bought in and they believe it. I've sold from Day 1 that if we're going to get anything better than average you've got to be really good defensively.''
Heights led 11-3 at the end of the opening quarter and then hit Leavenworth with a 24-2 second quarter to take command. The T-Birds held the Pioneers scoreless until the 2:15 mark of the quarter.
The pace slowed drastically in the second half as Darting emptied his bench, but the T-Birds still outscored the Pioneers, 25-19, while forcing 29 Leavenworth turnovers on the night.
Freshman Quincy Dixon scored a game-high 19 points for Shawnee Heights with a pair of 3-pointers and a 7 of 10 performance at the free throw line while junior Cam Ross had 18 points (7 of 9 at the line) and senior Ja'Veon Alston 13.
Junior Adrian Brantley led Leavenworth with 7 points.
Shawnee Heights will be back in action Tuesday, hosting Piper in a UKC game.
SHAWNEE HEIGHTS BOYS 60, LEAVENWORTH 24
Leavenworth 3 2 12 7 -- 24
Shawnee Heights 11 24 14 11 -- 60
Leavenworth (2-5, 1-4) – Cheatham 2-4 2-6 6, King 1-3 0-0 2, Clark 1-3 0-0 2, Brantley 2-7 1-2 7, Alonzon 1-5 2-2 4, Jefferson 0-4 0-0 0, Aizaiah Rookwood 0-0 0-0 0, Davis 0-1 3-4 3, Tolbert 0-1 0-0 0, Lobina 0-0 0-0 0, Flanders 0-0 0-0 0, Butter 0-1 0-0 0, Ayden Rookwood 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 7-29 9-14 24.
Shawnee Heights (4-4, 3-3) – Alston 5-9 2-2 13, Cook 0-8 2-2 2, Ross 5-9 7-9 18, Scott 2-5 0-2 4, Dixon 5-15 7-10 19, Lee 0-0 0-0 0, Becker 1-2 0-0 2, Terrell 1-1 0-0 2, Vega 0-0 0-0 0, Halloran 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-49 18-25 60.
3-point goals – Leavenworth 2 (Brantley 2), Shawnee Heights 4 (Dixon 2, Alston, Ross). Total fouls – Leavenworth 18, Shawnee Heights 16. Fouled out – Ross. Technical fouls -- none.
