See who won important Friday night boys and girls high school basketball games
The postseason is here (or very near) for Kansas City-area boys and girls high school basketball teams.
Here’s a recap of several big Friday night games:
Olathe North 69, Olathe NW 58 (boys)
Olathe North wanted to enter the substate round on a winning note, but took a while to warm up the band.
But the Eagles overcame a 10-point halftime deficit to clip the Ravens. With the win, Olathe North (16-4) enters the postseason as the No. 3 seed on the Kansas Class 6A side.
Olathe Northwest (11-9) built a 33-23 halftime edge. Senior center JJ Lee led the way, scoring 13 of his game-high 23 points in the first half.
But the Eagles, ranked No. 5 in Kansas Class 6A, trimmed the deficit to 1, at 43-42, once Jaalan Watson heated up. The star junior mustered just two points in the first quarter but drained nine of his 17 points in the third period.
From there, Olathe North cranked up the pressure and jetted past the Ravens. Senior Aiden Bruce hit two 3-pointers and sophomore Sam Simmons and Watson each netted six points in the final period.
The Eagles also hit 8 of 9 free throws to seal it.
“We took a bit, but our kids never give up and rallied against a tough team tonight,” Olathe North coach Adam Olerich said. “It’s important for us to keep momentum going into a substate pod of four very good teams.”
Olathe North will play host to Lawrence (8-12) in the first round of its substate journey on Wednesday at 7 p.m., while Olathe Northwest visits Olathe South (14-6).
Olathe North 56, Olathe NW 54 (girls)
Asia Lee scored a game-high 28 points, including six 3-pointers, to lead the Eagles to victory in their final regular-season game.
“It’s big to have that momentum going into the playoffs, especially a close game getting us battle tested,” Olathe North coach Alonzo William said.
The Ravens entered the final quarter up 42-41. Senior Jillian Huckabey scored a team-high 20 points. Sophomore Kyra Clark added 11.
But Lee connected on three 3-pointers en route to 11 points in the final quarter.
The Eagles (12-8) will open the postseason at Lawrence (12-8) on Tuesday at 7 p.m., while Olathe Northwest (10-10) travels to Shawnee Mission Northwest.
De Soto 64, Basehor-Linwood 42 (boys)
The Wildcats completed a doubleheader boys-girls sweep of United Kansas Conference rival Basehor-Linwood.
Senior David Cobin put in a game-high 26 points and set the school’s career scoring record with 1,208, breaking the previous mark of 1,204 (set by Mason Wedel).
Cobin’s 17 first-half points boosted the Wildcats to a 31-19 lead at intermission. De Soto, ranked No. 5 in Kansas Class 5A at 16-4, will host Schlagle (5-15) next Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the first round of substate.
Breckin McBride’s 19 points paced Basehor-Linwood (11-9), which will travel to Blue Valley Southwest (13-7) on Tuesday night.
De Soto 56, Basehor-Linwood 40 (girls)
De Soto closed out the regular-season in style against league rival Basehor-Linwood.
The Wildcats (17-3) were paced by Makenzie Farmer’s 17 points and Addison Tower’s 15. Amanda Tower added 12, and Violet Conley broke the De Soto career-rebounds mark with her 587th.
De Soto will play host to Lansing in the first round of substates next Wednesday, while Basehor-Linwood (12-8) hosts Sumner Academy (10-9).
