Lions win substate, move on to state tournament
After a hard fought 59-54 victory against Shawnee Mission East on Friday, athletic director Bill DeWitt presented the boys with the substate championship trophy. Together, they proudly hoisted it into the air. It was the product of all their hard work, pains and joys throughout the season. Lawrence fans roared with cheers and excitement.
The Lions will once again get a chance to compete at the state tournament.
But the victory wasn’t without it’s drama.
In the first quarter, the Lions went on a 22 point scoring spree with seniors Braden Solko and Jackson Mallory from behind the arc, strong drives to the hoop from sophomores Clarence King, Noah Butler and junior Anthony Selden. Mallory and senior Kobe Buffalomeat contributed with and-one scores. It also helped that the Lancers had 5 turnovers this quarter, which allowed the lions to get out in transition. At the end of the quarter, the score was a comfortable 22-15 Lions lead.
However, the tides turned in the second quarter, with the Lions only scoring eight points and their lead being cut in half, 30-26. The Lancers switched to a match-up zone, a defensive adjustment that proved to be effective at slowing down the high-flying Lions offense by stopping drives to the hoop and forcing the Lions to shoot from the outside.
Coming back from halftime, the Lancers finally began to find their groove, scoring easy layups and getting their first lead of the game. With six minutes left in the third quarter, the Lancers were winning by one and feeling confident.
It didn’t last for long.
Strong drives from King and Mallory, lay-ins from sophomore Brett Chapple as well as a put-back and-one from Butler put the Lions up 44-39 to end the quarter in front of two rowdy student sections.
From there, the Lions never looked back. With an opening three from King, Chapple cutting to the rim, Buffalomeat scoring on the inside and precise free throw shooting from Mallory and senior Austin Miller, the Lions went on an 11-2 run in the fourth quarter, securing their victory and a shot at the state tournament.
Over the course of the night, Mallory took the team on his back with 15 points and going 6-11 from the field in his last game ever in the Jungle.
“It was emotional man,” he said “I told myself I wasn’t going to cry but I definitely cried in the locker room.”
Head coach Mike Lewis was happy with the win and with the performance of his players.
“I’m really proud, I’m thankful for our crowd,” Lewis said. “The Jungle that provides such a great environment for our boys and the basketball community.”
With this victory in substate competition, the Lions will move on to the state tournament in Wichita, where they will compete March 8-11.
Lewis wants his team not just to be happy winning the substate championship, but to strive to win more games at state.
“We are going down there with the intention to win,” he said. “We are not just going down there to celebrate a trip to Wichita. We have the full intention of going down there to win.”
The girls basketball team also won the substate title on Saturday against Shawnee Mission South 58-44. This is their first trip to the state tournament since 2008.