FIVE TAKEAWAYS: Blue Valley North (Kan.)-Liberty (Mo.)
FIVE TAKEAWAYS: Blue Valley North (Kan.)-Liberty (Mo.)
OLATHE, Kan. — The third game of Saturday’s 810varsity Shootout featured Liberty knocking off Blue Valley North in a defensive slug fest, 56-49.
Liberty 2018 forward Logan Steenstra led all scorer with 20 points, while Brock Matson added 16 for the Blue Jays. Blue Valley North got 16 points and five rebounds from 2018 forward Miles Emery in the loss.
Here, Prep Hoops takes a look at five things that stood out about Saturday’s contest.
Liberty gets big performance from Matson
A 6’3 2018 wing player, Liberty’s Brock Matson is often an overlooked part of the Blue Jays’ success, but not on Saturday. Matson came up with several big plays down the stretch as Liberty held on to a 56-49 win over BVN. A standout shooter, Matson knocked down three 3-pointers and finished with 16 total points, including a 3 for 3 performance at the free throw line in the final minutes of play.
Blue Valley North is big
The Mustangs look like they brought their offensive line to the court as both Nick Orr (6’6) and Miles Emery (6’6) are future college football players (Emery has committed to play at Kansas). Mixed in with 2018 wing player Eric Batson (6’6) and they feature one of the bigger front lines around. The team also brings in 2018 forward Ethan Vlasic (6’7) and 2018 forward Dylan Freberg (6’4) off the bench. Emery led BVN with 16 points and five rebounds and had it working at times in the post as the Blue Jays struggled to contend with his size and strength.
Steenstra heats up
Also a baseball standout (Steenstra has committed to play at Cowley CC), Steenstra is a long, rangy 6’5 senior wing player who can shoot the 3, pull-up off the dribble and is an active player at both ends of the court. He knocked down three 3-pointers and scored 15 points in the first half of Saturday’s game, then added five more in the second half.
Freshman impresses
Blue Valley North can be an offensively challenged group, but they got a pair of big performances off the bench on Saturday, including some solid ball handling and scoring from freshman guard Luke Adams. A terrific 3-point shooter, Adams knocked down three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points.
Liberty wins the battle on the boards
Part of the reason Liberty was able to claw out a hard-fought win over Blue Valley North was their ability to keep the bigger more physical Mustangs off the offensive glass. Liberty 6’5 2018 forward Travis Turner led both teams with nine rebounds, while Logan Steenstra and Brock Matson each added six rebounds. BVN certainly had their moments on the boards, but the Blue Jays was able to keep it from determining the game.