Five Takeaways: Oak Park-Raymore Peculiar
Five Takeaways: Oak Park-Raymore Peculiar
Oak Park advances with big win over Ray-Pec
The opening round of play in the 68th annual North Kansas City Invitational got underway on Monday and the Oak Park Northmen defeated Raymore-Peculiar in convincing fashion, 79-45.
With the win, Oak Park advances to face Rock Bridge in a semifinal on Wednesday.
Here, Prep Hoops takes a look at five things that stood out in the contest.
Evans finds the range from 3
One of the Kansas City area’s premier outside shooters, Oak Park 2018 guard Kaden Evans had it working from distance on Monday as he knocked down three 3-pointers in the first half and went for 11 points before the break, then added eight more in the second half. Blessed with a quick release and solid form and balance, Evans also showed the ability to contribute in other ways as he hauled in four rebounds in the first half and finished with six total and dropped off several nice passes for easy bucket under the basket.
Agbaji vs. McCullough
One of the state’s premier stretch 4 types, Raymore-Peculiar 6’7 2018 forward Wesley McCullough had the unenviable task of doing much of his work at the offensive end against Oak Park 2018 guard Ochai Agbaji in the first half. McCullough went for 11 points and five rebounds, well under his season averages in both categories. Agbaji showed on Monday he is among the state’s premier seniors still on the board. Agbaji finished with 24 points, including three rim-rocking slams in the second half.
Scroggins an emerging big
Although he was saddled with foul trouble and missed much of the third quarter, Raymore-Peculiar 6’5 2020 forward Kian Scroggins showed he has an emerging skill set and is a player to watch in the Kansas City area going forward. Scroggins finished with 15 points and five rebounds and showed he has a face-up game on the perimeter as well as a post game.
Oak Park a contender in Class 5
Ranked No. 8 in the latest Missouri Class 5 poll, Oak Park continues to roll and improved to 12-1 this season overall with its win over Ray-Pec on Monday. The team has just one loss this season, a 55-50 defeat to North Kansas City at NKC. They will get a rematch against NKC on its home court and will play districts at Staley High School in late February.
Richardson puts together a quiet night
An athletic 6’4 2018 forward, Jhaidyn Richardson has put together a big season for the Northmen and has been a big part of the team’s success this season. Richardson went for nine points and a rebound on Monday, well below his season averages. An inside-out player who can play guard or along the baseline, Richardson has averaged nearly 11 points per game, 4.8 rebounds per game and 1.7 steals while shooting 61 percent from the field.