Centennial League Top Bigs

<p>Washburn Rural and Topeka High tied for the top of the Centennial League for the second straight year, but it was Highland Park and Manhattan who actually advanced to the state playoffs.</p> <p>The league was guard-heavy, with several of the teams boasting potent tandems, and three- and four-guard lineups. Here are the league’s top bigs in 2020:</p> <p>Best of the Best:</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="599759" first="Joe" last="Berry"], junior, Washburn Rural:</strong></p> <p>Forget that Rural was upset in the first round of sub-state. Berry is the best player on one of the best teams in the state. He’s much too versatile to be considered a traditional post. But the Junior Blues’ lack of height forced the 6-foot-2 Berry to guard big men and rebound in the lane. He averaged 17.4 points a game, and has eight outings of 20 or more.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="726594" first="King" last="Sutton"], center, Topeka High:</strong></p> <p>Unlike Berry, Sutton is a traditional paint player. At 6-foot-6, he should be able to translate his game to the next level. He dominates without always scoring a ton of points, blocking shots and stuffing with two hands from beneath the goal. Sutton averaged 15.7 points a game.</p> <p><strong>CJ Powell, junior, Highland Park:</strong></p> <p>Powell helped propel the Scots to the state playoffs by tallying 15 against Leavenworth, then 13 against Aquinas at sub-state. He went for 14 in the loss to Hays at state. The 6-foot-7 Powell can shoot from anywhere as well as dominate the lane. He averaged 16.8 in the regular season.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="889466" first="Charles" last="Snyder"], junior, Emporia:</strong></p> <p>Snyder was somewhat overlooked because his team finished the regular season 11-9. But they pulled a first round upset of McPherson at sub-state to extend their season. Snyder averaged 21.1 points and 8.3 rebounds during the regular season, but he took it to another level in the playoffs. He took down McPherson with 27 points, then scored 26 in the season-ending loss to Andover.</p> <p>Best of the Rest:</p> <p><strong>Qua’vez Humphreys, senior, Junction City:</strong></p> <p>The ultra-athletic football-commit had to play out of position a bit this year as the Blue Jays’ top option in the post. Humphreys was effective because he could maneuver through the lane, run the floor, and leap with the best of them. Humphreys wasn’t the focal point of the Blue Jays’ offense offense, but he averaged 12 points per game while trying to give the team everything else it needed.</p> <p><strong>Noah Schneider, center, Hayden:</strong></p> <p>It was a down year for the Wildcats, but the 6-foot-4 Schneider always provided a competitive presence in the lane. Schneider’s role grew as the season went along. He scored in double figures in nearly all of the team’s last 11 games. Perhaps his best performance was a 13-point effort against Powell of Highland Park.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="885546" first="Raeshon" last="Riddick"], forward, Manhattan:</strong></p> <p>The Indians gathered themselves after a late-season swoon and battled their way to state. Riddick was an efficient scorer, finishing the season with a 64.8% field goal percentage. After slumping late in the year, he finished strong. He tossed in 15 against Wichita East and 9 versus Wichita West to win sub-state. He finished his career with 14 in the loss to Campus.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="885526" first="Chandler" last="Marks"], center, Manhattan:</strong></p> <p>Marks stood out from the Indians’ roster as the one unique piece. He’s 6-foot-4 and a stereotypical banger. Like Riddick, he was a force come playoff time. He went for 11 versus Wichita East, 11 against Wichita West, and 9 against Campus.</p> <p>In the Running:</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="885565" first="Drayton" last="Foster"]</strong></p> <p><strong>CJ Patterson</strong></p> <p><strong>Dre Durall</strong></p>