Kansas Roundup: Special Thursday Night Hoops Edition

Crazy wintery weather, make up games, and rescheduling’s gave us a special night of great hoops from around Kansas Thursday night. Let’s take a look at some of the standout games, performances, and efforts brought to the hardwood.   Blue Valley North Escapes Late Against a Tough Aquinas Team A young Aquinas group with some veteran leaders have been taking their learning lumps this season, but they bring the effort and enthusiasm every night. Last night Blue Valley North coming off a huge week last week, got themselves all they could handle. Coming down to the wire with a free throw rebound and turnover situation, BVN and Aquinas had themselves a barn burner with the Mustangs coming out on top over the Saints 59-55.   Standouts [player_tooltip player_id="1080165" first="Will" last="Rost"], 6’5 Wing/Forward, 2023, Aquinas: Rost showcased the elite shooting ability last night scoring 15 points on 5 three pointers, including a huge one in the fourth quartet. His length, shot release, and ability to shoot over defenders proved to be a huge lift for him and Aquinas. A ton of great wings on the BVN roster so it was nice to see Rost hang with those guys. The future is bright here.   Kale Staats, 6’ Guard, 2024, Aquinas: Another big time future standout for the Saints, the freshman is continuing to blow up on the scene. Coming off of a 22 point performance, the defensive minded Staats took on the challenge of guarding recent William Jewel commit [player_tooltip player_id="889487" first="Isaac" last="Patterson"] and held his own there. Staats got into the scoring category with 4, but he shined on the defensive end, and with multiple seasons left in his high school career, he is on a nice trajectory.   [player_tooltip player_id="747099" first="Nikko" last="Taylor"], 6’6 Forward, 2021, BVN: The Hutch football commit was one of the big factors in the ball game tonight. His size, athleticism, strength, and versatility allowed himself to have a nice game against the Saints. He scored 16 points in the game, and paced BVN’s scoring throughout all 4 quarters. He got himself to the line for 5 attempts and made 4, and hit 6 shots inside the 3 point arc. Taylor was big time.   [player_tooltip player_id="962473" first="Andrew" last="Orr"], 6’8 Forward, 2021, BVN: Adding to the size advantage and inside presence with Taylor was the new Washburn commit Orr. His presence was felt early and often scoring 8 in the opening quarter and really doing what he does best, getting to the front of the rim, getting great position inside, and finishing with efficiency.   Notables Kernan Bundy, 6’3 Guard, 2022, BVN: Bundy continues to be one of the glue pieces for the Mustangs this season and his rise up the ladder in the 2022 class, expect to see him on our board here very soon. He drilled two 3’s in the game and finished with 10 points. His ability to guard multiple positions, use his athleticism on both ends of the floor, and make few mistakes are key aspects to his game every night and were also a key factor in the win.   [player_tooltip player_id="889478" first="Tank" last="Young"], 5’7 Guard, 2021, Aquinas: Young has been a leader and a warrior for his Aquinas squad all season and has been helping pave the way for the young guys to be successful in the years to come. Last night he played his tail off, scoring 15 points, including 13 of those in the second half and 6 in the fourth quarter. Tank plays with a ton of effort and at his size, has a knack for getting into gaps and defenders bodies, putting opposing defenders in really tough spots.   [player_tooltip player_id="889473" first="Luke" last="Adams"], 5’11 Point Guard, 2021, BVN: Adams was quiet throughout the early stages of the game, mainly controlling tempo and getting the offense for his teammates into gear, but his shooting ability came alive in the second half drilling 2 big threes, one in the 3rd and one in the 4th to get BVN a boost and some momentum in the second half.   Darius Mall, 5’9 Guard, 2022, Aquinas: The bench spark for Aquinas throughout the season and on the night. He is a defensive and effort specialist and he played his role well tonight. He also had a nice second quarter on the offensive end scoring 4 points in the quarter.   Other Thursday Night Notables Isaac Flores, 5’8 Guard, 2021, Garden City: The steady senior point guard paced his squad in a nice win over Great Bend with 15 points and was tremendous in getting others involved in the offense and was a defensive spearhead all night.   Erik Smith, 6’ Point Guard, 2021, Shawnee Mission South: Coming off of a huge game winner the other night, the South breakout point guard added 21 in a win over Olathe North.   [player_tooltip player_id="889480" first="Jack" last="Webb"], 6’2 Guard, 2021, Shawnee Mission South: Webb was a great castmate in the backcourt with Smith dropping 17 himself in the game. He continues to be a steady hand and threat in a variety of ways for the Raiders.   [player_tooltip player_id="1075930" first="Adrian" last="Dimond"], 6’7 Forward, 2022, Mill Valley: The versatile and athletic Dimond was great last night against Gardner Edgerton scoring 21 points. He was also great at using his length both at the rim and in passing lanes to cause disruption in Edgerton’s ability to run offense. Dimond has had an under the radar good season.   [player_tooltip player_id="891914" first="Tyrese" last="Cannon"], 6’3 Guard, 2022, Leavenworth: The dynamic guard put together a valiant effort in a tough matchup with Harrisonville with 25 points. The team came up short, but Cannon kept them in striking distance and showcased the full offensive repertoire.