Back to State: 4A Tourney Teams Return Significant Talent

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 4A tournament was a blast last season. A lot of the top teams from a year ago look to be strong again this year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are the teams from last year's 4A tournament who return the most talent:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hugoton – finished first in 2023:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hugoton lost its two best players from last year, a couple of special talents. But don't shed any tears for the Eagles. They return reliable players at every position. They have quality point guard play in [player_tooltip player_id='1300809' first='Dasean' last='Lewis'] and <strong>Griffin Heger</strong>. They have physical versatility in [player_tooltip player_id='1378448' first='Emmett' last='Gaskill'] and athletic bigs in <strong>Isaac Martin</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2387756' first='Izeyah' last='Harris']</strong>. And there's even more talent further down the bench.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>McPherson – finished second in 2023:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Graduation didn't deprive McPherson of a lot, but they lost one important transfer from last season. Still, this team is loaded. [player_tooltip player_id='1436793' first='Kyden' last='Thompson'] (pictured) and [player_tooltip player_id='1461339' first='Cory' last='Muehler'] are two of the best guards in the state. Together they are versatile, complementary pieces. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1556702' first='Owen' last='Pyle']</strong> is a reliable ball handler and brilliant shooter who may be ready to pick up a bigger role. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2321572' first='Gabe' last='Pyle']</strong> is a long forward who can really light it up.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Atchison – lost to Bishop Miege in first round:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Even despite a couple of key graduations and a significant transfer, the Phoenix return a ton from last year's tourney team. They have two tough, athletic and dangerous guards in [player_tooltip player_id='1953940' first='Xiomar' last='Hernandez'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1756359' first='Trey' last='Carter']. Those two score, distribute and are leaders with the ball in their hands. Atchison also has two impressive big men to build around in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2314773' first='Jeter' last='Purdy']</strong> and <strong>Jace Richards</strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Clay Center – lost to Hugoton in first round:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two of the Tigers' best players last season were sophomores. [player_tooltip player_id='1962886' first='Cole' last='Pladson'] is a physical guard who can really shoot it. He will team well in the backcourt with <strong>Jace Weller</strong> and <strong>Owen Craig</strong>, versatile guards who can score. <strong>Justin Wright</strong>, <strong>Jackson Henry</strong> and <strong>Walker Henry</strong> all played key minutes and will bring experience to the team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Baldwin – lost to Eudora in first round:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Like Hugoton, Baldwin loses its two best players from last year, but the group that surrounded them is all back. Guard [player_tooltip player_id='1624974' first='Cooper' last='Carr'] was one of the state's leading freshmen last year, and he will likely be option one this season. <strong>Ryker Grossner</strong> is a highly productive big man who can shoot it and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2317398' first='Talan' last='Torrez']</strong> and <strong>Joseph Ziembicki</strong> are reliable guards.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->