Looking Ahead to 2A Substate Action

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Small school substate pairings are out. We can now breakdown some of the most interesting maatchups and players to watch across the landscape.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We turn our attention to 2A, where Lyndon would appear a strong favorite. But there are some credible challengers in the field. Sterling and St. Mary's Colgan are ranked high, but we expect a lot from the talent at Bennington and the winning pedigree of Moundridge.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Final Season Rankings from the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>1 Lyndon 2 Sterling 3 Pittsburg-St. Mary's Colgan 4 Bennington 5 Moundridge 6 Meade 7 Ell-Saline 8 Wichita-Classical School 9 Salina-Sacred Heart 10 Oxford</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Meade Substate:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are a few tough substates in 2A, but we give the award for Toughest Substate to Meade, where #2 Sterling is once again stuck in a loaded field. It seems like Sterling is in the toughest bracket every year, and this year they have both #6 Meade and unranked but dangerous Medicine Lodge. [player_tooltip player_id='2314835' first='Isaac' last='Briar'] and company at Sterling are grouped with Meade studs [player_tooltip player_id='1953947' first='Brock' last='Keith'] and <strong>Bradon Bird</strong> and Medicine Lodge's [player_tooltip player_id='1962888' first='Keveon' last='Ruiz']. It will be worth the price of admission.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Southeast Substate:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The games in Cherokee will likely build toward a meeting between #3 St Mary's Colgan and #10 Oxford. Interestingly, the Panthers are the highest ranked team in 2A to participate in a state tournament last year. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2387765' first='Jack' last='Schremmer']</strong> and <strong>Tucker Harrell </strong>will be among the returners putting that experience to work. Oxford is a balanced group, bringing four players who average at least 11 points per game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Marion:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>#5 Moundridge has a bunch of state tournament experience, including [player_tooltip player_id='1953952' first='Kreighton' last='Kanitz'] (pictured), who played in two 4A tourneys with McPherson. #7 Ell Saline is led by <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2393781' first='Brogan' last='Rowley']</strong>, a leaping marvel who is a highlight just waiting to happen.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jefferson County North:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are a couple of brackets without a ranked team, leaving them wide open for the taking. There are individuals to watch: Maur Hill's <strong>Bohdan Korbelik</strong>, Horton's <strong>Gannon Becker</strong>, Jefferson Valley's <strong>Carson McAfee</strong> and Valley Fall's [player_tooltip player_id='1461342' first='Zac' last='Evans']. But we're intrigued to see what Cair Paravel can do in this seemingly open field.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->