Round One Standouts from Thursday

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Teams from 1A, 3A and 5A had the spotlight on Wednesday. The even numbered classes took the court on Thursday and turned in some memorable performances. Here are some standouts from Thursday's games.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2393765' first='Eric' last='Smith']</strong>, 6-foot-3 forward, 2025, Atchison:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For a team that went to state last year and returned nearly everyone, it's impressive how big of a role a new guy has taken. Smith was a reserve last season, but has blown up as a junior and become Atchison's go to guy. He is strong, tough and versatile. He can handle the ball and is particularly good at penetrating to get to shots near the goal. He can play with his back to the basket. And he hit both his three-point attempts last night. Smith turned in an efficient 7-12 shooting, 3-3 from the line and grabbed 9 boards. He is one of the best blue-collar types going.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1270271' first='Tanner' last='Heckel']</strong>, 6-foot guard, 2024, Lyndon:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Heckel is part of a very talented group, but he stood out last night as a special talent. He dominated the game, nearly outscoring Conway Springs singlehandedly. The game stayed close enough that Heckel had to keep going full bore, and he scored in every way possible to get to 31 points. He attacks the basket so relentlessly that he wound up shooting 17 foul shots.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sterling Big Men:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Like they've been doing for a couple of years now, Sterling's post players dominated, this time against Plainville. 6-foot-5 senior <strong>Carson Gray</strong> is a huge and powerful post who is almost impossible to move off the low block. He efficiently got 18 points for the Black Bears. His partner in crime, 6-foot-1 senior <strong>Gabe Riffel</strong> isn't as tall, but is equally is powerful and tough. He's a relentless rebounder a threat in the midrange as well as at the goal. He tossed in 16 points and grabbed 17 boards. Throw in 6-foot-5 forward <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2403145' first='Boston' last='Ekart']</strong>, who plays a different style but has tons of length, and Sterling has a front line that's tough to match.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Wichita Northwest's Energy:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Grizzlies know who they are. They are not an efficient group – they barely shot 30% in their win over Blue Valley Northwest – but they just keep attacking. Guards [player_tooltip player_id='1270290' first='Tasean' last='Williams'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2169828' first='Eli' last='Benning'] are as quick and daring with the ball as any tandem you'll find. They made just 11 of 33 shots, but they drew fouls, getting the Huskies into a ton of foul trouble. Other Grizzlies, including <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2327576' first='Darrian' last='Hammond']</strong>, <strong>Jerome Henderson</strong>, <strong>Jayce Glaper</strong> and <strong>Liam Calvert</strong> can really run, which means the whole group is racing on the attack all the time.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Wichita Heights' efficiency:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While Wichita Northwest won without shooting a high percentage, Wichita Heights barely missed in their opening game against Campus. The team shot 32-49 for the game. Long forward [player_tooltip player_id='1962885' first='Chase' last='Robinson'] ran and jumped to high percentage attempts, and he hit all 10 of them. [player_tooltip player_id='1270090' first='TJ' last='Williams'] (pictured) never looks like he's out of control, and it showed in his 5-6 shooting. Those two combined for 42 points. Heights has other weapons, and they all clicked Thursday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->