There was not a lot of drama during the I-70 Conference Tournament’s boys’ first round games which were held Tuesday, Dec. 10 at Crest Ridge and Lone Jack.
The pair of matchups hosted by the Cougars were aired on KMMO-FM, with the top two seeds, St Paul Lutheran and Crest Ridge, both claiming one-sided victories.
St. Paul Lutheran Shuts Down Santa Fe
Wrapping up the evening was the 57-15 verdict which the Saints enjoyed over Santa Fe.
Intent on defending their I-70 Tournament and regular-season championships from a year ago, St Paul Lutheran had nine players score with three of them in double figures. Tate Kreisel paced his team with 15 points while Kaden Gallup added 13 and Easton Sheets scored 10.
The Saints led 20-4 after one quarter and then 33-7 at halftime before posting a win of more than 40 points. The victory allowed St Paul to improve to 2-1 on the season while Santa Fe dropped to 0-5.
Cougars Cruise Past Sweet Springs
Kicking things off was Crest Ridge’s 68-41 verdict over Sweet Springs. The Cougars raced out to a 22-8 lead after the first period and then 36-14 at intermission. The Crest Ridge advantage grew to 63-26 entering the final eight minutes of play before they coasted home with a victory of nearly 30 points.
Now 3-2 on the season, the Cougars saw nine people score with four of them in double figures. Wes Taylor led the winners with 17 points as Gavin Wyatt tossed in 14 while Wyatt Ducos and Landon Evans mustered 13 and 11 respectively.
Falling to 1-5 overall, Sweet Springs had only three players dent the scoreboard with Drayton Hampton firing home five trifectas which led to 26 points for him.
Out West In Lone Jack
Meanwhile, the scores of the two boys’ games held in Lone Jack Tuesday night saw the host Mules knock off Orrick, 58-44 followed by fifth-seeded Wellington’s 78-51 decision over fourth-seeded Concordia.
Second-Round Games Wednesday and Thursday
Semifinal games are set for Wednesday and tomorrow, with the girls returning to the court tonight.
At Lone Jack, it’s Santa Fe versus Orrick in a consolation semifinal at 5:30, followed by a winners’ semifinal between Concordia and Lone Jack. At Crest Ridge, the consolation semifinal between Sweet Springs and Wellington-Napoleon will tip off our coverage tonight. Pregame is set for 5:20 p.m. on KMMO-FM 102.9. Afterward is the other winners’ bracket semifinal between the host Cougars and St Paul Lutheran.
Second-round action for the boys is tomorrow, with our microphones remaining at Crest Ridge for the losers’ bracket contest between Sweet Springs and Orrick; again our pregame coverage will begin at 5:20 p.m. Crest Ridge will then face Lone Jack in a semifinal at 7 p.m. Meanwhile, Santa Fe and Concordia battle in a consolation contest at Lone Jack at 5:30, followed by the other winners’ bracket semifinal between St Paul Lutheran and Wellington-Napoleon.