Missouri Class 5 girls basketball sectional preview

Over a five-day period in the middle of January, the Liberty High School girls basketball team produced three victories — each of them against elite competition — which coach Noah Simpson says had his team believing it may not lose again this season.

A week later, reality hit. Blue Springs South overpowered Liberty for a 51-37 victory — handing the Blue Jays their first loss in 11 games.

As it turns out, it was a much-needed one.

“I think it was a little bit of a wake-up call,” Simpson said. “I felt like all the things we were talking about when we were winning, it was hard for the kids to buy into that. When the mistakes showed themselves and we got beat, it made it a lot easier to deliver our message.”

Liberty hasn’t lost since.

The Blue Jays, 24-3, will take a nine-game winning streak into Wednesday’s Missouri Class 5 sectional game against Park Hill, scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Excelsior Springs High School.

Junior Morgan Fleming leads the team with 15.2 points per game, and she’s only 19 shy of 1,000 for her career. Chiarra Franklin has added 9.9 points and 8 rebounds per game.

But the true mark of Liberty’s season, Simpson said, has been its effort on the defensive end.

“That’s the thing we’ve focused on the most,” Simpson said. “I’ve been here for three years now, and that’s what I’ve stressed from day one, so we have a group of juniors and seniors who have had that mentality for three years. I think we’re seeing the results of that.”

It helped Liberty roll through its Suburban Red Conference schedule without a blemish, including a pair of double-digit wins against Park Hill, which takes a 19-7 record into Wednesday’s matchup.

The old adage, of course, states that it’s hard to beat good team three times.

“I’ve been reminding them that pretty much every day,” Simpson said. “Park Hill is a very good team who is very well-coached with a lot of good athletes. They play hard. It’s going to be another battle.”

Class 5 girls sectional

WHO: Lee’s Summit West (21-6) vs. Truman (18-8)

WHEN/WHERE: 7:45 p.m. Wednesday at Grandview High School

KEY PLAYER: Truman sophomore point guard Kierra Collier is averaging 15.4 points per game on 49 percent shooting, along with 4.2 rebounds and 2.6 steals per contest.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Lee’s Summit West has played one of the state’s most difficult schedules this season. All six of its losses have come against state-ranked opponents.

The Titans share the ball well, tallying assists on 60 percent of their made field goals this season. De’jionae Calloway (12.9), Austin Richardson (11.0) and Taylor Jackson (9.0) lead the team in scoring.

The path to a district title included a few more bumps in the road for Truman, which had to replace a pair of 1,000-point scorers.

But the Patriots have found their groove at the right time, winning nine of their past 10 games. Collier drives the offense, and Lexi Hart has provided a low-post threat, with 9.8 points and 8.6 rebounds per contest.

This story was originally published March 11, 2015 at 2:14 PM with the headline "Missouri Class 5 girls basketball sectional preview."