Clutch 3 lifts Staley, wild run rallies Ruskin in Holiday Classic championship games

Doing some of the little things — plus a clutch three-pointer by Staley freshman Kyan Evans with 40 seconds left — turned out to be the difference for Staley.

The Falcons claimed a 47-44 victory over Grandview on Monday evening in the Nelson Division championship game at the Holiday Classic boys basketball tournament at William Jewell College.

The win lifted Staley to 6-2; Grandview dropped to 5-3.

“They just stayed true to each other and were responsible for each other,” Staley coach Chris Neff said.

Staley broke a 40-40 tie when junior Jamaal Davis, who finished with 10 points, sprinted down court off a missed shot by Grandview. He was fouled as he was going up for the layup. Davis calmly made both free throws with 1 minute, 29 seconds left.

“He was just doing his job,” Neff said.

Fifty seconds later, Evans drilled a three-pointer to give Staley a 45-41 lead.

“It was crazy,” Evans said. “It gave us a boost. It was a big shot.”

With 14 seconds left and Staley holding a 45-44 advantage, senior Byron Alexander made two free throws for the final points of the game.

“I missed a few free throws,” said Alexander, who finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds. “I just had to find myself. We played good defense to win the game.”

Indeed. The Falcons prevented Grandview from getting off a good shot. Staley made sure sophomore Taj Manning, who finished with 16 points, and senior Reggie Morris, who finished with 15, didn’t get an open look.

“It takes so much to defeat a team like that and the two-headed monster they have in Taj Manning and Reggie Morris,” Neff said. “That called for a ton of defense. We were very fortunate.”

Staley also made a couple of winning-type plays late in the third quarter and early in the fourth.

An athletic offensive rebound by Alexander led immediately to him making a layup that gave Staley a 33-32 lead entering the fourth quarter.

The fourth quarter started with Alexander getting a steal and a layup, which increased the Falcons’ lead to 35-32.

In the first half, nothing separated Grandview and Staley. Grandview held the biggest lead at 9-5 midway through the first quarter and 15-11 early in the second. Staley had a 21-19 lead late in the second quarter.

Considering how evenly played the first half was between the two teams, it was not surprising the game was knotted at 24-24 at halftime.

Patterson Division championship

Ruskin 52, Liberty 48

Ruskin overcame a disastrous end to the second quarter and used a stunning turnaround in the third to sow the seeds of a victory over Liberty.

Ruskin sent the game into the fourth quarter tied at 42 after going on a 11-2 run to end the third quarter.

The Eagles grabbed the lead at the start of the fourth quarter when junior Tavion Banks finished an alley-oop dunk, making it 44-42. Liberty eventually tied the game at 46 with 4 minutes, 50 seconds left.

Ruskin went ahead for good at 47-46 on a free throw by senior Tyrone Moore.

“We knew it was the third game of the tournament so we rested our guys in the first half,” said Ruskin coach Ray Hughes. “Besides one little spurt at the end of the quarter, our bench did a pretty good. We rested our guys enough so they had enough to finish in the second half.”

Ruskin, which handed Liberty its first loss in eight games, improved to 8-2. Banks led Ruskin with 19 points and 14 rebounds.

“I am extremely proud of our team,” Hughes said. “That is a great team we played. This was a testament to how hard our guys played.”

Liberty jumped to a quick 12-3 lead, but it didn’t take Ruskin long to settle down and put together an offensive spurt to rapidly close ground. When the first quarter ended, Liberty led by just one, 16-15.

There were six lead changes in the first 4 minutes of the second quarter. Momentum rapidly changed after Ruskin took a 21-20 lead. Liberty scored the last 13 points in the second quarter and went into halftime with a 33-21 lead.

Junior Kellen Goodwin and sophomore Luke Stubbs fueled the run with pinpoint shooting. A three-pointer by Goodwin gave Liberty a 25-21 advantage. Stubbs followed with consecutive threes. The quarter ended with Stubbs feeding Goodwin for a two-point field goal.

Cardinal Division championship

Raymore-Peculiar 51, North Kansas City 40

By halftime, Raymore-Peculiar 6-foot-7 senior forward Kian Scoggins already had a double-double against North Kansas City. It was an indication Scroggins was having a special game.

The Panthers needed Scroggins’ 23 points and 16 rebounds to secure the title. The Cardinal Division will be renamed for longtime William Jewell men’s basketball coach and tournament founder Larry Holley, the school announced Monday.

Nearly every time the Hornets made a run at Raymore-Peculiar, Scroggins scored a basket or pulled down a rebound. For instance, when North Kansas City closed to 29-25, Scroggins made the next two baskets to push the Panthers advantage to 33-25.

Raymore-Peculiar went into the final quarter ahead 38-30. North Kansas City roared back on the play of senior guard D’Anthony Pennington. The Hornets opened the fourth quarter with eight straight points and tied the game at 38-38.

Four straight points by Raymore-Peculiar senior Jordan Jermain gave the Panthers a four-point lead. They never trailed again. Jermain finished with 15 points.

Leading 22-10 late in the second quarter, Raymore-Peculiar appeared to be in complete control. But the momentum quickly shifted after Pennington made a three-point play. It sparked the Hornets. North Kansas City scored 10 of the last 11 points in the second quarter and went into halftime trailing 23-20.

Consolation games

Park Hill South 70, Raytown 61

Senior guard Josh Prososki scored a game-high 25 points with six rebounds and five assists, leading the Panthers to a third-place finish in the Cardinal Division. Prososki went 9 for 10 from the free-throw line in the win. Junior Noble Crompton led Raytown with 15 points.

Lee’s Summit West 72, Liberty North 58

In the fifth-place game in the Cardinal Division, Lee’s Summit West got 22 points from junior Mike McKnight and 15 from senior Tysen Brennan, who also had eight rebounds. The Titans scored 42 points in the second half to pull away after leading only 30-29 at halftime.

Grandview Christian 80, Park Hill 62

Junior Josue Grullon went 11 for 13 from the field and scored a game-high 27 points for the Eagles in their victory. Seniors Peyton Downey, Mario Cheatem and Cannen Hill each added 10 points for Grandview Christian in the Patterson Division third-place game.

Truman 57, Lee’s Summit 55

Helping Truman win the fifth-place game in the Patterson Division were senior Kaimen Lennox, senior Sam Billimon and Senior Jeilel Phillips. Lennox scored 21, Billimon added 12 and Phillips scored 10. Leading the way for Lee’s Summit was senior Felix Anudike, who scored 21.

Rockhurst 65, Center 29

Junior guard Ben Walsh was nearly unstoppable from beyond the three-point arc, connecting on six of eight shots. Walsh finished with a game-high 25 points as Rockhurst won the third-place game in the Nelson Division.

Blue Springs South 66, St. Joseph Central 56

After falling behind 14-7 after the first quarter, Blue Springs South took control in the third quarter, outscoring Central 24-9 and taking a 47-30 lead into the final period in the Nelson Division fifth-place game. Senior Khayden Hooks led Blue Springs South with 18 points. Central senior AJ Redmon led all scorers with 27 points, going 10 for 11 from the free-throw line.

This story was originally published December 30, 2019 at 9:07 PM.