Championship finals set at annual William Jewell Holiday Classic basketball tournament

The 44th annual William Jewell Holiday Classic tipped off Wednesday morning with three eight-team divisions of Missouri high school boys basketball teams.

Friday was all about the semifinals, as well as games on the consolation side of the brackets. Here’s a look at some of the action, starting with the Holley Division:

Holley Division

North Kansas City 56, Raymore-Peculiar 51

For the third straight year since Ed Fritz took the helm at North Kansas City, the Hornets will play for a Holiday Classic title.

The Hornets, ranked No. 4 in the 810 Varsity Top 25, overcame a slim 30-28 halftime deficit. Xavius Kirkwood led the way with 14 points, while Herb Bass added 11. North Kansas City held Ray-Pec to just nine points in the third period to take the lead for good.

Cannon Northcraft paced the Panthers with a game-high 16 points, while Holden Kephart and Ashton Jermain chipped in 11 apiece. Raymore-Peculiar will take on Liberty in the third-place game Saturday.

The Hornets (8-1) will take on Battle (Columbia) in the title game at 7:30 pm Saturday. North Kansas City won the Nelson Division title in 2021, then lost to Park Hill in last year’s final, 62-61.

Battle 76, Liberty 58

The Spartans have ensured that their first trip from Columbia to the Holiday Classic in Liberty is smooth sailing so far.

Battle scorched the nets in the first half with 16-of-19 shooting from the floor, including 4-for-6 from beyond the arc. That led to a 43-20 halftime margin. Tate McCubbin scored a game-high 25 points for Battle, which opened the tourney with a 78-55 win against Pembroke Hill.

Zachariah Aganovic led the Blue Jays with 13 points, while Kale Mortimer chipped in nine. Liberty will take on Raymore-Peculiar in the third-place game at 1:30 pm Saturday.

Patterson Division

Oak Park 73, Central 56

For a moment, Central almost made the Northmen break a sweat in their quest for a second straight Jewell Classic title.

The Eagles took on the No. 1 team in the 810 Varsity Top 25 — and top-seeded team in the Patterson Division — and played it close. It was 19-17 Oak Park after one quarter. The Northmen extended their lead to 11, at 40-29, by halftime.

Central fought back behind Timothy Wooden Jr.’s 25 points and Brandon Moore’s 20 points to make it a five-point game, 49-44, in the third period. But Oak Park clamped down on the Eagles, who mustered a 2-for-11 effort in the final period.

Caleb Estes scored a team-high 22 points for Oak Park, and Corbin Allen’s 20-point, 13-rebound performance was a big boost. Allen surpassed the 1,000-point career mark in Wednesday night’s 86-45 win over Lincoln Prep.

Josh Kori tallied 13 points and seven rebounds for the Northmen, who will face Blue Springs South in the division’s championship game at 9 p.m. Saturday. Oak Park (8-1) won the Nelson Division crown a year ago.

Blue Springs South 54, Liberty North 40

For the first time since 2018, Blue Springs South will be playing for a Jewell Classic title.

The Jaguars pulled away after intermission to top Liberty North and advance to the final against Oak Park. Sully Mohamed was the lone player to score in double digits, with 13.

Blue Springs South led 20-18 at halftime but pulled away with 8-of-14 shooting, including four buckets from three-point range, to lead 40-30 entering the final period.

Bleu Renfrow scored nine points to lead Liberty North, which will face Central in the third-place game at 4:30 pm Saturday.

The Jaguars’ last trip to a Jewell Classic title game resulted in a Patterson title in 2018.

Nelson Division

Staley 61, Winnetonka 48

Staley handled fellow North Kansas City district foe Winnetonka and will aim to take home an event-record fifth straight Jewell Classic title Saturday night.

The Falcons didn’t waste any time Friday, jumping on the previously undefeated Griffins for an 18-2 lead. KV Stone and Avian Webb each finished with 16 points, while Xavier Wilson added 10.

Jaylen Craig scored a game-high 17 points for Winnetonka (9-1); Ky Coleman added 15. The Griffins closed the gap to nine points, 46-37, after three quarters, but drew no closer.

Staley (6-3) will play for the Nelson Division title at 6 p.m. Saturday. The Falcons won titles here from 2019-22, tying Lee’s Summit West (2010-13) and Liberty (1995-1998) as the only schools to four-peat in the history of the 44-year old Holiday Classic event.

Rockhurst 53, Blue Springs 40

For the second tournament in a row, Rockhurst will face Staley for the title.

The Hawklets (6-4) beat Blue Springs in the Nelson Division semifinals and will take on the Falcons, who beat Rockhust in the Dec. 9 finals at the Blue Springs Tournament.

Cooper Scott led the Hawklets with 12 points. Andrew Sprague and Kevin Sullivan added eight apiece. Rockhurst trailed after the first quarter but then outscored the Wilcats 37-16 to enter the final period with a 45-26 advantage.

Malik Lewis scored 12 to lead Blue Springs, which will face Winnetonka in the third-place game Saturday.

Rockhurst is seeking its first Jewell Classic title since 2018.

For scores, stats, recaps, rankings, broadcasts and more, visit 810Varsity.com.

This story was originally published December 29, 2023 at 9:51 PM.