Lee’s Summit boys capture Missouri Class 5 sectional victory

Marquawn Wilson didn’t appear sick.

The Lee’s Summit senior, who hadn’t practiced in more than three days because of a bad cold, threw down a highlight-reel dunk midway through the fourth quarter. That put the exclamation point on the Tigers’ 62-53 win over Raymore-Peculiar in a Class 5 sectional Wednesday at Silverstein Eye Centers Arena.

Lee’s Summit led 52-45 when Wilson came up with a steal on defense. Leading a three-on-one break, Wilson passed the ball to Blake Spellman, who returned the ball to Wilson with a behind-the-back pass.

“I thought it was pretty sweet,” Wilson said of his jam. “I was running full speed, and Blake and I have that type of connection, to when I gave the ball to him, I knew he was going to give it right back.”

Wilson’s dunk completed a 6-0 run for the Tigers. Raymore-Peculiar didn’t get closer than seven the rest of the way.

Nick Larkin scored 15 points and Spellman added 14 for Lee’s Summit, 28-0, which advances to Saturday’s quarterfinal.

Nicholas Janssen tallied 15 for the Jaguars, who finished 16-12.

Liberty North 57, Park Hill South 56

Liberty North may feel most comfortable in the playoffs trailing in the fourth quarter.

For the third game in a row, the Eagles stared a late deficit in the face and came away with a win. They defeated Park Hill South 57-56 Wednesday in a Class 5 sectional.

“Our guys have a lot of resolve,” Liberty North coach Chris McCabe said. “We made a couple of plays late, and we’ve done that here the last few games. We’ve done it the last couple of years, really, it’s just in our DNA.”

Liberty North, 24-3, trailed 44-40 early in the fourth, then took the lead for good with a 10-2 run.

Michael Hughes scored 10 of his game-high 27 points down the stretch for the Eagles, including two free throws with 16 seconds left that made it 56-52.

“You can’t psyche yourself out shooting free throws you just have to worry about putting the ball in the hole,” said Hughes, whose team will play Lee’s Summit in Saturday’s quarterfinals. “I love these guys. I love the coaches, I love the managers, I love every person on this team. To continue the season with them is just another accomplishment and another great thing.”

Lamel Robinson scored 22 points for Park Hill South, which finished the season 16-11.

Blue Springs South 46, Waynesville 40

In its Missouri Class 5 postseason run last March, Blue Springs South played every game as a decided favorite. And the Jaguars followed through with the first state championship in school history. A year later, they’re relishing the underdog role.

Blue Springs South is back in the Missouri Class 5 quarterfinals after a 46-40 win against Waynesville on Wednesday in Sedalia.

KJ Robinson led the Jaguars with 16 points.

“There’s familiarity there with all our guys. Even the guys who didn’t play last year were on the bench,” Jaguars coach Jimmy Cain said in a phone interview after the game. “I think we’re comfortable in this setting.”

Blue Springs South, 17-11, will face Kickapoo at 7:45 p.m. Saturday at Southwest Baptist in Bolivar, Mo.

The Jaguars entered halftime Wednesday tied 18-18 but built a double-digit lead in the third quarter.

“They really defended us well and played three different defenses that kept us off balance,” Cain said. “We did most of our damage in transition when we got stops defensively. KJ was really good in the open floor.”

Belton girls 52, William Chrisman 42

Hardly a word was spoken by Belton girls basketball players on the bus ride to their game Wednesday. That focus showed in the fourth quarter.

Belton made all 12 of its free throws down the stretch and held off William Chrisman 52-42 in the Class 5 sectionals.

“We knew what we were getting into. We knew it was going to be a real competitive game,” said Belton junior Courtnie Lewis, who led all scorers with 21 points. “Everybody was focused.”

The Pirates, 16-12, led 42-28 with a little more than 3 minutes to play before William Chrisman made a run. Brioenne Burns hit two three-pointers and the Bears forced multiple Belton turnovers, cutting the Pirates’ lead to six three times.

But William Chrisman would get no closer as Lewis, Kaitlyn Frasher and Sydney Bandy went perfect from the field and the free-throw line the last 2 minutes.

“We were able to answer their runs,” Belton coach Brad Batchelder said. “We didn’t just hold the ball, we kept attacking and attacking.”

Frasher added 11 points for Belton. Burns led the Bears, 21-7, with 15.

Liberty girls 59, St. Joseph Central 44

Down 16 points in the second quarter, Liberty had St. Joseph Central just where it wanted.

The Blue Jays then went on a big run and rolled to a 59-44 win in a Class 5 girls sectional.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that big of a swing this late in the season,” Liberty coach Noah Simpson said. “In the postseason, you’re usually not able to come back from that when a team gets that kind of momentum.”

Morgan Fleming hit two three-pointers to help start the 24-2 rally that lasted into the second half.

“I looked up at the clock and said, hey, we have a lot of time,” Fleming said. “I told the team in the second quarter that we had to make a run. We battled back and I think we felt really good at halftime.”

Liberty, 25-3, trailed 28-25 at halftime and then took the lead for good early in the second half on McKenzie Hull’s three-pointer.

“We didn’t panic,” Simpson said. “That’s having six seniors who have been through these type of game and have the desire to get it done.”

Fleming led Liberty with 23 points, including 14 in the first half. Sydney Offield finished with 16 points and Kayel Newland added 10 for the Blue Jays, who face Belton in Saturday’s quarterfinals.

This story was originally published March 9, 2016 at 7:31 PM with the headline "Lee’s Summit boys capture Missouri Class 5 sectional victory."