Basketball Recap: Link Academy's Higher State Rank on Full Display on Saturday

On Saturday, the Link Academy Lions were able to grind out a solid victory over the Shawnee Mission East Lancers, taking the game 65-52. Given the Lions' advantage in MaxPreps' basketball rankings in their respective home states (they are ranked fifth in Missouri, while the Lancers are ranked 82nd in Kansas), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Legend Smiley

Points

01/25/25 vs Shawnee Mission East	22
01/16/25 vs Millennium	13
01/17/25 vs Bullis	12
01/18/25 vs Oak Ridge	9
01/24/25 vs Brewster Academy National	3

Link Academy had a senior duo take command as Legend Smiley went 6 of 7 from beyond the arc en route to 22 points and Chris Cenac went 6 for 9 on his way to 14 points and eight boards. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Smiley has scored all season. The team also got some help courtesy of Andre Igoudoula, who posted eight points.

Link Academy has been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matches, which provided a nice bump to their 15-5 record this season. As for Shawnee Mission East, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 4-6-1.

Link Academy has already played their next game, a 65-52 win against Shawnee Mission Northwest on the 25th. As for Shawnee Mission East, they also wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next contest, a 62-58 victory against St. James Academy on the 25th.