By Dean Backes
MaxPreps.com
The departure of Kansas State offensive coordinator James Franklin wasn’t the only loss the Wildcats experienced in his move to Maryland. CSTV Super Prospect Chris Harper of Wichita’s Northwest High School decommitted from the Wildcats, a team he committed to Dec. 17, and announced his intentions to play football in the Pac-10 at the University of Oregon.
Harper, listed by CSTV as an athlete at 6-foot-2, 230 pounds, is expected to be given a crack at the quarterback position for the Ducks, but could also play linebacker, safety or wide receiver.
Franklin’s exit from the Little Apple had a lot to do with Harper’s decision to change his mind, but he was also impressed with Oregon’s facilities. The 2008 recruiting class he will be a part of didn’t hurt either.
“There’s more opportunity there than at other schools, which is really good,” Harper told the Wichita Eagle. “(The offense) is really diverse. They go five-wide (receivers) or four-wide or do whatever. It’s flexible enough to do anything. If I was a receiver, I’d be looking at Oregon, too. They’re getting a lot of good players. They got a really good recruiting class, and it’s not even over yet.”
There is also a possibility Harper could play basketball. But for now football is his top priority.
Boys Basketball: East Shreds Competition at TOC
Wichita East toyed with its opposition during the opening halves of the first two rounds at Dodge City’s Tournament of Champions, then ran away with wins in the second half. Against Hays in the championship game, the Aces traveled a different path to the championship by jumping on Hays early and cruising to a 67-51 win.
East started its tournament record 13th championship run with a 67-51 win over Gardner-Edgerton Thursday before knocking off the hosts 56-44 Friday to set up the seemingly easy 16-point win over the Indians.
The Aces, who built a 36-22 halftime advantage, were never really threatened despite Hays’ ability to cut an 18-point deficit to nine in the second half after East coach Ron Allen started to substitute. Hays never got closer than that nine-point difference in the final 16 minutes.
“We got our kids on the floor, got a couple baskets, then we kept about a 14 point cushion on them,” Allen told the Wichita Eagle. “Then from there it was, if they make a shot, we were going to try to make one.”
Hays pulled off the upset of the tournament by knocking off Class 6A’s eighth-ranked Wichita Heights 65-59 in the semifinals Friday.
Heights took third place Saturday with a 67-51 win over Dodge City. Hutchinson earned a fifth place finish in the eight team field with a 56-39 triumph over Gardner-Edgerton, while Wellington knocked off defending 1A champion South Gray for seventh place.
Bloomquist Leads Spartans to Win Over Shawnee Heights
Caydrick Bloomquist scored a career high 35 points in leading 5A No. 5 Emporia to its second straight championship at the Ralph Miller Classic Basketball Tournament with a 64-55 win over 5A No. 6 Shawnee Heights.
In addition to Bloomquist’s career night, the Spartans canned 17 of 20 free throws in the fourth period, to rally from six points down and get the nine-point win. Emporia out scored Heights 26-11 in the final eight minutes.
Cowboys Bomb Away
Dane Haller and Curry Sexton found a way to impact Abilene’s 61-58 win over Salina South Friday well beyond their 19 combined points.
Haller nailed a 30-foot shot just before halftime, giving the Cowboys a 30-26 halftime advantage and a huge boost heading in to the lockerroom. Sexton followed suit with a 40-foot buzzer beater to end the game and give the Cowboys the win.
Sexton’s shot came on the heels of Mike Stratton’s score, for South, with 3.2-seconds left in regulation that appeared to send the game into overtime.
Haller finished the game with seven points, while Sexton tossed in 12 points.
“You take it when you can get it,” Abilene coach Terry Taylor told the Abilene Reflector-Chronicle. “You don’t count on those things, and you hope they don’t go against you.”
The win over the Cougars vaulted the Cowboys into the fifth place game of the Salina Invitational Basketball Tournament against Smoky Valley. The Cowboys (7-4) made all 11 of their free throws in the fourth period, and went 15-for-15 in the second half, to knock off the Vikings 48-46.
Giant Killers No More
Last season South Gray lost one game on its way to a 26-1 record and a Class 1A state championship. That one loss was a 55-37 clocking by Class 6A Dodge City in the semifinals of the Dodge City Tournament of Champions in mid-January.
South Gray went on to earn a third place finish at the tournament with a stunning 57-50 win over Class 6A Wichita South. Pair that victory with a 56-48 win over Class 6A Derby in the first round of the tournament and it’s easy to see why the Rebels have built a reputation as giant killers.
Unfortunately for South Gray coach Mark Applegate that title fit for just one season, despite returning three starters from that team. The Rebels did come close to winning against the bigger competition in this year’s tournament, but had to settle for eighth place following a 65-55 loss to Wellington (4A) in the seventh-place contest Saturday.
The Rebels lost 63-54 to Wichita Heights (6A) in opening round action, and then fell to Hutchinson (5A) by a 53-46 count in the semifinals.
Although his team lost three consecutive games, Applegate could think only of the positives his team would take away from playing against a much higher level of competition than they’re used to.
“Down the road, it will help in the postseason,” Applegate told the Dodge City Daily Globe. “At state kids want to win, they’ll be physical and will pressure.”
Girls Basketball: Sims Saves Heights’ Streak
It’s not often that the St. Thomas Aquinas girls basketball team is an underdog on the basketball court. But in Saturday’s championship game of the Shawnee Mission South Invitational, the Saints found themselves in that position against defending 6A champion Wichita Heights. The Saints lost 46-44.
Freshman Mary Sims saved the Falcon’s 35-game winning streak, when she dropped in the winning basket with 16 seconds remaining in the game that pitted 6A’s top-ranked Falcons against the No. 2 team in Class 5A.
Sims redeemed herself after missing a point-blank attempt with five seconds left in regulation that would have given Heights the win.
