Big Game Preview: Washburn Rural at Blue Valley North
Big Game Preview: Washburn Rural vs. Blue Valley North
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Things are set to tip off in Kansas Hoops on Friday with a full slate of games, including a big early-season contest between Washburn Rural and Blue Valley North in Overland Park.
What’s at Stake:
Lots of pride between teams from two of the better basketball leagues in Kansas. Blue Valley North figures to be a player in both the Eastern Kansas League and for a run in the 6A state playoffs, while Rural figures to also be a player in 6A and in the Centennial League.
About Washburn Rural
Team returns one of the better 1-2 punches in Topeka in 2019 guard Jordan White, 2018 guard Jack Hamilton and 2018 guard Raymond Swopes. White and Hamilton were the the teams leading scorers last season as White, a 6’0 point guiard, averaged 14.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 5.0 assists, while Hamilton, a 6’3 forward, averaged 10.5 points, led the team in rebounding at 6.0 per game and added two assists per game.
One of the big keys for Rural this season will be the production of 6’0 guard Raymond Swopes, a talented guard who shot nearly 40 percent from behind the 3-point arc last season. Swopes and others will have to replace the production of Washburn’s Nos. 3-6 leading scorers last season who were all lost to graduation.
About Blue Valley North
Team has to replace a really good 1-2 punch in its backcourt from a year ago in Keilon Hunter and Colby Bullock, but they still have one of the state’s best all-around players in forward Miles Emery and have several players poised for breakout seasons, including wing Eric Batson, Dylan Freburg, Preston Shanahan and others.
Known for their lockdown defense and patience on offense, look for North to continue to slow the pace, turn the game into a grind and pound the ball inside.