4 Quarters +1: Raytown vs Lee’s Summit North (Culver’s Classic)
Prep Hoops is going to try something a little different below. We are going to look at each of the four quarters of the matchup between the Lee’s Summit North Broncos and the Raytown Bluejays. This game was probably the most anticipated 1st round matchup of the tournament and it lived up to expectations.
Quarter 1
As most games go, the first quarter was back and fourth with both teams feeling each other out. The Broncos would go down and get a bucket and Raytown would answer, vice versa. Robert Proctor and Desmond Hutson both asserted their dominance early for the Bluejays and took advantage of open looks from about 15 ft and in. Elijah Farr for the Broncos on the other hand looked great in the paint. He showed some smooth moves down low and seemed to be scoring with ease. The first quarter came to a close with the Bluejays leading by 2.
Quarter 2
The second quarter wasn’t much different as Raytown seemed to get a rebound on every missed shot and the Broncos weren’t getting any second chance opportunities. The two bigs for Raytown proved that size could be a big factor. Mason Fair and Devin Drew showed no mercy and dominated the glass on both ends of the court. Raytown didn’t shoot well in the first half, but they also shot 13 more shots then Lee’s Summit North. The Broncos on the other hand shot very well in the first half. Javaunte Hawkins started to catch some fire by knocking down his first 3 buckets. Desmond Hutson stole the ball with less than 5 seconds remaining and threw down a thunderous dunk, but the dunk ended up being a half second after the buzzer. The momentum was with the Bluejays as they took a 32 – 27 lead into the half.
Quarter 3
Raytown seemed to be getting better as the game went on. They looked very comfortable running their half court sets against a rather loose zone that the Broncos were playing. They were getting open looks on every possession and were still getting second and third chance opportunities because of their great hustle and work for offensive rebounds. Hutson really started to take over and it seemed like he couldn’t miss. The Broncos really struggled and saw the deficit grow to double digits in the 3rd period. Broncos guard/wing Logan Jenkins started to shoot with some confidence as he hit a couple of shots to keep the game from getting out of hand. Tommy Erwin also started to help out and got 5 of his 7 points in the second half.
Quater 4
The 4th quarter had a ton of excitement and it was what the fans had been waiting for all game. Raytown didn’t increase their lead early on to 12 points. This was before the Broncos got some big buckets from Hawkins, Jenkins, and Mikel Henderson. All 3 hit some big shots from downtown to cut into that big lead, but what really changed the game was their defense. The Broncos tightened up their defense and started to pressure up full court. They took some risks that paid off in the end. Christian Carter (who is probably the fastest guy on the court in most games) played some great defense which led to some big time steals and fast break buckets. The lead for the Bluejays slowly faded away. Here is where we have some controversy. Bluejays guard Proctor went to the line up by 2 points and about 5 seconds left in the game. A Bronco guard stuck his hand up on both free throws to try and throw Proctor off and it might have caused him to miss the second free throw. Nothing was called and the Broncos grabbed the rebound. Hawkins then went down the court and almost lost the ball, but was able to get off a 25 footer and he drained it just as the buzzer went off. The Broncos had somehow forced overtime and grabbed all of the momentum at that point.
Bonus Action!!! (Overtime)
As overtime started, we ran into a little more controversy as the teams ended up jumping for the ball and the wrong direction. The Bluejays won the tip, but the Broncos got a quick steal and started on a fast break before being whistled for a backcourt violation. This was another thing that was badly missed by the referees, but the game would go on in which there was only one made bucket in Overtime. Mason Fair had a big second half/overtime in which he scored 10 points and didn’t miss a single shot. The Broncos only scored two free throws in OT while the Bluejays had the bucket and 3 free throws. Down the stretch the Bluejays really shot poorly from the line and allowed Lee’s Summit North back in the game. It still wasn’t enough as the Raytown Bluejays held off the Broncos and won the game 68-65.
Raytown moves on to play Hogan Prep Wednesday night while the Broncos head to the Consolation bracket and will play East High School Wednesday afternoon.
Raytown Leaders:
Desmond Hutson: 18 points
Mason Fair: 16 points 12 rebounds
Robert Proctor: 13 points
Lee’s Summit North Leaders:
Javaunte Hawkins: 17 points
Logan Jenkins: 14 points
Elijah Farr: 11 points