Maize South boys basketball tops Andover Central for Kansas high school state berth

In Joe Jackson’s third season as coach of the Maize South boys basketball team, he feels like he has his most complete team to date.

The Mavericks have a scoring star in Isaiah Atwater, a sharpshooter in Michael Kates, a defensive stopper in Tatum Steinhoff, length and toughness in Jeron Askren and Tory Homan and a dynamic bench led by Sammy Dresie, Jaylen Maze and Darius Felton.

It’s a combination of everything Jackson could want in a team and it’s a combination that has the Mavericks headed for the state tournament for just the second time in school history.

Maize South held off Andover Central for a tense 53-49 victory in a Class 5A sub-state championship game on Saturday that felt more like a state semifinal game.

“We’ve got a really great cohesiveness with this group,” Jackson said. “It’s a lot of fun coaching these guys. They’re great to be around and we feel like we definitely have the pieces to make a run next week.”

Maize South (19-3) is expected to be the No. 5 seed and face AV-CTL Div. II champion Andover (20-2) in Thursday’s opening round of the Class 5A state tournament at White Auditorium in Emporia.

With all three of Maize South’s losses this season coming to Hutchinson, the AV-CTL Div. 1 champion and fellow state qualifier, the Mavericks feel confident they can be the ones to emerge in what projects to be a loaded side of the bracket that will include top seed and undefeated Highland Park.

“We feel like we can compete with anybody,” Jackson said. “These seniors have had this goal in place for a long time and our junior class is really deep and we’ve been getting contributions from a lot of different guys. Our first year they laid the foundation for the culture and last year we took a step in the right direction. This year we’ve been even better.”

Maize South built a double-digit lead in the first half against Andover Central, but the Jaguars (17-5) rallied behind stars Kobe Smith and Brian Perry, who scored back-to-back baskets to tie the game at 43 with 2:07 remaining.

But the Mavericks could come through in the clutch in the final two minutes.

Askren penetrated Andover Central’s zone, then dumped off to Felton for a basket and a foul. Smith trimmed the deficit to 46-45, but Maize South came up with another vital basket when Steinhoff penetrated the paint and kicked out to Atwater, who drained a 3-pointer for a 49-45 lead with 1:12 left. Andover Central never threatened again.

“Isaiah is our floor general out there and he had the ball in his hands every single possession and orchestrated the offense for us,” Jackson said. “He loves those pressure moments and he knocked down some big shots for us.”

In other 5A sub-state finals, Kapaun Mt. Carmel easily handled Hays 75-46 to lock up the No. 2 seed at the state tournament with a 21-1 record. Hutchinson (21-1) was right behind with the No. 3 seed after a 66-38 win over Topeka West, while Andover (20-2) cruised to a 55-29 victory over Emporia to lock up the No. 4 seed.

In Class 3A boys, Hesston topped Haven in a 47-41 win between two of the best teams in the state. The Swathers advanced to state with a 22-1 record and will be joined by Wichita Collegiate, which took care of Humboldt in a 64-32 victory to improve to 20-3 this season.

In Class 2A, Moundridge and Wichita Independent each won sub-state titles to advance to the state tournament, while Wichita Classical and McPherson Elyria Christian punched their tickets to the Class 1A Div. 1 state tournament.

Kansas high school boys basketball sub-state scores

Class 5A boys

Andover 55, Emporia 29

Hutchinson 66, Topeka West 38

Kapaun Mt. Carmel 75, Hays 46

Maize South 53, Andover Central 49

Class 3A boys

Hesston 47, Haven 41

Wichita Collegiate 64, Humboldt 32

Class 2A boys

Medicine Lodge 46, Meade 41

Moundridge 60, Sterling 45

Wichita Independent 56, Belle Plaine 48

Class 1A Division 1 boys

McPherson Elyria Christian 49, Canton-Galva 45

Wichita Classical 48, Norwich 42

Class 1A Division 2 boys

South Central 50, Cunningham 49

Southern Cloud 53, Hutchinson Central Christian 44

Stafford 49, Pawnee Heights 42