PRAIRIE VILLAGE — Lawrence High's boys basketball team obviously didn't lounge in a ski lodge during the holiday break.
Despite a two-week layoff, the Lions steamrolled to a 61-45 Sunflower League victory over Shawnee Mission East on Friday night in the Lancers' gym.
"We've been having intense, hard practices all week," said LHS senior guard D.J. Watkins, who scored a game-high 24 points 19 in the first half to lead the Lions to their fourth consecutive win. "We knew we'd have tough games going into the league. We wanted to regroup during the break, come out and make a strong opening in league play."
Watkins scored the first eight points and LHS (5-2 overall, 2-0 league) was never threatened by the cold-shooting Lancers (1-3, 0-2). The Lions led 17-8 after one quarter and 39-25 at halftime. LHS opened the second half with a 7-0 sizz for a commanding 46-25 advantage. SM East pulled within 12 (55-43) with three minutes left in the fourth quarter.
"We were concerned about the layoff and how we would come out," LHS coach Chris Davis said. "We wanted to emphasize attacking at the very beginning."
The Lions attacked throughout, diving for loose balls and driving to the hoop to draw fouls.
"We had a goal to extend the lead by at least one point every quarter," Davis said. "They ran a triangle-and-two (defense) and that's the first time we've seen it and I thought the kids responded really well to it."
LHS senior Stephen Vinson scored 10 points and dished six assists. Senior Jamie Peterson and junior Brandon McAnderson chipped in eight points apiece.
The Lions hadn't played since a 53-44 decision over Free State on Dec. 21.
"You'd think we'd have a letdown after such an emotional game," McAnderson said. "Coach got us prepared from the start."
Thirteen Lions played and eight of them scored.
The Lions shot 52 percent from the field (22-for-42) and 81.3 percent from the line (13-for-16).
Meanwhile, the Lancers struggled from the field, shooting 32.1 percent (17-for-53), while misfiring on several shots inside the paint.
"We gave them a lot of chances and we were lucky we didn't let them take advantage of them," McAnderson said.
The victory over the Lancers was special for Lion senior forward Matt Dunkin, who transferred two years ago from SM East. Dunkin made his first start since the season opener and scored two points.
"We wanted to get on top early and play tough defense to keep them down," Dunkin said.
Senior guard Matt Benge scored 18 points to lead SM East. No other Lancer scored more than seven points.
Next for LHS is a home game Tuesday against Shawnee Mission South (4-2). The Lions will play Friday at Shawnee Mission Northwest before heading to the Topeka Invitational the following week.
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