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Lawrence High had gone seven weeks and nine games without a loss before its streak went kaput against Olathe North on Friday night.

Olathe North's stifling defense coupled with Lawrence's cold-shooting resulted in a 65-52 victory for the Eagles over the host Lions in a battle between Sunflower League contenders in the LHS gym.

Olathe North's Gus Minter (25) blocks a shot by Lawrence's David Parkinson (45). LHS lost, 65-52, Friday night at Olathe North.

"Success breeds complacency a lot of times," said LHS coach Chris Davis, whose squad hadn't lost since the semifinals of the Blue Valley Shootout on Dec. 7. "I thought we were zoned in. We can take this and come back, work hard and come back stronger. I'll take the run we had, though, and hopefully we put another one together."

O-North (11-2, 5-0) certainly was zoned in against the Lions (10-3, 4-1).

The Eagles shot 65 percent from the field 26-for-40 with four players scoring in double figures. O-North's Tyler Hughes, a 6-foot-11 junior center, scored a game-high 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field. Gus Milner (14), Jonathan Lamb (12) and Maurice Mack (10) also scored in double figures for the Eagles.

"We sure didn't anticipate them having that good of night," Davis said. "They got a lot of shots right around the basket. We didn't do a good job of reacting to the second pass. I have nothing but respect with the job they're doing there. Hopefully, we'll get a chance to play them again."

While O-North sizzled, LHS fizzled. The Lions shot 36.9 percent from the field (17-for-26). The Lions shot just 20.8 percent from three-point range (5-for-24). They missed their final 13 attempts from beyond the arc.

"Their defense was as good as we've seen all year long," Davis said. "They knew where we were going to go. They were out there and stopped the shot. Not only did they stop the shot, but they did a great job of reacting and not leaving their feet and being there to cut off the penetration. They were an extremely well coached team."

Before Friday, O-North coach Chris Sparks had been concerned about Lawrence's shooting.

"Those guys are shooters," said Sparks, whose squad has clinched its first winning season since 1995-96. "I haven't slept all week. Vinson and Watkins and No. 10 (Bryan Cargill) can all shoot. We were worried.

Lawrence High's D.J. Watkins, slips past Olathe North's Jeff Crane. The Lions lost, 65-52, Friday night at LHS.

"We had an awful practice last night (Thursday) and Maurice walked into the locker room and said, 'Coach we're ready.' He usually delivers on anything he says."

Mack, a Kansas State football recruit, delivered a spike after the final buzzer. Mack slammed the ball near midcourt, similar to Kansas University's Drew Gooden's spike following the Iowa State game on Wednesday.

Senior guard D.J. Watkins scored 18 points to lead the Lions. Senior guard Stephen Vinson added 13 points.

"Our shots weren't falling," Watkins said. "They were playing tough defense and we didn't get many good shots. I know I took some bad shots.

"We tried to get better every day and when you stop getting better you're just good. It's a sobering reminder that we need to come ready to play every game and come back Monday."

LHS senior forward Jamie Peterson had eight rebounds and five steals.

O-North took the lead for good late in the first quarter with a 12-0 run. The run was aided by a five-point possession with 2:27 left in the period when the LHS bench was called for technical because of an illegal substitution. Lion senior Matt Dunkin, who had popped a three-pointer on the previous possession, wasn't listed in the scorebook. Dunkin had missed last week's three tournament games because of an ongoing battle with migraines.

"His name wasn't in there and his name wasn't transcribed over," Davis said. "That was our fault as a coaching staff. I think it changed the momentum of the game and I think it was critical to the outcome of the game."

Before the game, LHS unveiled its new Chesty Lion mascot. The hipper, chestier Lion replaced the longtime shaggy mascot.

Next for LHS is a road game Monday at Shawnee Mission North.

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