Lawrence High girls basketball coach Kristin Mallory doesn’t even want to think about a possible championship rematch with Hutchinson in the Firebird Winter Classic.

Well, she thinks about it, but only fleetingly.

After all, if the Lions were to meet Class 6A’s top-ranked squad, it would be the biggest game yet of their season. In last year’s finals, the Salt Hawks defeated LHS, 71-41.

“They’re the real deal,” Mallory said. “They get the ball up the floor and press teams. It’d be a great test — if we get the chance.”

First things first. No. 2-seeded LHS (8-1) opens today against No. 7 seed Topeka West (3-8) at 7 p.m. in the main gym at Free State High. On the opposite side of the bracket, the host Firebirds open with Kansas City Sumner (4-4) at 5:30 p.m. in the main gym.

Mallory has good reason to see to it that the Lions are focused for their tournament opener.

“Seven seeds can knock off two seeds. We did it last year,” she said of the Lions’ 49-46 win last year against Kansas City Schlagle. “So we gotta be ready to play.”

Top-seeded Hutchinson (9-0) opens with KC Wyandotte at 7 p.m. in the north gym, while No. 3 seed Wichita North (6-4) plays Topeka Highland Park (3-10) at 5:30 p.m. in the north gym.

FSHS ready to compete

The Firebirds (2-7) are coming off a 55-40 win against KC Hogan Prep. The victory snapped a seven-game FSHS losing streak.

Yet, the much-needed win didn’t alter the Firebirds’ routine. No celebrations or parties supplanted Tuesday’s practice.

“Not really,” FSHS coach Bryan Duncan said. “Obviously there was a little more relief in practice (Tuesday) than there was (Monday), but we didn’t change anything. If anything, we drilled them a little harder.”

That’s because Sumner — like most of Free State’s opponents — has more size and speed than the Firebirds.

To compensate, the team has been practicing against former players to simulate a game-type experience. If it pays off, the Firebirds could come away from the tournament with a few wins.

“We expect to compete in all three games,” Duncan said. “We’ve done a real good job focusing in practice on what we need to do to get better.”

The first-year coach said that the Firebirds’ record may not reflect his team’s improvement midway through the season. Duncan’s young squad is OK defensively, and without a player taller than 5-foot-9, rebounds well for its size.

But defense hasn’t been the Firebirds’ biggest problem.

“All year we’ve been solid on defense and rebounding,” Duncan said. “We have to find a way to limit our turnovers and a way to score.”

Indeed, FSHS holds opponents to 53.7 points a game, but only averages 45.3, led by sophomore Jamie Stanclift’s 13.1 points per game.

LHS offense primed

Scoring hasn’t been a problem for LHS, which averages more than 66 points a game.

The Lions have two of the Sunflower League’s leading scorers: juniors Josie Polk (19.6 ppg) and Cherrale Ricks (13.1), who can usually be seen finishing off an LHS fast-break.

Mallory’s squad pushes the tempo whenever possible, and it has scored more than 70 points four times this season. But that doesn’t mean LHS isn’t effective in its half-court offense. Polk and Ricks lead a bevy of LHS forwards that can finish off a play down low — all of them standing 5-9 or taller.

Mallory likes how the offense operates.

“We haven’t been in (the half-court offense) much,” Mallory said. “We keep running it in practice, but we haven’t needed it in games. But in close games, that’s something we have to be able to run. But we prefer to put 70 points on the board.”

LHS might be slowed because of an injury to junior forward Rachael Klingler, who strained the arch in her right foot. Klingler, who has started every game and is the Lions’ third-leading scorer (10.8 ppg), is doubtful for the tournament.

Despite all the offensive fanfare, the Lions are solid on defense, holding opponents to 44.3 points per game.

If the Lions do meet Hutchinson in the finals, it will likely be their toughest matchup since their only defeat of the season — the 66-43 opener against Overland Park Aquinas. If a LHS-Hutchinson matchup happens, Mallory will welcome the challenge.

“It’s a good measuring stick,” she said. “We need to see how much we’ve improved since Day 1.”