Paola ? Two area boys basketball teams battled for a trip to state Friday night in Class 5A sub-states, but neither Ottawa High nor Mill Valley earned an invitation to Topeka.

Ottawa went down first, losing to Roeland Park Miege, 72-62, in the early game at Paola High.

“They just had an answer for everything we did, every time we got close,” OHS senior guard Lee Baldwin said.

Miege (16-6) opened with three straight steals, building an 11-point lead midway through the first quarter.

The Cyclones (16-6), though, foun answer with three short runs to take a 21-20 lead with 6:33 to play before halftime.

“You can climb that mountain one time in a game, but it’s virtually impossible to climb it again,” Ottawa coach David Grover said.

Miege went on a 7-0 run to end the half and never let Ottawa catch up.

“They wouldn’t go away,” Miege coach Rick Zych said of Ottawa. “I give them all the credit in the world.”

Baldwin had a team-high 24 points for Ottawa. Senior forwards Andrew Maxwell (14 points) and Clint Bones (13) provided help with points in the paint.

The Stags’ Michael Green had a team-high 24 points.

Blue Valley 64, Mill Valley 51

Mill Valley’s rally fell short.

The Jaguars (17-5) faced a 25-point deficit early in the third quarter and whittled it down to just seven points near the end of the fourth quarter.

“They finally realized that they would go down like that. They knew that they were better than that, and they proved it,” Mill Valley coach Justin Bogart said. “We knew we could play with these guys. We just dug ourselves in such a hole and couldn’t dig ourselves out.”

Jaguar junior David Woods had a team-high 18 points, including five three-pointers.

Roeland Park Miege 72, Ottawa 62

Roeland Park Miege 18 19 16 19 — 72

Ottawa 16 15 16 15 — 62

Roeland Park Miege — Michael Green 24, Isaac Miles 13, Aaron Toren 11, Paul Perrini 8, Dominique Johnson 8, Dan VanDyke 4, Timmy Mulvany 2, Kevin Wiesner 2.

Ottawa — Lee Baldwin 24, Andrew Maxwell 14, Clint Bones 13, Will Hendrix 6, Drew Waldron 3, Caleb Blakesley 2.

Blue Valley 64, Mill Valley 51

Blue Valley 20 18 15 11 — 64

Mill Valley 8 7 19 17 — 51

Blue Valley — Travis Upah 20, Parker Snedden 17, Marshel Banks 10, Dustin Riedesel 6, Andrew Lasche 6, Branron Murray-Mazany 2, Geno Waters 2, Tyler Newton 1.

Mill Valley — David Woods 18, Brandon Smith 10, Jacob Eaton 10, Tyson Corley 7, Jake Simmerlin 3, Ryan Gracy 2, Brandon White 1.