Hi Park too fast for LHS

Lions lead at halftime, but host Scots prevail

Topeka ? Highland Park attempted 20 more free throws than Lawrence High on Friday night in the semifinals of the Topeka Invitational Tournament, but LHS coach Chris Davis wasn’t complaining about the officiating after a 69-62 loss to the top-ranked team in Class 5A.

“They get to the basket as well as any team we’re going to see all year,” said Davis, whose team had its four-game winning streak snapped. “They’re as quick as any team we’re going to see all year. It’s just tough to stop that kind of speed.”

Lawrence High's Kristian Pope, left, shoots in front of Topeka Highland Park's Hank Harris. The Lions lost, 69-62, Friday night in Topeka.

Host Highland Park had a full house on its side, and the Scots (11-0) rolled to a 9-0 lead against the Lions (7-3). LHS clawed its way back with an 8-0 run, which included three-pointers by Brennan Bechard and Chance Riley.

Kristian Pope and Tyler Knight sank three-pointers in the first half, and the Lions headed to the locker room with a 33-32 halftime lead.

Highland Park shot just 6-of-26 from the field in the first half, but the Scots were 19-of-23 from the foul line.

“It caused us to change some of the personnel we had out on the court,” Davis said of the foul trouble. “But I thought we handled it pretty well. We kept stepping up. It was a strong, physical game.”

Hank Harris –who was 11-of-14 at the line — completed a three-point play with 6:14 left in the third quarter to give the Scots a 39-36 lead they would never relinquish. Ryan Arnold’s long two-pointer capped a 12-3 run that made it 44-36.

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Knight sank a three-pointer early in the fourth quarter, and center Tony Anderson completed a three-point play to pull LHS within 52-49 with 5:26 to play, but the Lions never got any closer.

“Their defensive pressure took us out of our rhythm,” said senior guard David Freeman, who sank a three-pointer with 1:38 to play to pull LHS within 64-59 after Highland Park had rebuilt an 11-point lead. “That was the toughest defense we’ve played this year. We could have played better.”

Lawrence High's Brennan Bechard passes against Topeka Highland Park. Bechard scored nine points in the Lions' 69-62 loss in the Topeka Invitational Tournament on Friday night.

Pope led LHS with 14 points. Anderson had 11 points and eight rebounds, and Freeman also had 11 points. Bechard added nine.

Harris led all players with 21 points, and Theron Wilson added 12 points and nine rebounds for the Scots. B.J. Spann had 10 points and nine rebounds.

The Lions will face another highly ranked team at 3:30 p.m. today when they meet Wichita East (8-3), the second-ranked team in Class 6A, in the third-place game.

“I think we’ll be ready,” Davis said. “This will hurt for a little bit, but I think everybody realizes that Highland Park was a very good team.”

The Scots will meet Free State, the No. 1 team in 6A, in the 7:30 p.m. final.

Lawrence High's Tyler Knight attempts to drive past Topeka Highland Park's Jordan Bradberry in their Topeka Invitational Tournament game Friday night.

Lawrence 14 19 10 19 — 62
Highland Park 16 16 18 19 — 69

Three-point goals — LHS 9-22 (Bechard 3-4, Pope 1-5, Riley 1-3, Barber 0-2, Freeman 2-6, Knight 2-2). HP 5-20 (Redmond 0-5, Arnold 1-1, Kingcannon 1-4, Harris 0-2, Spann 0-1, Wilhoite 1-5, Wilson 2-2). Turnovers — LHS 11, HP 9. Fouls — LHS 25, HP 18. Fouled out — None.Lawrence (62)Brennan Bechard 3-6 0-0 9, Kristian Pope 6-14 1-1 14, Chance Riley 3-6 0-1 7, Larry Barber 1-3 0-2 2, David Freeman 4-13 1-2 11, Tony Anderson 4-5 3-6 11, Ian Handshy 0-5 0-0 0, Tyler Knight 2-6 2-2 8. Totals 23-56 7-14 62.Highland Park (69)Dante Redmond 0-6 0-0 0, Lamont Austin 1-2 2-3 4, Ryan Arnold 4-7 0-0 9, Joe Kingcannon 2-5 1-2 6, Hank Harris 5-11 11-14 21, B.J. Spann 2-7 6-6 10, Mike Wilhoite 2-7 2-2 7, Theron Wilson 2-4 6-8 12. Totals 18-49 27-34 69.