With the humidity still emanating from the muggy Leavenworth gym, Lawrence High boys basketball coach Chris Davis stood in the hallway after Lawrence High’s 59-57 victory, reflecting on the win.

“One of the most physical games I’ve ever seen,” he said of the Feb. 16 game.

Round Two takes place at 5 p.m. today in the Olathe Northwest gymnasium. The winner of this sub-state prize fight will advance to the Kansas Class 6A state tournament next week.

The earlier game, a well-played, see-saw affair, propelled the two teams in different directions. LHS (15-6) used the victory to help secure the No. 1 seed in sub-state and prove its mettle on a tough opponent’s floor.

“That was probably the best win,” sophomore Dorian Green said. “It put us in a good position.”

Conversely, Leavenworth (14-7) dropped four consecutive games following the defeat.

“They started falling off when we beat them the first time,” senior Nathan Padia said.

Although the Pioneers slumped down the stretch of the regular season, they rotate 10 players and are one of the few teams in the Sunflower League with the depth to match or exceed the Lions’.

“They’re real talented,” Green said. “They’ve got a lot of players that can step up and play.”

True to form, Caprest Rhone (17 points), Curtis Brown (12), Colin O’Neill (12) and Antoine Branch (12) all scored in double figures as Leavenworth defeated Olathe East, 71-52, during the opening round of the 6A state tournament.

But Branch, a 5-foot-9 senior guard, leads the team and is the player the Lions game-planned around during the first meeting.

“He’s their best player, and he’s someone we really have to pay attention to,” Davis said. “He’s hit some real big shots in the course of the season. We know he’s going to bring his ‘A’ game.”

Branch ignites an attack that can excel in transition. During the February game, observers saw Davis encouraging his team to “get back, get back” on the defensive side.

“They get the ball up court as fast as anybody we play,” Davis said. “They are athletic.”

And tough. The Pioneers outrebounded the Lions, 19-11, during the first meeting to take a 30-25 halftime lead. LHS, which features an imposing front line of 6-7 John Schneider, 6-5 Chance Riley and 6-4 John Novotny, responded by improving their box-out technique to outscore Leavenworth, 18-9, during the third quarter.

“We’re a pretty physical team too,” Davis said. “So it ought to be a heck of a ballgame.”

This time, though, the teams will play on a neutral floor, and the Lions will enter as the favorite. As the No. 1-seeded team in the sub-state bracket, LHS relishes wearing that target.

“That is cool,” Davis said. “We feel like we have something to defend.”