Lawrence High's John Schneider (50) draws a foul. Schneider led the Lions with 25 points and got a lot of help from teammate Lance Kilburn, who scored 17, in Lawrence's 74-70 victory against Topeka High on Saturday in the third-place game in the Topeka Invitational.

Lawrence High School junior Jayce Eubanks, right, tries to get the ball from Topeka High School's Sam Long on Saturday, Jan. 19, 2008 during the Lions' game at the THS Invitational Tournament.

Topeka ? The scene was celebratory. Players gathered at midcourt, donning large smiles and medals draped over their necks by the team’s cheerleaders as applause rained down from the balconies.

No, it wasn’t the prestigious championship game played in prime time to a packed house at Topeka High. But given the road the Lawrence High boys basketball team traversed at the Topeka Invitational, a 74-70 bronze-medal victory against the host Trojans was not a bad consolation prize.

Less than 24 hours after getting thumped in the semifinals by defending Class 5A champs Highland Park – currently riding a 35-game winning streak – the Lions bounced back nicely in a game that came down to the final seconds.

“We talked a lot about the third-place game and that it’s really easy to not be up for it,” LHS coach Chris Davis said. “And the guys came out pretty inspired, and they were ready to play. I was happy with that.”

This one certainly didn’t come easily.

The first half was a back-and-forth battle featuring four ties and five lead changes. The largest advantage for either team was a six-point LHS cushion after two John Schneider free throws with 1:54 left in the second quarter. But Topeka closed within one at the break, then took the lead on four quick points from guard Eric Ray out of halftime.

And while the 6-foot-7 Schneider continued his strong play inside (the senior was fouled so often, he made more free throws than the entire Trojans team attempted), it was clear a second scorer needed to emerge for LHS before the game slipped away.

Cue Lions guard Lance Kilburn.

In the span of 90 seconds in the third quarter, the junior buried a jumper and a three-pointer, then came up with a steal at halfcourt and a one-handed jam to put Lawrence ahead 42-39.

The lead swelled to nine before the Trojans made yet another run, tying the game at 62. Kilburn wasn’t finished, though, as he drove the lane to put LHS in front 64-62 with 1:56 to play. He also made three free throws and blocked a three-point attempt with 27 seconds left to help seal the victory.

Kilburn tallied 17 points to compliment Schneider’s game-high 25.

While the Lions typically count on point guard Dorian Green to aid Schneider, the big man noted there are plenty of other scoring threats for LHS. At times, it has been guard Bobby Davis or forward Baba Diallo. Just two days before, it was guard Preston Scheibler in the tournament’s first round.

“We’ve got two or three guys that could go off and have 10 or 15 points,” Schneider said. “We need that sometimes because me and Dorian just can’t win it by ourselves. We have players around us that can get it done, too.”

Green finished with 12 points.

“Our team is very unselfish,” Kilburn said. “We know John is going to get his 20, 25 (points). Usually Dorian is our second scorer, but tonight it happened to be me.”

Chris Davis said the Invitational served as a welcome reprieve from Sunflower League play. The Lions (6-6) had struggled in their last two conference outings before the tournament.

“We needed to have a little bit of a break so we could collect ourselves,” Davis said. “I think this was just what the doctor ordered.”