Following his team’s 46-31 victory over Shawnee Mission North, Free State coach Bryan Duncan said he didn’t have an exact name for his team’s full-court, trapping defense.

“It’s kind of taking on its own identity, but it’s pretty effective,” Duncan said. “Our kids are getting really good at understanding when to trap and when to run and jump and when to play it straight up.”

The Free State girls flustered yet another opponent with their one-of-a-kind defense Friday, forcing 26 Indians turnovers, which included at least six giveaways in every quarter.

Though the Firebirds use only one full-court press, it often looks different throughout the span of one game.

“It’s very hard to scout,” Duncan said. “Certainly, we work on it in practice, and it’s not like we’re just completely saying, ‘Go play helter-skelter.’ But we’re giving the kids a lot of freedom to make their reads defensively. And a key component is being aggressive.”

Though Free State made just 33 percent of its shots, it was able to extend its lead by staying sound defensively.

That included limiting speedy North guard India Johnson to just three points on 1-for-6 shooting.

“They were all really quick, but they were all really right-handed, so we just forced them left and got up and pressured them,” Free State senior guard Jackie Garcia said. “We could trap them a lot, so that was good.”

Duncan, who also was happy with his team’s off-ball defense and rotation defensively in the post, called his team’s effort “workmanlike” and “steady.”

Kennedy Kirkpatrick led Free State with 16 points, with half of those coming in the fourth quarter. Lynn Robinson added 14 points, while Scout Wiebe contributed seven off the bench.

The Firebirds have won six straight games.

“We’re just hoping to keep it up,” Garcia said. “I think we’re starting to figure out how we play and what type of team we can be.”