Andrew Keating (12) looks for an open lane Thursday during the Firebirds season opener against AC Prep in Kansas City.

Kansas City, Mo. ? If only looking at the score, Free State High’s boys basketball players were happy with their season-opening 67-32 victory over AC Prep on Thursday at the Interscholastic League Fieldhouse.

But beyond the scoreboard, there were quite a few negatives that the Firebirds will need to iron out when they face more talented teams.

They were as quiet as a basketball team could be on a court, with no communication to teammates for help defense or trying to defend screens. They also struggled to stop the ball on some plays, allowing the Knights (0-2) to grab a rebound and dribble coast-to-coast into the paint.

Even on offense, some voices were kept down despite some players sitting wide open in the paint.

“We are a team that’s going to have to be good at the intangibles,” FSHS coach Chuck Law said. “One of those things is constant communication because we’re going to be challenged — athletically, size, speed, foot quickness. We’ve got some challenges, and our guys know that. If they don’t take care of small things … we’re going to be in for some struggles against some of the teams we play against.”

But even with some sub-par plays, Free State walked away with a victory.

The Firebirds (1-0) started slowly with three turnovers on their first four possessions against the Knights’ full-court trap defense. But they found their rhythm midway through the first quarter with a layup by Andrew Keating, a foul-and-the-bucket score by Jack Raney and a putback after an offensive rebound by Caleb Holland.

In the second quarter, Free State went on a 19-2 run over five minutes, highlighted by five points and three assists from senior Weston Hack. Sloan Thomsen, Justin Narcomey, Chrision Wilburn, and Raney all scored in the outburst.

“We were horrible out of the gate tonight, the first three or four minutes,” Law said. “But again there were two guys who have ever been on a varsity court, I think. It doesn’t matter what the environment is, who you’re playing, the first time you’re on the court as a varsity player and you have that experience, it takes awhile.”

Free State continued its scoring pace in third quarter through a 17-8 run. Hack drained a pair of three-pointers, and Narcomey cut to the basket for a few easy layups.

Hack and Narcomey, the only two players who were a part of last year’s varsity rotation, seized control midway through the game, as they work on stepping into their new leadership roles.

“We’re the older guys,” said Hack, who led the team with 15 points and four steals. “We’re the guys that have been here before. So we had to do what we needed to do in order to come out of here with a win.”

Narcomey added 13 points, while Keating scored eight points and Hunter Gudde grabbed a team-high six rebounds.

The Firebirds will travel to Mill Valley for a game at 7:15 p.m. next Friday.

FREE STATE (67)

Andrew Keating 4-5 0-0 8, Jacob Pavlyak 1-1 0-0 2, Weston Hack 5-8 2-2 15, Justin Narcomey 5-8 3-3 13, Jack Raney 2-8 1-2 6, Logan McKinney 0-1 0-0 0, Jay Dineen 0-0 1-1 1, Zion Bowlin 0-1 0-0 0, Shannon Cordes 1-6 0-0 2, Caleb Holland 1-3 1-2 3, Hunter Gudde 2-5 0-0 4, Darian Lewis 2-2 2-2 6, Sloan Thomsen 1-4 0-0 3, Chrision Wilburn 2-3 0-2 4. Totals 26-55 10-14 67.

KC AC PREP (32)

Koryean Mitchell 0-1 0-0 0, Anthony Grimmett 0-5 1-6 1, Jerry Jackson 0-3 0-0 0, Jay’Von Stevons 0-0 2-4 2, Devin Davis 3-5 0-0 6, Juan Johnson 2-10 1-2 5, Antuine Webb 0-1 0-0 0, Devin Brown 3-12 0-0 8, Morrail Bell 4-8 0-0 8, Gerrard Honkomp 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 13-49 4-12 32.

Free State 13 23 20 11 — 67

AC Prep 6 7 12 7 — 32

Three-point goals: Free State 5-18 (Hack 3, Raney, Thomsen); AC Prep 2-11 (Brown 2). Turnovers: Free State 7, AC Prep 10.