Overland Park ? Less than 24 hours removed from its previous game, and with senior Cameron Clark rushing to Blue Valley Northwest to make it on time for Saturday’s game after taking his ACT test, it seemed to be the perfect formula for a slow start.

But the Free State boys basketball team never trailed, and even opened a 15-point lead in the first half in its 68-57 victory over Raytown at the Best of Midwest Showcase.

The Firebirds have won six games in a row, which is their longest winning streak of the season.

“The key was our focus this morning,” head coach Sam Stroh said. “We had a good scouting report and a good walkthrough.”

Junior Garrett Luinstra scored a team-high 16 points, and 15 of those came in the first half as the Firebirds built a lead.

The Firebirds (12-4) opened the game with a 12-4 spurt, and maintained that lead, 19-12, going into the second quarter. With Luinstra knocking down shots, and Clark and junior Jalan Robinson using their size to defend the basket, they extended the lead to 31-16.

Clark, who scored 14 points, briefly exited the game after falling awkwardly while going for a tip-in.

Raytown (16-4) closed the first half on a 9-0 run, and even closed the gap to one, 37-36, midway through the third quarter. In that stretch, Free State struggled to take care of the ball against Raytown’s pressure defense. The Firebirds finished the game with 17 turnovers, but had eight turnovers in an eight-minute stretch.

Stroh called a timeout, and his team responded with a 9-0 run.

“This is an aggressive team, so we had to match their aggressiveness going to the rim and look to score,” Stroh said. “I liked the way we finished the game.”

Senior Jacob Pavlyak started the second-half run with a reverse layup. On the next possession, Clark was inches away from a posturizing dunk, but he still converted two free throws.

“I really wanted to dunk on that dude,” Clark said. “That probably would have brought the house down.”

The Firebirds have had problems holding leads this season, but that wasn’t the case Saturday. They pushed the lead to double-digits (55-45) with five minutes remaining, and they never let the Blue Jays any closer the rest of the way.

FREE STATE (68)

Garrett Luinstra 4-7 5-6 16, Simon McCaffrey 1-2 3-4 6, Jay Dineen 3-3 4-5 10, Sloan Thomsen 1-3 0-0 3, Jacob Pavlyak 2-3 4-4 8, Shannon Cordes 3-8 0-0 6, Cameron Clark 6-9 2-2 14, Jalan Robinson 2-5 1-2 5. Totals: 22-40 19-23 68.

RAYTOWN (57)

Ryan Proctor 2-5 0-0 4, Marcus McGee 5-7 0-0 14, Bryan Blanks 2-5 3-4 7, Devin Drew 4-9 4-4 12, Isaiah Burton 3-13 1-1 7, Mason Fair 4-9 3-4 11, Dae’Ron Jones 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 21-49 11-13 57.

Free State 19 14 12 23 — 68

Raytown 12 15 10 20 — 57

Three point goals: Free State 5-11 (Luinstra 3, Thomsen, McCaffrey). Raytown 4-10 (McGee 4). Turnovers: Free State 17, Raytown 18.