Free State junior Noah Butler (24) blocks a shot attempt by Bishop Miege junior Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (10), son of former KU basketball player Lester Earl, in a game against Bishop Miege Saturday, Feb. 17, 2018 at Free State High School.

Even if they hadn’t been teammates, Noah Butler wouldn’t have needed any introduction to Jeremiah Robinson-Earl.

The 6-foot-9 Bishop Miege junior powering the Stags to the top of the rankings in Class 4A was every bit as advertised on Tuesday, scoring a game-high 26 points on 11-for-17 shooting. And the consensus top-25 recruit did so on a day KU assistant Kurtis Townsend was watching from the stands, leading his team past the Firebirds, 60-55.

“He’s the best player in the state for a reason,” said Free State coach Sam Stroh. “He did a great job.”

And with Free State big man Jalan Robinson away on a visit to Oklahoma, the task was that much harder.

Reece White-Downing began the game matched up on the big man, but the Firebirds threw several players at him on the inside, doubling at times and clogging the paint at others.

Free State wasn’t completely able to erase Robinson-Earl, though. Before he got going in the second half, the big man threw down a thunderous two-handed slam and slapped the backboard as he returned to the ground in the first quarter. The Free State students shouted for a technical foul, but the referees didn’t acquiesce.

“(I let) the hecklers just say what they want to say and keep being myself,” said Robinson-Earl. “Have that mindset of going out there and just doing (my) thing anytime (I) step on the court.”

Those weren’t the only shouts he faced.

Butler wasn’t matched up on Robinson-Earl the whole time, but he still found chances to chirp at the fellow junior.

“That’s my boy. We play AAU together so I always go at him,” Butler said. “Me and him were talking a lot. We were just having fun.”

For a while, it looked like that fun might lead to a Free State win.

The Firebirds used a 14-2 run over the first and second quarters to grab their first lead of the game. Despite Garrett Luinstra only scoring two first-half points, Bansi King knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and Butler, who scored nine in the period, erased a Robinson-Earl layup attempt heading into the break.

The Stags took the lead in the third quarter, but the Firebirds responded with a 16-2 run. That stretch featured a pair of and-ones by Luinstra as well as a vicious step-back 3-pointer from the corner.

“We battled back to take the lead,” Stroh said. “I thought that was a good game.”

Much of the battling came from Butler, who finished with a Free State-best 16 points and five rebounds.

The Free State junior fought through crowds in the fourth quarter to come up with a pair of crucial boards in a performance Stroh heralded as “probably his best game of the season.”

“I think he played well. That should be a lot of fun when we’re on the court together,” Robinson-Earl said. “He’s a hard worker. He’s a strong person.”

Luinstra (13 points) joined Butler in double figures, with King tallying the next highest point total (nine). Yet it was the Stags’ Robinson-Earl, Spencer Jones (15 points, 3 for 5 on 3s) and Josh Earley (four points, 10 rebounds, four assists) that proved too much to overcome.

The Firebirds (14-4) will return to action Tuesday, hitting the road to take on Shawnee Mission Northwest.

Bishop Miege (60)

Jeremiah Garrett 3-6 2-2 10, Ezekiel Lopes 2-7 1-1 5, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl 11-17 4-6 26, Josh Earley 2-8 0-1 4, Spencer Jones 4-7 4-4 15, Stone Jeffries 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-45 11-14 60.

Free State (55)

Garrett Luinstra 5-17 2-2 13, Simon McCaffrey 2-5 0-0 5, Reece White-Downing 2-5 0-0 4, Noah Butler 5-10 6-9 16, Zach McDermott 3-11 0-0 6, Bansi King 3-7 0-0 9, DK Middleton 1-2 0-0 2, Turner Corcoran 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-57 8-11 55.

Bishop Miege 10 16 15 19 — 60

Free State 13 10 21 11 — 55

3-point goals: Bishop Miege 5-12 (Jones 3, Garrett 2); Free State 5-19 (King 3, Luinstra, McCaffrey 1). Fouled out: none. Turnovers: Bishop Miege 11, Free State 5.