Lawrence High senior Hannah Stewart runs past her defender during a game at Shawnee Mission Northwest Tuesday night on Feb. 12, 2019.

SHAWNEE — It was one of those games where the final score did not tell the whole story.

The Lawrence High girls basketball team had plenty to be proud of following a 35-25 loss at Shawnee Mission Northwest Tuesday night. The Lions jumped out to an early lead, they climbed back after getting into a double-digit hole, and they played strong defense on the Cougars (No. 8 in Class 6A) all night.

It was an impressive performance just one night after LHS lost a home game to Free State, snapping a five-game win streak in the City Showdown.

“I’m super proud of them,” LHS head coach Jeff Dickson said. “I thought they came though against adverse conditions, with the quick turnaround and against a great team on the road. I thought we gave them everything they could want and more.”

It was all Lawrence (9-8, 4-5 Sunflower League) out of the gate, despite being the team unranked and coming off a pair of losses over the previous four days.

Senior Sammy Williams spotted the Lions an early lead with a bucket on an assist by junior Sophie DeWitt. Following a free throw by the Cougars (12-5, 6-2), Williams was credited with an assist on a 3-pointer by senior Leslie Ostronic.

Junior Ella Stewart gave Lawrence an 8-1 advantage with a triple of her own. Still, it was two plays, both of which were turnovers, that managed to earn the highest of praise from Dickson.

Stewart was called for a charge with a strong attack to the basket, while senior Hannah Stewart fumbled the ball out of bounds after following her own miss. Both plays exemplified the incredible effort by the Lions, especially early on.

“I thought we showed a lot of confidence,” Dickson said. “It is something we have been talking about. We just want to come out and let it fly, and not overthink it.”

Shawnee Mission Northwest eventually trimmed the deficit to 16-13 by the end of the opening period, and it took control of the contest for good in the second quarter.

The Cougars disrupted the Lions’ offense by double-teaming 6-foot-3 center Chisom Ajekwu, a KU signee, near the rim. Shawnee Mission Northwest led by a 28-21 margin at the intermission, increasing the team’s lead to double digits midway through the third quarter.

Lawrence never gave up, though, keeping it within reach for the remainder of the contest.

“It feels good, as much as a loss can,” Dickson said. “We feel like we are heading back in the right direction. We still have a lot of meaningful games left.”

A total-team defensive effort helped the Lions put together a strong showing against one of the better squads in the state.

Freshman Layla Harjo, junior Paiden Bell and senior Evann Seratte all contributed to the team’s performance on the defensive end. Ella Stewart was the lone Lion with double figures, scoring 13 points in the loss.

“Overall, I thought we did a good job defensively,” Dickson said. “We know that what we did tonight could have won two or three games we lost this year.”

Lawrence travels to Shawnee Mission South at 5:30 p.m. Friday.

LAWRENCE (25)

Hannah Stewart 1-5 1-2 3, Leslie Ostronic 1-3 0-0 3, Sammy Williams 1-5 1-2 3, Sophie DeWitt 0-4 0-0 0, Chisom Ajekwu 1-8 1-2 3, Ella Stewart 4-6 3-3 13, Layla Harjo 0-1 0-0 0, Evann Seratte 0-3 0-0 0. Totals: 8-35 6-9 25.

SM NORTHWEST (35)

D’Asys Collie-Williams 2-6 2-4 7, Rachel Seibold 1-4 0-0 2, Kylie Dunn 0-5 0-2 0, Kennedy Taylor 6-15 0-0 12, Hannah Black 4-9 2-4 12, Tamara Harris-Webster 1-4 0-0, Abby Winter 0-1 0-0 0, Megan Hanson 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 14-45 4-10 35.

Lawrence 8 5 8 4 — 25

SM NW 8 8 12 7 — 35

Three-point goals: LHS 3-12 (Ostronic, E. Stewart 2); SMNW 3-12 (Collier-Williams, Black 2). Turnovers: LHS 17, SMNW 9. Fouled out: None.