Free State’s girls basketball team has so many weapons on offense that it’s going to be difficult for opposing teams to figure out a way to slow its offense down.


It was my first look at the Firebirds in person, a 42-40 victory over Mill Valley, and I was impressed with how efficient they looked with the ball. Madison Piper and Sarah Coversup are dangerous with the ball on drives, or can catch-and-shoot for buckets on jumpers. Jaycie Bishop is a strong deep threat when her shot is on, and Adriana Jadlow is another player you can’t lose track of around the paint. Then there’s Cameryn Thomas, who probably won’t be asked to score a ton, but does a great job of bringing the ball up the court against pressure.


I was just as impressed with Free State’s boys basketball players, who had eight days to practice since their season opener, and they certainly made the most of it. Their defense was dominant in a 59-41 win, as FSHS coach Chuck Law called it, “About as good of team defense as a Free State basketball team has played in a long time.”


Not to say the Firebirds played poorly in their season opener, but I thought they were going to have more trouble against Mill Valley, even though they were without star guard Logan Koch. If they keep improving at this rate, they’re going to be a lot more dangerous than most people expected in the Sunflower League.


In case you missed it, we’re copying one of the popular features of KUsports.com, “Keegan’s Ratings,” where Sports Editor Tom Keegan ranks KU football and men’s basketball players after every game he attends and I’m bringing back the high school ratings for this basketball season. These individual rankings are just one person’s opinion, but it’s a good way to look at how each person impacted each game.


I covered Free State’s basketball doubleheader on Friday, and the player ratings are below:

Free State girls basketball

1. Sarah Coversup, sr. — Coversup was dominant in the first half, as she controlled the paint. The Jaguars double-teamed her afterward, but she still made an impact down the stretch, scoring Free State’s last four points. She finished with 19 points, four rebounds and two steals. She also was 7-for-7 from the free throw line.


2. Madison Piper, so. — She was playing sick, but that didn’t stop her from making an impact, especially in the first half when she was the focal point of the offense. She had seven points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals. Mill Valley stopped her in the second half, but credit to her for playing so well without the ball and not at 100 percent.


3. Adriana Jadlow, sr. — When Coversup and Piper were drawing all of the attention from Mill Valley’s defense, Jadlow shined. She scored eight points and added four rebounds. She also had a nice steal with her back turned, which later turned into a layup for Coversup.


4. Cameryn Thomas, fr. — She had the difficult assignment of guarding All-Kaw Valley League point guard Jabria Leggett and still has some room to grow defensively, but she found a way to step up in some of the game’s biggest moments. She hit a jumper in the paint with a two-point lead midway through the fourth quarter, and grabbed a steal a minute later. She also snagged a rebound in the final seconds, but missed the front end of a one-and-one free throw.


5. Jaycie Bishop, so. — She played well early in the game, but never found her rhythm afterward. In the first quarter, she drained a three and dished an assist. But she finished with just four points (1 of 10 shooting), two rebounds and three assists.


6. Hannah Shoemaker, sr. — Shoemaker played limited minutes, but provided good energy with two points and a rebound.


7. Hannah Walter, jr. — In limited minutes, Walter didn’t record a stat, but she played solid defense when she was on the court.


8. Morgan Gantz, sr. — She entered the game when Bishop ran into foul trouble in the first half, and made a few nice passes. She didn’t shoot or record any stats.

• Next up: 3 p.m. Saturday at Lansing. Record: 3-0.

Free State boys basketball

1. Hunter Gudde, jr. — Not only did Gudde use his versatility to play strong defense against guards and forwards, but he did just about everything on offense. He finished with a game-high 16 points, had a team-high seven rebounds, and added three assists and two steals. When he’s playing at his best, he makes all of his teammates better.


2. Weston Hack, sr. — Hack, a 6-foot-3 guard, doesn’t seem like the type of player that is a magnet for steals. But he makes so many smart plays on defense that he just racks them up. He had six steals on Friday to go along with 14 points and five boards.


3. Jack Raney, sr. — Raney scored eight points on 3 of 3 shooting from the field, and he might have been even better on defense. He was impressive pushing around the 6-foot-5 or taller Mill Valley post players around the paint.


4. Jay Dineen, so. — You don’t usually see a middle linebacker look small next to someone, but that’s how big some of the Jaguars’ forwards were. For his part, Dineen held his own in the paint, battling them inside. He finished with three points, five rebounds and two assists.


5. Justin Narcomey, sr. — Narcomey shines on offense in transition, with his ability to shoot from deep or drive inside and finish around contact. He scored nine points, and is perfect inside of the three-point arc this year (8 of 8).


6. Andrew Keating, sr. — He did a good job of providing ball security (only 1 turnover), especially facing a full-court press for parts of the game. He scored five points and had two steals.


7. Jacob Pavlyak, so. — Pavlyak has moments where he plays well and some where he looks like he’s just playing too fast. He didn’t score (missed a three) but he had three rebounds and an assist, setting up an easy bucket for Raney to start the fourth quarter.


8. Darian Lewis, jr. — He’s turning into the king of garbage time. He scored four points, all at the free throw line, as the Firebirds were running out the clock in the final minutes.


9. Caleb Holland, sr. — He didn’t attempt a shot, but did grab a rebound. He played solid defense when he came off of the bench, but also had two turnovers.


10. Chrision Wilburn, jr. — He entered the game in the final minutes and grabbed a rebound in traffic.


11. Sloan Thomsen (so.), Shannon Cordes (so.), Zion Bowlin (so.) — All three of them entered the game in the final two minutes, but none of them attempted a shot or recorded any stats.

• Next up: 7 p.m. Friday vs. Lawrence High. Record: 2-0.
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