photo by: File photos/Carter Gaskins

Bishop Seabury's Jonathan Raney (left) was named coach of the year after guiding the Seahawks to the semifinals of the Class 2A state tournament. Lawrence High's Zeke Mayo was picked for player of the year after a strong junior campaign. (Photos by Carter Gaskins)

Player of the year: Zeke Mayo, Lawrence High

Mayo was the best player on the court on a nightly basis during his junior campaign. He was a well-rounded player, leading the Lions in scoring, rebounds and assists this past season. Mayo averaged 16.0 points per game to go along with 6.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per contest. LHS won a share of the Sunflower League title for the second-straight season and advanced to the state tournament for the sixth year in a row.

Coach of the year: Jonathan Raney, Bishop Seabury

Under Raney’s leadership, the Seahawks were a dominant force all season. Bishop Seabury ended the year on a school-record 15-game win streak. The Seahawks (No. 1 in Class 2A all year) set team records in average points per game (71.2) and total points scored on the season (1,171) as well. BSA also set a single-season record with an average margin of victory of 32.0 points during a 22-2 campaign.

First-team selections

Jordan Barth, Baldwin — For the second year in a row, Barth played well enough to earn a spot on the first team. The 6-foot senior guard averaged 10.0 points per game, while posting an average of 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 steal per game. He also led the Bulldogs in free throws, free-throw percentage and 3-point efficiency.

Zach Bloch, Bishop Seabury — By Bloch’s lofty standards, he got off to a slow start after coming back from an injury. By the middle of the season, though, Bloch was one of the best players in the state. Bloch averaged 17.5 points per game to go along with 5.5 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 3.2 steals per contest. He also surpassed 1,000 points in his career during the postseason.

Dallas Bond, Tonganoxie — The Chieftains had a balanced attack during their 12-10 season. Still, Bond was a key player for THS en route to making his second appearance on the All-Frontier League team. Bond, a junior, averaged 12.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per outing. He finished the year with a 60% shooting effort from the floor.

Blake Farmer, Perry-Lecompton — The Kaws were unable to get back to the state tournament for the third year in a row, but the team still went 15-7. Farmer was an unanimous selection on the All-Big 7 league first team, averaging 12.7 points and 5.4 rebounds per outing. Farmer, a 6-foot-7 senior post, also produced 1.9 assists and 1.4 blocks per contest.

Stavian Jones, Bishop Seabury — This junior guard improved in every aspect of his game this season thanks to hard work in the offseason. Jones averaged 15.9 points, 2.9 assists and 2.5 steals per game for the Seahawks. He had three different 30-point performances, including a career-high 32 points in the sub-state semifinals against Mission Valley.

DK Middleton, Free State — Middleton is a key reason why Free State won a share of the Sunflower League crown, which led to his spot on the all-league first team. Middleton averaged 10.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game during his senior season. The Firebirds advanced to the state tourney for the fourth year in a row.

Mayson Quartlebaum, Lawrence High — Embracing a bigger role, Quartlebaum had a sensational senior season for the Lions. Quartlebaum, a 6-foot-6 forward, averaged 11.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game. The Kennesaw State signee delivered a number of emphatic dunks during a 18-5 campaign for Lawrence, which ended with the team’s sixth-straight trip to the state tournament.

Will Rau, Veritas — The 6-foot-3 guard was certainly capable of filling up the stat sheet during his junior campaign. Rau flirted with a triple double on a nightly basis, leading the team in points (18.0), assists (7.0) and rebounds (8.0) on a per game average this year. He scored a career-high 37 points against Jefferson West in the McLouth Invitational.

Parker Stone, Perry-Lecompton — After leading PLHS in scoring, Stone was an unanimous first team all-league selection. Stone, who is a 6-foot-1 junior guard, averaged 15.1 points per game for the Kaws. He also registered an average of 4.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.6 steals per contest this year.

Noah Watkins, Eudora — In his final season, Watkins wasn’t afraid to put his body on the line for the Cardinals. During a 10-12 season that ended in the sub-state finals, Watkins etched his name into Eudora’s record books by taking charges. Watkins set a single-season record for 21 charges taken and went out as the career-record holder with 36 total charges taken.

Honorable mention

Ty Abts, Eudora; Will Bartkoski, Veritas; Brennan Clements, Veritas; Mozae Downing-Rivers, Free State; Matthew Garber, Baldwin; Cobe Green, Bishop Seabury; Bryce Johnson, Lawrence High; Ruben Littlehead, Lawrence High; Peyton Mallory, Lawrence High; Jacob Merkle, Eudora; Joao Carlos Ramirez, Bishop Seabury; Heston Robbins, Tonganoxie.