photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Sophomore Kenyon Doleman passes to the paint in a 52-41 loss to Highland Park on Friday, January 24, 2025 at Topeka High School.

Topeka — The most important thing for the Lawrence boys basketball coach to see in the 64th Topeka Invitational Tournament was an identity. It showed in Thursday’s win over Wichita Southeast, and again Friday, despite a 52-41 loss to Highland Park.

“We’re continuing to evolve as a basketball team,” Lawrence coach Nick Wood said. “We’re turning into a basketball team that competes like crazy, has positive energy and supports one another. We are starting to get it figured out.”

At the start of the game, the Lions used a zone defense to get the Scots out of rhythm, and it worked. Highland Park didn’t make a shot until late in the first quarter, and through most of the game, the Lions defense kept it close.

“There are no complaints from me about our effort,” Wood said. “I thought our effort was really good, and it kept us in the basketball game.”

The Scots started to pick up around the two-minute mark and scored seven points, but a 3-pointer from Lawrence freshman Joey Dooley kept the Scots within one possession. Dooley’s shot was one of only two baskets Lawrence made in the quarter, but the Lions made up for their offensive struggles with stingy defense.

Dooley was one of the team’s bright spots. The freshman could use his size to finish at the rim and showed some shooting range. He finished with 11 points, which often came at the start of a Lawrence run.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Freshman Joey Dooley shoots a 3-pointer against Highland Park on Friday, January 24, 2025 at Topeka High School.

Both teams traded baskets at the start of the second quarter before the Scots went on another 7-0 scoring run. The Lions closed the gap with a couple of buckets, including a 3-pointer from senior Aden Ramirez, but the Scots managed to gain a 22-12 lead at halftime.

It was about as good of a defensive half as the Lions have had all season, but a few turnovers led to the Scots taking the 10-point lead. Wood said the defensive output came from the Lions sticking to their game plan.

Again, both teams went shot-for-shot for the first few minutes of the second half. A 3-pointer gave the Scots a 13-point lead before Dooley scored five quick points, followed by two made free throws from Ramirez. The Lions finished the quarter out-scoring the Scots 13-11 and cut the deficit to 8 points.

Wood applauded the team’s response throughout the night, but the team’s ability to turn in their best performance in the third when the deficit hit double-digits at halftime was the shining example. Lawrence didn’t hold the momentum for long in the fourth quarter. The Scots scored five quick points and continued to hit crucial 3s whenever the Lions started to cut the lead down. It was still a 10-point game with three minutes on the clock, and the Lions eventually had to turn to fouling. The Scots held their lead, and the Lions couldn’t pull off the upset.

Still, Wood said this was “the type of game that Lawrence High wants to play,” regardless of the outcome. The Lions want to be in the mix against top teams on the winning side of the bracket.

The Lions will finish the tournament in the third-place game on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Topeka High School.