photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Free State boys basketball head coach Dwayne Paul gives a speech to the team during a timeout at Shawnee Mission East High School in Prairie Village on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026.

Another chapter in City Showdown history will be written on Friday night when the boys basketball teams from crosstown rivals Free State and Lawrence square off at Free State High School.

“It’s a healthy rivalry,” Free State coach Dwayne Paul said. “It’s very important for both teams, both communities, and both coaches.”

The two teams have split the previous two meetings, each winning on the other’s home court, with Free State winning last year’s game at Lawrence 69-49, while Lawrence won at Free State in 2024, 67-46.

Despite winning on the road two seasons ago and looking to repeat that performance, Lawrence senior Eddie Roman Nose said it’s important not to think about past results, but be focused on the present.

“Literally can’t look back on anything else,” he said. “Can’t look back on all the other years. We worry about this moment now. Just worry about winning another game.

On the season, the Lions are 7-13 and coming off a 77-37 loss to Olathe North on Tuesday. Despite the result, head coach Nick Wood likes the progress his team has made throughout the season and is looking forward to seeing how his group finishes the season.

“The goal is to become the best version of yourself by the end of the season, and I feel like we’re getting really, really close to that,” Wood said. “We’ve made great strides and have experienced tremendous growth from (the) beginning of the season to this point.”

Wood says the key for the Lions on Friday is to play as a cohesive unit and not let the game become bigger than it needs to be by staying mentally and physically tough throughout.

“From the very beginning (we have to) show up and have the right mindset, ready to compete,” Wood said. “We have to play as one. If we try to go beat Free State individually, it’s not going to happen. We have to do it collectively as a group.”

Meanwhile, Free State is 6-14 on the season and coming off a 53-40 win over Shawnee Mission East, a performance the team hopes can spark momentum down the home stretch of the regular season, with just three more games to be played.

“I thought everybody really played well,” Free State senior Ethan Prescott said. “Just to get your confidence going before (Lawrence) is huge, and hopefully we can ride it.”

Not only does the rivalry bring out bragging rights for the winning school, but this year’s game holds extra weight with both teams looking to improve their seeding before the playoffs.

Paul said that it’s OK to play with a sense of desperation, and it’s something he’s emphasized with his team, but he understands there is a balance between being desperate and still being able to keep emotions in check, whether as a player or a coach.

“You can’t go into it as a coach too high or too low,” Paul said. “If you have a sense of calmness and demeanor about yourself, but with urgency, I think (the players) feed off of that.”

In a game where emotions will be running high and both crowds will be rowdy, the key for both teams is to feed off the energy, but also stay level-headed and not let those emotions get out of hand.

“Just focus on what you can control,” Prescott said. “It’s going to be loud, it’s going to be a fun game. You got to play with the crowd a little bit, but not let it control you.”

The Lion and Firebird boys will tip off at approximately 7:00 p.m., with the girls game taking place beforehand at 5:30 p.m.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence senior Eddie Roman Nose drives to the basket in a road loss to Olathe East on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Olathe.

photo by: Val Montanez/Special to the Journal-World

Free State senior Ethan Prescott prepares to shoot a free throw while playing against Shawnee Mission South at Free State High on Friday, Feb. 13, 2026.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence coach Nick Wood sits and talks with his team during a timeout in the third quarter of a loss to Shawnee Mission East on Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, at Shawnee Mission East High School.