photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence sophomore Simon Simien drives to the basket in a 53-39 win over St. Mary's Academy at Lawrence High on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Lawrence.

Defense led to offense on Wednesday night as the Lawrence boys basketball team beat St. Mary’s Academy 53-39 as turnovers led to numerous transition offense opportunities.

The Crusaders did get off to a fast start, hitting two 3s and a midrange jump shot to take an 8-0 lead. After that, the Lions pressed on defense and created havoc and turnovers that led to buckets on offense.

“Our effort was good,” Lawrence coach Nick Wood said. “What I was not pleased with was our primary and secondary help. Our rotations weren’t great at times, so we have to clean that stuff up. But we can always control our effort, and that was pretty dang good.”

Sophomore Simon Simien scored the first points of the night for the Lions, followed by a 2-pointer from sophomore Truth Pope. Sophomore Joey Dooley assisted Junior Kenyon Doleman on a bucket in the paint, and Dooley finished the quarter with a score of his own after getting an offensive rebound, which tied the game at 8.

Lawrence kept up the pace in the second quarter, starting with a 10-0 run. Senior Devin Foster scored on a contested layup, followed by a 3s from Doleman and Dooley. Doleman soon after stole the ball and found Pope for a transition layup.

The Lions were effective offensively because of its transition offense and the number of steals and blocks the Lions had in the game. But when in their half-court offense, the Lions struggled against St. Mary’s zone defense. The Lions had their own share of turnovers and were “sped up at times” from the Crusaders’ defense.

“We see (zone defenses) enough that we should be better than we were tonight,” Wood said. “We practice against it all the time, but it’s hard to simulate when the lights come on with a real game. They were a little tight at first.”

The Crusaders scored their first points of the quarter in the paint to end the run, but Dooley got the Lions a score right after. St. Mary’s scored again, but Pope hit a 3-pointer on an assist from Dooley. Pope scored again on a layup after the Crusaders missed two free throws, but the Crusaders finished the half with five-quick points to make it a 25-17 game.

Pope started the second half with a block, and a layup on the other end. The Crusaders scored two field goals early but were unable to score from the field for the remainder of the quarter.

On the other end, Pope continued to get to the rim and get free throw attempts, while Doleman heated up from distance. Doleman dunked the ball following an assist from Pope, and Dooley blocked a shot and took it back for a layup in back-to-back possessions. Doleman scored the final three points of the quarter on a free throw and on a second-chance opportunity.

Lawrence entered the final eight minutes with a 16-point lead and kept the Crusaders at arm’s distance for the rest of the game. The Crusaders started with four free throws and cut it to an 11-point game before Dooley scored five-straight with two layups and an and-1 following his second fastbreak layup.

Dooley and Doleman each scored a field goal late in the fourth as Lawrence kept its cushion to win by 14 points.

The effort in the win showed a positive trend for the Lions, who have won their last three games. As the season comes to its final stretch, solidifying the team’s identity with the effort on the court is something that Wood has continued to stress.

“It means everything,” Wood said of the recent wins. “These guys have to give max effort and play as one. To be able to do that and have success and make team plays is huge for us. We just have to continue to build, go 1-0, stack days on days and see where we are at the end of it.”

Lawrence will be back at home on Friday against Washington at 7 p.m.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence sophomore Truth Pope passes to the wing in a 53-39 win over St. Mary’s Academy at Lawrence High on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence sophomore Joey Dooley watches the shot clock in a 53-39 win over St. Mary’s Academy at Lawrence High on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence junior Kenyon Doleman shoots the ball in a 53-39 win over St. Mary’s Academy at Lawrence High on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Lawrence.

photo by: David Rodish/Journal-World

Lawrence senior Devin Foster gets open in a 53-39 win over St. Mary’s Academy at Lawrence High on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Lawrence.