Free State boys overcome slow start and cruise to 56-43 non-league win over St. Joseph (Mo.)-Lafayette

Following a 2-1 record and a fifth-place finish at the McPherson Invitational Tournament this past weekend, the Free State boys basketball team overcame a slow start and continued to roll, defeating Lafayette High School 56-43 on Wednesday night.

Free State led by four after the first quarter and continued to grow its lead. Despite a comeback from the Fighting Irish in the third quarter, the Firebirds made a key run late in the fourth to come away with the win.

Firebird head coach Dwayne Paul said he was excited before the game because of the way his team continued to improve in McPherson and was curious to see how they would respond to being back at home.

Lafayette is located in St. Joseph, Missouri, so playing against the Irish was unfamiliar territory. Despite this, Paul said he enjoyed the challenges in preparation as he got his team ready for a college-like scout.

Free State got off to a slow start on both ends of the court, not getting a field goal until Lafayette had already built an 11-2 lead.

“They did things that we knew they were going to do, and we were helping off the strong side, which we don’t do,” Paul said. “They made some shots, but the guys that were making the shots were the guys we wanted to shoot the shots.”

The first make from the field, a mid-range jump shot by senior Korbin Dowdell, proved beneficial as the Firebirds scored 13 straight points and took a 15-11 lead after a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Dowdell.

After coming off the bench, junior Bennett Nagel got Free State on the scoreboard in the second quarter, as a free throw by Connor McFarland and two more points from Dowdell capped off a continuous 18-0 run.

Lafayette stopped the run at the free-throw line, then Dowdell hit his third 3 of the half, followed by two free throws and a field goal by junior Ethan Prescott to extend the lead to 13.

The Fighting Irish got their first field goal of the quarter with 1:13 remaining, and added a 3-pointer to close the half, but the Firebirds held a 29-17 lead at halftime.

Dowdell led all scorers in the first half with 16 points. It was a family affair for Dowdell as his cousin, University of Kansas guard and Lawrence High alum Zeke Mayo, was in attendance. Dowdell said that they both support each other and he’s glad that they can do so.

Following a layup to open the half by Free State center Braden Wilmes, Lafayette used a 7-0 run to cut the lead down to single digits. Freshman Brendan Barrett made two 3s for the Firebirds, but the Fighting Irish continued to find answers, with the Firebirds clinging to a 40-32 lead going into the final quarter.

Before the fourth quarter began, Paul’s message was simple: Finish it.

“It was just about locking in, not being satisfied with trying to win, but trying to go and beat somebody and dominate an opponent,” he said.

Both teams traded points to open the quarter before a 10-0 Free State run capped off by a 3-pointer by AJ Eason put the game away for good. Lafayette scored the final seven points of the game, all at the free throw line, but the Firebirds held on to improve to 6-6 on the season.

The Firebirds will be back in action next Tuesday, hosting Olathe Northwest at 7 p.m. The Ravens are currently 8-3 and in eighth place in the 6A East standings.

“We just got to stay true to who we are and just trust Coach and trust everyone around me,” Dowdell said. “We just got to keep being us.”