photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS senior Zaxton King shoots a 3-pointer over an Olathe Northwest defender on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

Olathe – The Chesty Lions are hot – red hot. The Lawrence High boys basketball team, walking away from Olathe Northwest with a gritty 65-62 road win on Friday night, is now 3-0 this month with their third straight Sunflower League victory.

Seizing on foul trouble late, the Lions (5-11) opened the fourth quarter with an 8-2 run and outlasted their opponent with the help of some free throws after the Ravens (8-8) were issued three lethal technical fouls down the stretch.

Senior Zaxton King led the floor with 26 points, and senior Gordon Fineday (12 points) and junior Avery Johnson (10 points) also made it into double figures. LHS head coach Nick Wood said his team is learning how to win games “mentally and physically.”

“They’re reaping the rewards of all their work,” Wood said. “We mentally hung in there, and a month ago I don’t think we have that in us.”

LHS battled 6-foot-10 Northwest senior center JJ Lee (22 total points) clear from the jump. The Lions had seven first-quarter points between junior Avery Johnson and sophomore Eddie Roman Nose, and King made a 3-pointer as the first quarter expired, but the Ravens still held a 15-10 advantage going into the second period.

Junior Banks Bowen joined the show with two 3s in the second quarter. Those deep baskets were the only points he’d score all night, but they kept LHS in the mix as King pulled the Lions back within striking distance of the lead, going 4 of 5 from the free-throw line in the second quarter. At the half, LHS trailed O-Northwest 25-24.

In the third quarter, Fineday chimed in with eight points, and King had five extra points at the charity stripe. Two of King’s free throws put LHS ahead briefly before the end of the third quarter, but a 2-point jumper by junior Merak Greinert (10 total points) kept O-Northwest in control, 40-39.

Fineday, Josh Galbreath and Jaylen Parks each picked up their third foul heading into the fourth quarter, forcing LHS to put together a particularly disciplined final eight minutes. Galbreath — who was paired with Lee, one of the league’s toughest centers, through all four quarters — said LHS knows how to stay cool.

“They taught us to just block out the outside noise and just focus on our game and do what we came here to do, which is taking care of business,” Galbreath said.

It was the Ravens whose foul trouble ended up costing them, with three technical fouls called against Lee and sophomore Gavin Popik (13 points) for unsportsmanlike conduct. LHS capitalized on these mistakes, grabbing a 60-59 lead after Fineday split a pair of free throws with just 12 seconds left.

Greinert tried to pull his team ahead again with a layup with just four seconds remaining, but the Ravens chose to foul Johnson on the following possession, and the junior guard sealed the win for the Lions at the free-throw line.

LHS hosts Olathe North on Tuesday, Feb. 13. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS sophomore Josh Galbreath puts up a floater over two Olathe Northwest defenders on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS sophomore Edward Roman Nose shoots a 3-pointer against Olathe Northwest on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS senior Zaxton King shoots a first-half 3-point shot against Olathe Northwest on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS sophomore Edward Roman Nose shoots a layup against Olathe Northwest on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS senior Zaxton King shoots a layup early on the matchup against Olathe Northwest Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

BOX SCORE:

LHS 10 14 15 26 – 65

O-Northwest 15 10 15 22 – 62

Lawrence High (65) Zaxton King 5-14 15-17 26; Avery Johnson 2-3 4-4 10; Banks Bowen 2-2 0-0 6; Gordon Fineday 4-6 1-2 12; Josh Galbreath 1-3 3-4 5. Totals: 17-36 23-27 65.

Olathe Northwest (62) Logan Burnett 2-5 2-2 8; Caden Campbell 3-4 0-0 6; Gavin Popik 5-9 3-4 13; Merak Greinert 4-5 2-3 10; JJ Lee 11-13 0-2 22. Totals: 26-38 8-15 62.

3-point goals: LHS: 8-21 (); O-Northwest: 2-2 (). Turnovers: LHS 12, O-Northwest 13. Fouled Out: None.

LHS girls pull off win late at O-Northwest

With a game-high 16 points, Lawrence High senior Azura Clark delivered for the Lady Lions in a 41-38 bounce-back win at Olathe Northwest on Friday.

In a game where LHS (9-7) didn’t lead until the fourth quarter, seniors Destiny Savannah (seven points) and Cyrenity Hardy (six points) backed Clark heavily in the second half, and senior Miri Pickman had all of her four total points in the third quarter to help set up the big finish.

Clark, whose teammates drenched her in water to celebrate after the win, said her team came out ready to go – even if things didn’t go smoothly at the start.

“It was a little messy at first, but we just had to push through,” Clark said.

Five fouls held back the Lions early, but the Ravens (7-9) got off to a similarly frustrating start, opening the game just 3 of 10 from the field. O-Northwest was up 8-5 at the end of the first quarter, but it lost its grip with five turnovers, and Hardy and Nyasia Ramos each had a 3-point basket.

Late in the second quarter, the Ravens were tied with LHS at 13, but they jumped to a 25-15 halftime lead on big 3-pointers by seniors Bella Nadeau and Emily Fischer.

To eat away at the deficit, the Lions made a hard push late in the third quarter, with a 5-0 run that featured a gutsy layup by Clark and pulled LHS within just four points of O-Northwest.

Taking chances is part of the game, Clark said: “My teammates believe in me, and so I’ve just gotta believe in myself.”

Five quick points from Savannah then gave LHS its first lead, 36-35, to begin the fourth quarter. O-Northwest struggled to control the ball, with seven fourth-quarter turnovers, but it managed to tie things back up at 36 apiece at the free-throw line with under two minutes to go.

Then Clark sunk her second 3-pointer to send LHS up by three points with under a minute remaining. Hardy and Savannah were fouled late and made their free throws to hold off the Ravens in crunch time.

LHS hosts Olathe North on Tuesday, Feb. 13. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m.

BOX SCORE:

LHS 5 10 14 12 – 41

O-Northwest 9 16 8 5 – 38

Lawrence High (41) Emma Roman Nose 0-4 3-5 3; Destiny Savannah 2-4 1-2 6; Delilah Barnes 0-0 0-0 -; Cami Nauholz 1-4 0-1 2; Cyrenity Hardy 2-6 1-2 7. Totals: 15-31 5-12 41.

Olathe Northwest (38) Kyra Clark 3-5 5-8 11; Ava Karnatz 0-5 1-2 1; Bella Nadeau 3-6 0-0 9; Taylor Foxworthy 1-4 3-4 5; Emily Fischer 4-6 0-0 10. Totals: 11-27 11-18 38.

3-point goals: LHS: 6-18 (); O-Northwest: 5-12 (). Turnovers: LHS 11, O-Northwest 20. Fouled Out: None.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS senior Destiny Savannah makes a go-ahead 3-pointer in the fourth quarter against Olathe Northwest on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS senior Cyrenity Hardy attempts a 3-point shot late in the second half against Olathe Northwest on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS senior Cyrenity Hardy makes a 3-point shot against Olathe Northwest on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS senior Azura Clarke makes a 3-pointer to seal the game against Olathe Northwest on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS senior Emma Roman Nose drives the paint through Olathe Northwest defenders on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.

photo by: Landon Cory/Special to the Journal-World

LHS senior Delilah Barnes drives the paint against Olathe Northwest on Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, in Olathe.