Efficient BVNW knocks out Garden City in state quarters
Listen to the complete game in our archives section
Wichita, KS-Wednesday night’s 6A quarterfinal showdown was a matchup of two teams with vastly different roads to the state tournament.
While Blue Valley Northwest ransacked their way through the Eastern Kansas League, the Buffaloes rose from the grave, turning an 0-6 start into the program’s first appearance in the big dance since 2013.
It was a feel-good story, one where the plot actually thickened as Garden City kept it close against the heavily-favored Huskies. But in the end, Darien Jackson proved to be too much.
The Tulsa-commit finished with 22 points on 8-of-9 shooting, Oral-Roberts signee JaMichael Morgan netted 10, and Blue Valley Northwest pulled away for a 70-54 win over Garden City in the 6A state quarterfinals Wednesday night at Koch Arena.
“I’m so proud of these guys,” Buffaloes Coach Jacy Holloway said. “To come back after the way we started the season was incredible.”
More of a feat was how the brown and white stuck with the top-seeded team despite taking a couple of haymakers right in the jaw early.
Jackson and Braun had back-to-back dunks to start the game before Braun added a wraparound slam that opened up a 10-2 Huskies advantage four minutes into the contest.
“We just had to settle down,” Holloway explained. “We also had to hit some shots.”
Blue Valley Northwest (20-3, 10-2) built their lead to 15-4 with 1:51 to go in the opening quarter. That’s when Garden City (11-12, 5-3) made their move.
Evan Allen-Mader scored on consecutive possessions while the Buffaloes held the Huskies scoreless the final 1:51 of the quarter to pull within seven 15-8 at the end of one.
In the second, Garden City used a 3-point barrage to stay close. The Buffaloes drained 5-of-6 from downtown in the quarter, including Garrett Doll’s back-to-back treys that made it a seven-point game again with 1:10 left in the half. After the Huskies used a 7-0 spurt to build their largest lead 38-24, Holloway’s crew bounced right back in the final seconds, getting two free throws from Allen-Mader before Jarrod Springston stole the inbounds pass and nailed a 3-pointer from the right wing at the buzzer. The Buffaloes trailed 38-29 at the break.
“We did some really good things in that second quarter,” Holloway said. “But I think once they (Blue Valley Northwest) saw that, they began to press us more.”
That press resulted in seven turnovers in the third quarter, as the Huskies used an 11-0 run, capped by Jackson’s steal and dunk that pushed the Blue Valley Northwest lead to 19 53-34 with 1:18 to play in the period. The Huskies were 8-of-12 shooting in the quarter.
“They don’t miss many shots,” Holloway said. “The key thing is you have to be able to score with them. And for a little while, we were able to do that.”
Jackson finished off his efficient night with his own-person 6-0 run in the fourth, spearheaded by a perfect lob from Sam Ward from the left wing that the senior caught and flushed gliding down the left baseline.
“He’s (Jackson) a great player,” Holloway said. “He makes the game look so easy.”
Blue Valley Northwest built their lead to as many as 23 midway through the fourth before Springston and Doll hit treys to make the final margin closer.
Doll scored 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting for Garden City, who has now lost in the opening round in 12 out of their 16 state tournament appearances. Allen-Mader added nine points while Springston, Griff Brunson and Zac Karlin each tallied eight.
Ward scored nine points and A.J. Pleasant added five assists for Blue Valley Northwest, who shot 67 percent (29-of-43) from the floor.
