The Park Hill South boys basketball team earned a pair of important victories to pull itself back above .500 going into Christmas.
On Dec. 16, they coped with the frantic style of play from Liberty North to find enough offense to power their way past the Eagles, earning a 59-51 victory. Two days later, Park Hill South was relentless to come out with a 71-39 triumph against St. Joseph Lafayette.
The Panthers faced a tough test in their decision-making as the Eagles hounded them throughout the night. Despite first-half struggles, South used its deep 12-player rotation and a strong rebounding effort in the second half to come out victorious on home court.
Park Hill South came out well, going on an early 7-0 run to jump ahead to an early five-point lead. Liberty North then delivered its warning signs by making the Panthers uncomfortable the rest of the opening quarter, going on an 8-0 run the last few minutes of the opening frame to take a 10-7 lead going into the second quarter.
The game really opened up in the second quarter, as turnovers and scoring became more fluid and the pace of play increased. While Park Hill South took a 17-13 lead, Liberty North managed to break ahead 24-23 as both teams headed for the locker rooms at halftime.
Park Hill South really took the game over in the third quarter, when they outscored Liberty North 24-15. The Panthers grew their lead to double-digits when Jackson Wheeler scored a couple of buckets in the paint before a Carson Bjorn offensive rebound put the hosts further ahead, but the Eagles finally had a much-needed response to cut the deficit down to single digits before the conclusion of the third period.
Jackson Wheeler drives towards the basket against Liberty North on Dec. 16.
“We kind of test out the waters in the first half and then kind of find a crew,” Park Hill South head coach Max Sollars said. “That crew of six in the third quarter really found the groove, and then the rest of our team just kind of hopped on board in terms of energy, scoring and defensively.”
Wheeler stretched South’s lead back out to 12 points in the fourth quarter, forcing the Eagles to come clawing back to get within six points before the Panthers closed out the 59-51 victory.
Park Hill South outrebounded Liberty North 40-25 on the night, as Bjorn led the way with 12 rebounds alongside 13 points. The Panthers also gave an opportunity to Jojo Elful, a senior who just began basketball this season.
Off the bench for the first time this season, Wheeler responded brilliantly with a career night as he shot 9 of 11 from the field for 19 points.
“Jackson’s been fighting some foul trouble the last couple games, and he’s been pretty visibly upset,” Sollars said. “I just think owning up on him fouling, accepting that he’s been using his body a little bit much and then IQ-wise, making that change to keep himself in the game was huge. This was also the first game Jackson came off the bench, which just shows the selflessness of our team, how people don’t care who starts, we just want to win.”
On Dec. 18, Park Hill South traveled north to defeat Lafayette 71-39 in a Holiday Hoops Classic matchup at the St. Joseph Civic Arena. The Panthers used nine different scorers to come away with their most lopsided win so far this season.
Park Hill South built a 20-11 lead in the first quarter, but Lafayette battled back to make it 20-16 at the end of the first. The Panthers came out lethal in the second quarter, outscoring Lafayette 20-6 to take a 40-22 lead into halftime.
The Panthers extended their lead to 20 in the third period, taking a 53-33 lead into the final quarter. The Panthers rotated some additional players as the lead got stretched even further, running away with a 32-point win.
Park Hill South senior Jax Navarro draws contact against Liberty North on Dec. 16.
Jax Navarro led the way with 18 points, followed by Bjorn’s 12 points and junior Alex Gabrick reaching double-digits for the second time in three games.
Park Hill South now sits with a 4-3 record entering Christmas as they shift their preparations to the William Jewell Holiday Classic in Liberty from Dec. 27-30.