Andover Central Hands Derby First Loss

If there was one game that promised to be an outstanding game, it was Andover Central traveling to undefeated Derby for a match-up between two of the top programs in recent seasons. Even better, the game delivered on the hype as overtime was needed for the Jaguars to knock off Derby 48-45 in a thriller. It should be noted that the Panthers were playing without their best player Taylor Schieber, who was leading the team in scoring at 19.2 points a game and is sidelined with a torn meniscus. The result has already been decided so now let's take it a step further and discuss what this means for both teams moving forward.

For Andover Central, it's simple: it's a signature victory. In case you missed my post yesterday, the Jaguars have played the most difficult schedule in the area and have thrived with a 6-2 record. Remember, this is a Central team that virtually started over after last season's dominant team. The only returner was Zach Winter, and while that is a tremendous building block to have, no one saw this kind of start from the Jaguars.

Central already had great wins over Salina Central and Andover and played in a tight game with Eisenhower and those experiences proved valuable in a possession-by-possession game against Derby. The Jaguars controlled the pace of the game and even with the overtime period included held Derby to a season-low 45 points. Central has held every opponent under 50 points in its 6 victories this season.

Winter has been spectacular this season, leading the team with a 17.6 scoring average. But another big reason why the Jaguars have not suffered a drop-off is the emergence of freshman sensation Darraja Parnell, who returned from a nagging injury, and has averaged 16.4 points in the five games he's played this season. Cameron Hurley has also stepped up to deliver a reliable 3rd scoring option for Central and coach Jesse Herrmann has proven why he is one of the best coaches in the state with this state.

It's a little more complicated for Derby, which is playing in a very strange situation right now without Schieber. I think the prognosis has the senior returning either in late January or early February, but there's a lot of questions to be answered. Without Schieber on the court, the rest of the Panthers are forced to raise their games. The second scorer becomes the go-to guy, the third guy steps up into the second scoring role and so on. This can be a very good thing if Derby develops and improves because when Schieber comes back it will be that much better.

But it's a little troubling how much the scoring has dropped off for Derby. With Schieber, Derby was averaging 81.3 points and slaying everyone. Without him, Derby is averaging 54.7 points and the last 3 games have been 3 of the closest of the season. Derby is still a very good team without Schieber, but it remains to be seen just how good. Friday's home game against Salina Central, which enters with a 5-game winning streak. will be very telling. "Sometimes a group really doesn't become a team until they have to do something difficult together," Derby coach Brett Flory told me Wednesday night. "This can be that time for us."

I also talked to coach Flory after Derby's win over Southeast over the weekend and he said the Panthers will have to revolve their offense more around the post instead of the perimeter to win. That shouldn't be a problem with a giant like Josiah Ray, who is second on the team in scoring at 13.3 points, and an athletic post like Tyler Chambers. The Panthers can still have success on the perimeter, especially with a spark plug like Dylan Hunter, who has tremendous range, and solid pieces like James Conley and Jeremy Dunham, but they have to start from the inside and then move out. "I certainly wish Taylor was out there, but this can be great for us because it's forcing us to get better in areas that Taylor maybe covered up with his skill level," Flory told me. "It's forcing us to do all of those tough things you have to do when it gets to March."

The telling quote from the game came in Kyle McCaskey's CatchItKansas piece about the game when Flory told him, "We played better tonight than some of the games we won by 30." That's the takeaway for both teams. A game like that, win or lose, is better for a team trying to be great to experience than a 30-point blowout. "In that Andover Central game, possessions were magnified for the first time all year," Flory told me. "If you made one mistake, it was going to cost you. Every possession mattered that game and that was good for us. We needed a game like that." When Andover Central and Derby make their charges toward league titles and state berths, the experience picked up on Tuesday night will be a valuable piece for each team.