I'll separate the games into four categories: Upsets, Swing Games (Between two evenly-matched teams), Surprising (Good teams surviving close games) and No Surprises.
So let's get this underway, and you might be able to tell by the picture what the "Win of the Night" was on Friday.
Bishop Carroll 57, East 51 | @East
Who saw this one coming? Carroll ended the 3rd quarter on a 10-0 run to build a stunning 16-point lead, 43-27, over East on its home court. The Blue Aces wouldn't go down silently, rallying back all the way to within a point under 30 seconds left. But Carroll survived, pulled off a monumental upset to stretch its winning streak to 3 games. The loss was crucial for East, which sends them into a tie with Kapaun for 2nd place in the City League after pulling ahead of them earlier in the week. It also pushes North's lead to 2 games, which takes the title out of East's control. Now it has to rely on North stumbling.
Rose Hill 50, Clearwater 45 | @Clearwater
Don't look now, but after a rough start to the season, Rose Hill has won 4 of its last 6 games. This marks the Rockets most impressive win, as it ends Clearwater's 7-game winning streak on its own home court. It looked like Rose Hill got off to a fast start, up 12-4 after the 1st quarter and then 31-21 at halftime. Clearwater rallied, behind Johnny Becker (22 points), to make it a one-basket game going into the fourth quarter. But Rose Hill held on for its 6th win of the season and is finally starting to find itself under 1st year coach Steve Siemens.
Goddard 39, Maize South 37 | @Goddard
After Maize South raced out to a 15-13 lead after the 1st quarter, it looked like Goddard accomplished its goal of slowing the game down to a dredge. No team would score over 10 points in a quarter after that, as the Lions finally got a team to play their game with them. Maize South, which missed 5 free throws in the 4th quarter, had built so much positive momentum but losses to Goddard and Valley Center have stunted that. Goddard wins for the first time since Jan. 8 and completed the season sweep of the Mavericks.
Andover Central 70, Andover 66 | 3 Overtimes | @Andover
This sounded like the best game of the night. Andover was in control of the game throughout, leading 32-21 at halftime. But then Zach Winter happened. And Darraja Parnell happened. Andover Central made an improbable comeback, even taking a 2-point lead under 30 seconds left and the game didn't go into overtime until Andover's Adam DeKoning scored to force a tie. Neither team could get much of a lead in the first or the second overtime, but Central finally pulled away in the third overtime to secure this thrilling rivalry win. Winter scored a season-high 35 points, 27 after halftime, and Parnell scored 21, 18 after halftime. The win completes the season sweep over the Trojans for Central and it effectively knocks them out of the league title race. For Central, it is just another super impressive victory in a super impressive season and it sets up a huge showdown Tuesday against Eisenhower, basically for the AV-CTL Div. 2 title.
We knew Heights had the potential to turn this into a game and it probably feels like it let one get away. The Falcons led 17-5 after the 1st quarter, but their lead slowly dwindled as the game progressed. Conner Frankamp brought back North, shot by shot, finally forcing the game into overtime. That's when the Redskins took over, taking the lead on a Zach Beard 3-pointer and never giving the lead back. Frankamp made free throws, and finished with a tidy 37 points, and so did Beard (14) to ice the game away. Heights has lost 3 in a row after an encouraging performance in the mid-season tournament. The win for North is huge, especially after East lost, as it opens its lead back to 2 games in the City League with tiebreakers over both 2nd place teams - East and Kapaun.
Andale 57, El Dorado 38 | @Andale
I suspected Andale would win this one, but to get up 26-0 to start the game? I don't think anyone saw that one coming. Andale, coming off a heartbreaking overtime loss at McPherson, responded the way you hope a team would after having its 12-game winning streak come to an end.
Salina Central 43, Newton 42 | @Salina Central
This is a game that the Mustangs should have handled fairly easily. Newton entered struggling, but it took Central down to the wire on its home court. The loss would have been disastrous for the Mustangs, as the win keeps pace with Derby and they retain the tie-breaker over them for first place and in the driver's seat for the AV-CTL Div. 1 crown.
Maize 59, Hutchinson 57 | @Maize
I think I saw where this game had 5 lead changes in final minute of the game. Just craziness. Hutch's Trevor Turner was brilliant, scoring 28 points and giving the Salthawks a 57-56 lead with 1.7 seconds left. But Maize executed a perfection last-second play, as Connor Lungwitz, Maize's quarterback in the fall, threw a pass the length of the floor to Tavon Morrow, who caught, spun and was fouled while making the shot. The 3-point play stunned Hutchinson and gave Maize its second win in a row. All 4 of Maize's wins on the season have come in division play, so the win actually pulls them into a tie with Hutchinson for 3rd place in AV-CTL 1 despite the 4-10 record.
Northwest 65, West 51 | @Northwest
After building some good momentum, West came up empty in this one on the road at Northwest. The Grizzlies get a much-needed win to end a 4-game slide and keep them in the race for 4th place in the City League (4 teams within 1.5 games).
Salina South 61, Valley Center 48 | @Salina South
South has been a solid team since returning from Christmas break, as it improved its record to 4-4 since January. The Cougars did what they were supposed to in this non-division game, taking care of business against Valley Center. With 4 of their final 6 games against teams with losing records, South has a chance to make a run at a .500 record after starting 1-6.
Winfield 63, Augusta 56 | @Winfield
Winfield wins its 6th game by single-digits in a game it was probably favored in. Augusta has shown this season it has the ability to surprise if you don't get out and cover its guards. The Vikings did enough to take care of business to win their 9th game. This sets up Winfield to likely finish with a winning record this year, but it still has some obstacles to overcome to do that.
This one is a big win for Mulvane because it gets them to 10 wins on the season. That means the Wildcats only need 1 more win to secure their first winning season since 1987, truly impressive. This is one Mulvane probably was favored in, but winning on the road is never easy so it's a nice win.
McPherson 53, Dodge City 42 | @McPherson
Dodge City actually led this one for the majority of the game, taking a 2-point lead over McPherson in the Roundhouse into the 4th quarter. But the Pullpups ramped it up in the 4th quarter to pull away and coast to a very nice victory at home over a quality Dodge City team.
Eisenhower 67, Ark City 40 | @Eisenhower
One of the best teams in the area against one of the worst. Expected result.
Kapaun Mt. Carmel 66, South 29 | @Kapaun
Not much to note here, but Kapaun did pull into a tie with East for 2nd place in the City League after the Blue Aces' loss.
Derby 80, Campus 52 | @Campus
Since Taylor Schieber has returned, Derby has gotten back to the roll it was on before he got hurt.
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