McPHERSON, Kan. – Blue Valley West High School wins their 2nd McPherson Invitational Championship in its 14th appearance in the tournament, beating McPherson 54-47 in the 12th and final game of the weekend. McPherson’s Gabe Pyle won the tournament’s MVP award for the second year in a row.
Listed below are the final scores, stats, recaps, and leaders of each of Saturday’s games. The All-Tournament team and the tournament’s stat leaders are listed following the game recaps.
7TH PLACE GAME
#8 Manhattan – 63
#2 Hutchinson – 61
Recap: Hutchinson led by 17 points in the 2nd quarter and led by 10 in the 3rd quarter. Manhattan went on an 11-0 run in the span of the end of the 3rd into the 4th to give them the lead. Hutchinson had a chance to win at the buzzer, but Jalen Crable’s three missed short, completing Manhattan’s comeback victory.
Stat Leaders:
Manhattan:
- Vince Doering: 17 pts., 6-12 FG, 3-4 3PT
- Landon Knopp: 12 pts., 5-8 FG, 2-3 3PT
Hutchinson:
- Lamar Govain: 20 pts., 10-15 FG
- Terrell King: 14 pts., 4-9 FG, 2-3 3PT, 4-5 FT
5TH PLACE GAME
#5 Lawrence Free State – 59
#6 Wichita-East – 55
Recap: Free State had just a one point lead at the halftime break following a stepback, ankle-breaking three by Luke Henderson of Wichita East. Three-point shooting seemed to be the name of the game as WEHS shot 6/22 and Free State was 5/18. The Firebirds had a 7 point lead into the 4th quarter before the Blue Aces stepped their playmaking up a notch making big plays. However following 11 lead changes, the Firebirds got their second win of the tournament finishing in 5th.
Stat Leaders:
Lawrence Free State:
- Bennett Negal: 18 pts., 13 reb., 8-12 FG, 2-3 3PT
- Korbin Dowdell: 15 pts., 6-19 FG, 1-6 3PT
Wichita-East:
- Ismael Berry: 17 pts., 5-19 FG, 3-11 3PT, 4-4 FT
- Jaylen Phillips-Grey: 14 pts., 10 reb., 6-15 FG
3RD PLACE GAME
#4 Shawnee Mission East – 62
#3 St. James Academy – 58
Recap: The St. James Academy Thunder did not have the lead in any part of the game, but they fought to get it after trailing by as much as 12 points in the first half. The Lancers were able to shed off the overtime loss Friday night by shooting 53% on the floor to give them the 3rd Place title.
Stat Leaders:
Shawnee Mission East:
- Will Beck: 15 pts., 9 reb., 6-13 FG, 1-5 3PT
- Walt Jones: 15 pts., 5 ast., 2 stl., 6-8 FG, 3-5 3PT
St. James Academy:
- Emmitt Peters: 17 pts., 5-9 FG, 2-6 3PT, 5-8 FT
- Nate Hornback: 11 pts., 9 reb., 4-6 FG, 3-5 FT
CHAMPIONSHIP
#7 Blue Valley West – 54
#1 McPherson – 47
Recap: Blue Valley West’s perimeter shooting set them apart from McPherson as they boasted a 13 point lead with two minutes left in the third quarter. McPherson turned it around with a late run taking the lead with nearly three minutes left in the 4th quarter, but Tyler Peterson’s two-handed dunk put the Jaguars back up and for good late in the game. Clutch free throw shooting closed it off, giving BV West their 2nd McPherson Invitational Championship in their 14th appearance overall.
Stat Leaders:
Blue Valley West:
- Brandon Kirk: 15 pts., 4-8 FG, 3-6 3PT, 4-4 FT
- Luke Goodale: 12 pts., 4-9 FG, 4-9 3PT
- Tyler Peterson: 11 reb., 2 pts.
McPherson:
- Gabe Pyle: 23 pts., 7-19 FG, 5-14 3PT, 4-5 FT
- Ian Razak: 10 pts., 5-6 FG
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Tournament MVP: Gabe Pyle (McPherson)
All-Tournament Team (listed by school):
- Brandon Kirk (Blue Valley West)
- Tyler Peterson (Blue Valley West)
- Cade Wysong (Blue Valley West)
- Landon Knopp (Manhattan)
- Jett Pyle (McPherson)
- Will Beck (Shawnee Mission East)
- Stephen Hlobik (Shawnee Mission East)
- Emmitt Peters (St. James Academy)
- Ismael Berry (Wichita-East)
- Luke Henderson (Wichita-East)
TOURNAMENT STAT LEADERS (TOP 3):
Points:
- 1. Gabe Pyle (McPherson) – 61 (20.3/game)
- 2. Ismael Berry (Wichita-East) – 49 (16.3/game)
- 3. Emmitt Peters (St. James Academy) – 48 (16.0/game)
Total Rebounds:
- 1. Tyler Peterson (Blue Valley West) – 30 (10.0/game)
- 2. Jaylen Phillips-Grey (Wichita-East) – 25 (8.3/game)
- T-3. Bennett Negal (Lawrence Free State) – 24 (8.0/game)
- T-3. Braden Wilmes (Lawrence Free State) – 24 (8.0/game)
Offensive Rebounds:
- 1. Tyler Peterson (Blue Valley West) – 14 (4.7/game)
- 2. Stephen Hlobik (Shawnee Mission East) – 12 (4.0/game)
- T-3. Nate Hornbakc (St. James Academy) – 10 (3.3/game)
- T-3. Braden Wilmes (Lawrence Free State) – 10 (3.3/game)
Defensive Rebounds:
- 1. Jaylen Phillips-Grey (Wichita-East) – 17 (5.7/game)
- 2. Tyler Peterson (Blue Valley West) – 16 (5.3/game)
- T-3. Will Beck (Shawnee Mission East) – 15 (5.0/game)
- T-3. Bennett Negal (Lawrence Free State) – 15 (5.0/game)
Assists:
- 1. Jett Pyle (McPherson) – 16 (5.3/game)
- 2. Jacob Fratzel (St. James Academy) – 14 (4.7/game)
- 3. Walt Jones (Shawnee Mission East) – 12 (4.0/game)
Steals:
- 1. Ismael Berry (Wichita-East) – 10 (3.3/game)
- 2. Gabe Pyle (McPherson) – 9 (3.0/game)
- 3. Vince Doering (Manhattan) – 8 (2.7/game)
Blocks:
- 1. Braden Wilmes (Lawrence Free State) – 9 (3.0/game)
- T-2. Vince Doering (Manhattan) – 4 (1.3/game)
- T-2. Luke Henderson (Wichita-East) – 4 (1.3/game)
- T-2. Gabe Pyle (McPherson) – 4 (1.3/game)
- T-2. Ian Razak (McPherson) – 4 (1.3/game)
- T-2. Oliver Selmon (Wichita-East) – 4 (1.3/game)
Field Goal Percentage (Min. 4.0 FGM/game):
- 1. Stephen Hlobik (Shawnee Mission East) – 69.6% (16/23)
- 2. Walt Jones (Shawnee Mission East) – 52.0% (13/25)
- 3. Bennett Negal (Lawrence Free State) – 51.6% (16/31)
3-Point FG Percentage (Min. 2.0 3PT Made/game):
- 1. Jake Kolich (St. James Academy) – 57.1% (8/14)
- 2. Luke Goodale (Blue Valley West) – 46.7% (7/15)
- 3. Cade Strathman (McPherson) – 46.2% (6/13)
3-Point FG Made:
- 1. Ismael Berry (Wichita-East) – 10 (3.3/game)
- 2. Emmitt Peters (St. James Academy) – 9 (3.0/game)
- T-3. Walt Jones (Shawnee Mission East) – 8 (2.7/game)
- T-3. Jake Kolich (St. James Academy) – 8 (2.7/game)
Free Throw Percentage (Min. 2.0 FT Made/game):
- 1. Brandon Kirk (Blue Valley West) – 100% (12/12)
- 2. Terrell King (Hutchinson) – 81.3% (13/16)
- 3. Jaylen Phillips-Grey (Wichita-East) – 75.0% (6/8)
Stats provided by McPherson Optimist Club.
