McPHERSON, Kan. – The McPherson High School Boys Basketball team is riding high off of their 14th State Championship, going a perfect 25-0 in the 2023-24 season, looking to defend their title in the upcoming ’24-’25 year.
It was their first title since 2015, which also happened to be their last undefeated season. Led by 4A Player of the Year Kyden Thompson and All-State honorees like Cory Muehler and Gabe Pyle, the team scored nearly 66 points per game and had an average winning margin of 23 points.
However, the team will go into this season losing four out of its five starters and five seniors overall. Thompson is now playing at Cowley County Community College (13.7 pts/game), Muehler at Butler County CC (14.8 pts/game), as well as Gavin Wedel and Jayce Schriner playing collegiate football. They also lose Owen Pyle, who scored 8 points per contest.
The team will return Gabe Pyle for his senior year. Pyle led the team last season in points (16.7/game), rebounds (5.1/game), and steals (2.4/game). They also bring letter winners Jett Pyle, Ian Razak, Bishop Brown and Brenden Doile, who will need to play key roles on the team this season. They also bring in upperclassmen newcomers who are multi-sport athletes, including senior Brody Seidl and junior Cade Strathman.
Head coach Kurt Kinnamon will go into his 30th season as McPherson’s head coach, coming in with a record of 547-118, a win percentage of 82.2%. He was voted the Sports in Kansas All-Class Coach of the Year after winning his 7th State Title with the Bullpups.
Kinnamon states the strengths of the team will be shooting and playing inside/out. He also mentions that Gabe Pyle will be one of the best players in the state, which will be a major strength. The 6’6″ shooting guard is receiving college offers, most recently announcing an offer from Mid-America Nazarene University in Olathe.
Ad Astra Radio will bring coverage of every basketball game on 98.9/1540 KMCP, with Sports Director Lane Gillespie bringing play-by-play coverage. Each game will also have a video livestream on our Ad Astra TV page.
The team’s schedule can be found on their team page.
