WICHITA, Kan. – McPherson High School Boys Basketball traveled to Wichita to face the Collegiate Spartans, who entered unbeaten on the season, falling 72-53 in a hard-fought battle.
McPherson trailed 7-2 early, but a timeout helped them storm back to lead 8-7 in the early going. However, the Spartans pushed back to lead by three at the end of the first quarter and by 10 at halftime. McPherson struggled at the free-throw line in the first half, shooting just 1/11 before closing the game 9/22 at the charity stripe.
The Bullpups trailed by 19 in the second half and tried to claw their way back, cutting the deficit to within 11 points at one point. However, Collegiate pulled away late, thanks to their perimeter shooting, to defeat the Bullpups for only the second time ever.
The Spartans were led by Kamari Jennings’ 23 points, thanks to five three-pointers. AJ Batiste added 21 for Collegiate. Jett Pyle’s 23 points led McPherson. Eli Reasoner had 16 points.
The loss moves McPherson to 8-8 on the season. They will travel to face Andale on Thursday, Feb. 5. Andale will enter ranked as the #5 team in 4A, with an overall record of 11-3.
SCORING BREAKDOWN
McPherson: 14-8-17-14 — 53
Collegiate: 17-15-26-14 — 72
McPherson: Pyle – 23, Reasoner – 16, Cooper – 7, Strathman – 3, Harrison – 2, Becker – 2. Team: 20 FG, 3 3PT, 9/22 FT
Collegiate: Jennings – 23, Batiste – 21, Bond – 11, Hines-Turner – 10, Johnson – 5, Issa – 2. Team: 24 FG, 11 3PT, 13/20 FT
