Basketball

Holton's Austin Frakes (shown above, middle) fights for a rebound with Royal Valley's Derrick Barger (left) and Noah Rottinghaus (right) in Friday's game. While Frakes and the rest of the Wildcats held their own inside early, the Panthers found some room to work in the second half and pulled away for a 43-32 victory.

Late run pushes Panthers to victory in county showdown against the Wildcats

Neither Holton nor Royal Valley wanted to give up much ground in a county rivalry game on the basketball court Friday night. Both teams played hard-nosed defense and kept the other in check, but a key stretch late gave the Panther boys just enough separation to pick up a rare 43-32 victory in the...

Lady Cobras clip Bears in tight win at home in non-league action

After dropping a nail-biter on the road against Horton last Friday, the Jackson Heights girls basketball team flipped the script when it returned home to face St. Marys in a non-league contest on Monday night. While the teams were neck-and-neck the whole way, the Cobras even trailed in the fourth...

Wildcat Hayley Thompson (shown above, second from left) pulls up for a short jumper in the first half of Friday's rivalry game against the Panthers. It was the three that lifted HHS to an early lead, though, and ultimately a 50-38 victory over RVHS.

Hot start fuels Holton girls in road win at Royal Valley

After an explosive offensive outburst in last Tuesday’s win over Hiawatha, it looked like the Holton girls basketball team caught some of that lightning in a bottle and brought it with them to Hoyt on Friday for a rivalry game against Royal Valley. Holton shot lights out from beyond the three-...

Panther Kate Hanson (shown above, at right) fights for a rebound and goes back up for a basket in a recent contest against the Blue Jays. While Royal Valley led most of the way, the team couldn't quite close out the game and Sabetha stormed back for a victory.

RV girls' hot offensive start nearly sinks Sabetha on the road

For 21 minutes, the Lady Panther basketball team had the Sabetha Blue Jays right where they wanted them. Through an impressive defensive showing and a hot start offensively, Royal Valley held a lead for most of the first three quarters against the second-ranked team in Class 3A. In the final...

Jackson Heights' Zane Richter (shown above, second from right) comes down with a rebound early in Tuesday's NEKL contest against Valley Falls. Richter had another big night for the Cobras, but the team also showed some balance as numerous players hit key shots to give JHHS just enough separation in a 46-37 victory over the Dragons.

Cobra boys hold their ground in big league win over Valley Falls

Jackson Heights’ boys basketball team found itself in an odd position on Tuesday night against Valley Falls in its first game back from break. Used to being the aggressor and harassing teams with their defensive intensity, the Dragons gave the Cobras fits instead on the defensive end and JHHS...

League champs, runners-up mark highs of MS girls basketball season

While high school basketball in Jackson County was just heating up before the Christmas break, the middle school girls basketball season was winding down during that same time. Like some of the county high school teams off to fast starts, though, several squads from Holton, Jackson Heights and...

Panther Tamo Thomas (shown above, middle right) floats a shot over the Santa Fe Trail defense in a non-league contest to close out the first half of the season. Thomas was strong for Royal Valley again, leading the team with 12 points in the 54-30 victory.

RV girls' big second quarter helps fuel victory over Santa Fe Trail to close out 2015

After a number of slow starts earlier this basketball season, the Lady Panthers finally seemed to find their pace as they built up to a steady cruising speed before racing ahead of visiting Santa Fe Trail on the way to a 54-30 victory on Friday night. Both teams needed some time to gear up, as it...

HHS guard Courtney Boswell (shown above, second from left) comes down with a rebound in the second half of Monday's home game against Hayden. Boswell helped Holton keep things close, but the visitors managed to pull out a 62-51 victory.

Holton girls basketball can't quite topple Hayden in intense battle

To start the basketball season, the Holton girls were tested on the road against Sabetha (currently ranked second in Class 3A) and coach Jon Holliday and his players didn’t like the results. Against a similarly tough Hayden team (#6 in 4A-DII) on Monday, host HHS managed a passing grade, but...

Richter's record-setting performance highlights Heights' split with Pleasant Ridge

While the Jackson Heights boys basketball team might have had some minor hiccups early in Tuesday night’s league match-up against Pleasant Ridge, the game was eventually marked by a record-setting performance as the Cobras recovered quickly on the way to a 78-52 victory. Once JHHS got over those...

Jackson Heights' Westin Jacobsen (shown above, at right) slashes to the basket for an easy two points in last Friday's NEKL contest against Maur Hill. Jacobsen and his teammates ramped up the defensive pressure in the second half to get those easy points and helped JHHS pull away for a 61-42 victory.

Cobras' defensive intensity too much for Ravens in second half

If you needed any evidence that basketball is a game of runs, Friday’s contest between the Jackson Heights and Maur Hill boys did a great job of proving it. After the Cobras came out hot and took an early lead, the Ravens answered immediately before Jackson Heights’ defense took its toll and...