East vs. Harmon: What To Know Before Sub-State Round 2

The seven-seed varsity boys basketball team took down ten-seed Shawnee Mission West on Wednesday 55-53 in the first round of the KSHSAA sub-state playoffs. With the win, the team moves on to play two-seed J.C. Harmon in the second round of sub-state.

The team shot 49 percent from the field, 36 percent from three and 48 percent from the line. Senior Andy Maddox led the team with 22 points and senior Noah Kurlbaum came next with 10. Junior Tony Friends and sophomore Preston Reynolds led in assists with 2, and Maddox and Reynolds led in rebounds with seven and six, respectively.

The 55-53 win came after the Lancers’ previous matchup against SMW on Feb. 13, defeating them 59-55.

J.C. Harmon, tonight’s opponent, stands as the overdog at 16-3 next to East’s 11-9. The Hawks are this year’s KCA League champions, losing only to Eudora, F.L. Schlagle and Washington High Schools.

East coach Shawn Hair is 1-0 against the Hawks with East’s win in the 03-04 season. The team has prepared to keep the ball out of the lane and keep Harmon off the offensive glass, according to Hair. Rebounding, he said, will be key in the matchup.

The parents of East basketball players will be covering the game entry fee — $5 for students, $6 for adults — for the first 100 students to arrive at a caravan carpool beginning at East at 6 p.m. to take students to the game.

Hair is also providing Chick-Fil-A for “the first 100 students lined up in the Caravan,” according to the team’s Twitter account.

“Any time you go on the road and you have some fans there, it’s great,” Hair said. “It just adds excitement, creates energy, creates enthusiasm.”

Whether or not students caravan, the game begins at 7 p.m. at Harmon — 2400 Steele Rd, Kansas City, KS 66106.