Kyle Unruh

Came thru to catch some of the William Jewell Holiday Classic last week. Such a great event and loved getting to watch a bunch of teams and high-level players. I am breaking it down by division with an all-tournament team per division and other division standouts.

I grabbed another session of The 12 Courts of Christmas to see Webb City take on St. Joe Central. A back and forth game with a lot of playmakers for both teams. The Cardinals opened it up in the 2nd half and went on to take it home 84-65.

This game was actually over fairly early as Rock Bridge came out firing on all cylinders. They are a very good shooting team and when they get it going early it can be a load. Couple that with their size on the interior and Truman’s strength in attacking the basket, it just forms a tough matchup for the Patriots. In the end, it was Rock Bridge sanding as the winners 77-42.

This was a terrific game featuring two of the top teams in the state out of Class 5 and Class 6. Adding to the drama is Oak Park had a tough one the night before against Staley. The Statesmen came out looking like they would take advantage of an Oak Park team that might be feeling the residuals from the night before. The Northmen have some competitive dudes though and they kept it close. They finally grabbed the lead in the 4th quarter and closed it out as championship teams do. Both teams played hard and were both well-coached. I see both of them making deep runs in their respective class.

This was a terrific game at the 12 Courts of Christmas Event. Two very well-coached teams that matched each other blow for blow and Graini Valley taking a 2pt. Lead into intermission at 23-21. Grain Valley began to pull away slightly in the 3rd qtr. Extending the lead to 38-30. Maryville tightened up the defense in the 4th and hit some big shots down the stretch and eeked out the win 48-45.

This one got out of hand fairly early and ended up in Rockhurst’s favor 61-29. Blue Springs was never really into the game past the 1st quarter. Rockhurst displayed a crisp and decisive bunch that is connected on both ends of the court. Coach Thomas plays a lot of players and never really sees much dropoff. In fairness to Blue Springs, they were lacking some players who typically make a strong contribution.