By JAYCEE DALE
The boys’ championship game of the Gerald Mitchell Hays City Shootout featured city rivals Hays High and TMP-Marian.
The Hays High boys were looking for their first tourney title since 2016, and that’s exactly what they got with a 70-42 victory over the Monarchs on Saturday night at the HHS gym.
After a bit of a rough start against the Monarchs, the Indians regained momentum the entire first quarter to maintain a lead by the end of the period, 21-11.
Monarchs kept it tight the second quarter, battling back and forth. TMP, fighting for a smaller gap at the break, hit a buzzer-beater at the end to go into the locker trailing only 28-25.
Indians came out with some fire going on a 16-0 run to start the third quarter, giving HHS (3-0) the cushion it needed to secure the victory.
The lead grew to as many as 19 points in the quarter, with the Indians leading 52-33 entering the final eight minutes of play.
With the huge lead and a lot of room to work with, the Indians battled to pull off the title win.
Jace Linenberger had a strong game inside the paint, finishing with 26 points. Dalyn Schwartz added 13, and Carson Kieffer finished with 10.
TMP was led by Lucas Lang’s 24 points, all coming off eight 3-pointers.
The Hays High Indians are now 3-0 and have a break before matching up with Hoisington on Dec. 15.
Friday
Hays High 71, Life Prep 39
Coming off a big win against Hugoton to open the season, the HHS boys were out to keep momentum rolling against Life Prep Academy.
Hays High (2-0) grabbed an early lead before holding a 16-8 advantage after the first quarter.
Pulling ahead by 17, the Indians went into the locker room comfortably with a score of 36-19. Indians didn’t let up in the third quarter and went on a 16-4 run. Almost doubling their points in the third quarter, the Indians built a 61-29 lead entering the final period.
Carson Kieffer and Jace Linenberger led the Indians with 16 points each.
