After an impressive season, the Trojans were unable to win their first postseason game when the Park Hill boys’ basketball team (16-10) fell to the No. 3 seed in the competitive Class 6 District 8 Tournament on Feb. 26.
Entering the postseason tournament as the No. 6 seed, the Trojans ran into North Kansas City (19-5) who used a strong fourth quarter to propel to a 69-53 victory. The Bell brothers scored 19 of Park Hill’s 25 first half points and 39 of the Trojans’ total 53 points.
Park Hill junior Marqueas Bell, above, ended the Class 6 District 8 opening round contest with 28 points, four rebounds, one block and one steal on Feb. 26.
The Hornets jumped out to an early lead that included a 21-15 margin after the first quarter when Marqueas Bell scored eight points and Kendrick Bell scored five points. North Kansas City extended its lead to nine at the break, but the Trojans fought back in the third quarter.
After Kendrick Bell and Gavin Schaag both scored four points and Marqueas Bell added seven points – which included one of the junior’s three treys in the contest – the Hornets’ lead was cut down to two points. When Park Hill trailed 44-42 with one quarter to play, North Kansas City erupted with 24 fourth quarter points with multiple trips to the charity stripe as the Hornets made eight of 11 from the line in the frame.
When the game came to a close, the Trojans’ season ended along with the career of their four seniors: Sammy Hall, Ryan Dotson, Jake Powell and Luke Renton. Hall ended his Trojan tenure with five steals and also made two of his four shot attempts, scoring four points.
Marqueas Bell ended the night with 28 points, four rebounds, one block and one steal – while being the only Trojan to make a shot from downtown as the rest of the team was zero for 10. Kendrick Bell ended his junior campaign with 11 points, four rebounds and two steals.
The Trojans ended the year with a more efficient offense than in years past: averaging 71.3 points per game, while converting on 44.6 percent of their field goal attempts and 33 percent from behind the arc. Park Hill knocked down 205 total 3-pointers on the season led by Marqueas Bell who made 54 shots from deep throughout the season.
Ty Schreck and Luke Renton both made 40 3-pointers apiece – Renton led the team with 40 percent shooting from deep – while Schaag made 32 of his 96 attempts in his sophomore campaign. Park Hill will bring back three starters next year with the Bell brothers and Schreck, as the Trojans will look to continue with the high-powered offense next season.