In the opening game of KCI Conference play, West Platte senior point guard Charlie Kinslow carried a large load to help lift the Blue Jays’ basketball team (7-1) to a 53-34 victory over Penney (0-5) on Dec. 16.
West Platte senior Charlie Kinslow scored 22 points in the Blue Jays 53-34 win against Penney on Dec. 16.
In West Platte’s fifth game in its home gym, the first eight minutes of action were low scoring. The Blue Jays led 10-4 after one quarter before Kinslow scored 12 straight points to close out the opening half to push the margin to 24-15.
After Penney trailed 39-29 entering the final quarter, Kinslow was joined by Drake Montez, Jonah McGivern, Gunner Smith and Chad Jameson down the stretch to pull out the 29-point win. Kinslow was two points shy of tying his career-high in points when the senior poured out 22 points – making eight of his 20 shots, including a pair of 3-pointers – along with nine rebounds, three assists and four steals.
West Platte’s defense forced 15 total steals on the night as every player who entered the game had at least one, with Montez having three and McGivern recording two. Cohen Kite and Montez tied for the Blue Jays’ second leading scorer when they both finished with seven points.
Coming off their first loss of the season in the KCI Tournament Championship, the Blue Jays bounced back with a 66-36 win over Kansas City Lutheran (2-2) on Dec. 13 before the Penney game. Xavier Reynolds tied his season-high in points and made shots from deep with a team-high 17 points on five on nine shooting from downtown.
Miles McHenry made seven of his eight shots to end with 14 points and Kinslow scored 10 points in the win over Kansas City Lutheran. West Platte will have a chance to move on to 8-1 ahead of the New Year when the Blue Jays take on Bishop LeBlond (5-1) in the St. Joseph Area Sports Hall of Fame High School Holiday Hoops Showcase at the St. Joseph Civic Arena on Dec. 22 at 5 p.m.