Sophomore Team Has Memorable Season

The sophomore team had a great season this year, finishing 9-5 overall. There are many high points to remember such as beating Staley at their gym 46-40 early in the season, getting revenge on Park Hill at our place (beating them by 27 points), and handing NKC their only loss of the season by defeating them 52-40, also at our place.
The depth of the sophomore team was evident throughout the year as there were multiple games in which 10-13 guys scored points in the same game! This is a sign of a team of unselfish players, always looking to make each other better and following the Liberty motto of “WE” is greater than “ME”.
The team members made a lot of progress as basketball players this year as they bought into the program and sold themselves out each and every day. It will be exciting to see them grow and mature as they move up to the JV/Varsity levels in the future.
To finish the season, the sophs enjoyed a day of fun last Saturday by meeting up at the College Basketball Experience for some friendly competition and camaraderie, followed by quite a display of eating at CiCi’s Pizza.
Good job this year guys, and good luck in the future!

JV Jays Find Success Through a Team Effort

The Junior Varsity wrapped up its season last Friday night beating Ray Pec 50-45. They finished the season at 16-3. Liberty ended on a 9 game win streak and won 12 of their last 13 games. Each player was a major contributor in their success.

"This team truly bought in to the “Team” concept and the result was a very successful season. The growth each player made during the season has put them on the path to take the next step to the varsity level next year," mentioned Coach Price.

"As I watched our JV team play, the one characteristic a thought they represented the best was trust. In how they practiced, played in games, and interacted off the court I believe they trusted each other no matter what the situation. I think this had a big impact on their successful season. I want to congratulate Coach Price on doing an outstanding job with his team and the players for all their hard work and effort," remarked Coach Stirtz.

Blue Jays Beat #2 Team in the State

The Liberty Blue Jays capped off an exciting week of basketball by beating Ray-Pec on their home court 52-51. Jordan Lewis drained a 3 pointer with 3.5 secs left in the game to make it a memorable week. On Tuesday, the Jays beat Blue Springs South on a last second shot.

The game started off in the Blue Jays favor as they hit some early shots and played some solid defense. Marshon Norfleet, who led the Jays with 14 points, got the offense rolling. However, the Panthers rebounded by the end of the first quarter and took some momentum going into the second frame. Actually...too much momentum as they turned a 14-9 lead at the end of the first quarter into a 21-11 margin midway through the second quarter. But the Jays kept their composure and narrowed the deficit to 25-28 by halftime.

The third quarter was won by the Jays 17-11 on some good scoring by Norfleet, Denton Koon, Christian Brinser, and JT Nixon. Bryan Adams, Marcus Lucas, and Koon did a good job against Ray-Pec's big men.

In the fourth quarter the Jays started with a lead but the Panthers took advantage of an offensive dry spell by Liberty and climbed back into the lead. The Jays were down by 4 pts, 47-51 with under a minute to play but a couple of FTs by Koon cut the margin to 2 pts. After a defensive stop, the Jays called timeout to set up a play. The shot was missed but Adams tipped the ball to Koon who found a wide open Lewis on the left wing for the game winner.

The Jays shot 47% from the field while they held Ray-Pec to 37%. Liberty had only 7 turnovers in the contest and dished out 13 assists. Joining Norfleet in double digit scoring was Lewis and Koon, each with 12. Adams grabbed 8 rebounds and played excellent defense with 5 blocked shots and 2 steals. The Jays also were tough enough to take 3 charges.

The win moves the Blue Jays to 19-6 on the season.

Jays Escape With Another Buzzer Beater

With the score tied at 61 and 1.3 seconds on the clock it took a well executed sideline inbounds play, a perfect pass from Marshon Norfleet and great finish by Denton Koon, to get the victory at Blue Springs South tonight. The play can be viewed at the bottom of the blog.

The Jays' offense played extremely well in the first half scoring 30 points in the first 16 minutes of action. However, they found themselves down by a point 30-31. A solid inside game provided an offensive punch with Koon, Bryan Adams, Marcus Lucas, and Austin Weese doing the damage. "I liked our inside-out strategy tonight. The ball moved, the players moved, and our guards did an excellent job of pushing the tempo," stated assistant Coach Chris McCabe. "We're an effective offensive team when we play to our strengths."

Liberty had a productive 3rd quarter out-scoring the Jaguars 19-10 in the frame. Then early in the fourth quarter the Jays increased their lead to 11 points by attacking the rim, getting to the foul line, and a 3 point shot by JT Nixon. With a 44-55 disadvantage, the Jaguars didn't fold and forced some turnovers and quick shots by the Jays to shrink the deficit. With the score tied at 61 and under 30 secs to play, the Jays defense stepped up, forcing a tough shot by the Jags, and then getting the rebound with 1.9 secs left. The Jays called timeout and set up a 'football-type' pass play to get to beyond half court. An good pass from Weese and catch by Norfleet set up the game winning sideline play.

'Our players did an outstanding job of playing defense on South's last possession. I thought JT played a tremendous game on both ends of the floor, but especially on the defensive side," commented assistant coach Phil Simpson.

It doesn't get any easier for the Jays on Friday as they travel to Ray-Pec to face the Panthers.

610 Sports Radio to Broadcast Game

Tune into 610 Sports Radio tonight to hear the game between the Jays and Blue Springs South. Announcer Mark Miller will begin his call of the 'Game of the Week' beginning at 8:00pm. There will be an hour delay due to college basketball commitments.

District Tournament Announced

The Class 5 District 16 tournament has been announced. The Liberty Blue Jays earned the #1 seed followed by Park Hill, Oak Park, Park Hill South, Winnetonka, and St Joe Central. The Jays will play the winner of the #4/#5 game between Park Hill South and Winnetonka. The game will be on Wednesday, Feb 24th at 6pm at St Joe Central HS. The following link shows a complete bracket and you can also access other MSHSAA tournament information.

http://www.mshsaa.org/Activities/DistrictTournaments.aspx?alg=5&class=5&district=16

Blue Jay Basketball News

Updates in the week of Blue Jay Basketball

• The Blue Jay basketball team moved its record to 17-5 win a hard fought win at St Joe Central Tuesday night. Holding onto a two point lead at halftime, the Jays played better basketball in the 2nd half, especially in the fourth quarter. Liberty's defense increased their intensity and held the Indians to only 1 field goal in the last 8 mins of actions to win 47-35. Leading scorers were Koon and Lewis with 13 points each. The following is a link to an article written in the St Joe News Press: http://www.stjoenews.net/news/2010/feb/09/central-boys-wilt-late-against-liberty/


• After a shooting and weight training practice on Wednesday, the squad was broken into 4 volleyball teams. A round-robin tourney was played and the winner was the 'Flint, Michigan Topics'. Team members included: Adams, M. Norfleet, Weese, Norton, Mustin, & Clawson


• Senior night will be held this Friday, Feb. 12th vs Lee's Summit. Please arrive during the JV game, which begins at 5:30pm, because we will recognize and honor our 7 seniors immediately after the JV game concludes.


• The district seed meeting is taking place soon. Check back soon for the official results. Games will be played Monday, Feb. 22nd, Wednesday, Feb. 24th, and Friday, Feb. 26th at St. Joe Central. The Jays will most likely receive a first round bye and play in the semifinals on the 24th.

Jays Lose Battle With Broncos

The Blue Jays lost a tough game against Lee's Summit North by the score of 65-55 in Cokely Fieldhouse Friday night. It was a temendous atmosphere for the 'White Out' Courtwarming game but the Jays didn't play their best basketball and now stand at 16-5 on the season.

"They were just tougher than us at both ends of the floor. We struggled to find our sequence on offense and they did a nice job of attacking the rim. Some shots we normally make didn't fall and we couldn't keep them out of the paint or off the free throw line. It's difficult to win a game when your opponent shoots 33 more free throws that you do," remarked Coach Stirtz. LSN shot 40 free throws while the Jays shot 7.

Liberty was led in scoring by Denton Koon with 21 points and Marshon Norfleet with 10.

The Jays look to bounce back with a road game to St Joe Central on Tuesday before completing their home schedule against Lee's Summit on Friday.

"It's going to be very important that we stay mature and disciplined. We must understand there's a lot of season left and the post-season is always the most exciting part of the journey."

Nixon Knocks Down Another Game Winner

Senior JT Nixon's legacy as a "Big Shot" shooter is becoming etched in stone as he continues to drain miracle shots. The Blue Jays survive 44-43 against Park Hill South. Down by 2 points with under 10 seconds left, Bryan Adams rebounds a missed free throw, outlets the ball to Marshon Norfleet, who finds an open Nixon in the corner. The rest is history as JT makes his 4th game winning jumper of his high school career. (The four will be listed at the end of the story.)

It was a defensive battle in the first half as both played extremely good man to man defense. The Jays looked to some solid perimeter shooting for most of their points in the first 16 minutes. Three point baskets by Denton Koon, Norfleet, and Nixon (2) aided in the scoring but Liberty was still down by a point at halftime, 19-20.

The third quarter was owned by the Jays, out-scoring the Panthers 19-10 in the frame. Koon led the way with 12 of his game high 19 pts in the third quarter. However, the Panthers didn't quit and scored some late points to cut the margin 38-30 Jays.

Park Hill South carried that momentum into the fourth quarter. Scoring points from the foul line and forcing the Jays into some quick shots, they took a late lead. A Panther three pointer from the corner with under 30 seconds in the game put them on top. On offense, the Jays missed a shot and were forced to foul. That set up the dramatic ending by Nixon.

The Jays aren't finished with their week yet. Lee's Summit North travels to Liberty on Friday for the Blue Jay's Courtwarming game. JV tip off is at 5:30 and the varsity follows.

JT's Game Winners???

1. WJC Team Camp Championship game- 35 footer @ the buzzer (Summer '08)

2. WJC Tourney Semifinals vs Kearney- 22 footer with 2 secs left ('08)

3. Lee's Summit North-25 footer @ the buzzer ('09)

4. Park Hill South- 23 footer with 3 secs left ('10)

Liberty vs South Valley for Tourney Championship

For those wanting to watch the future of Liberty Basketball, you'll want to attend the 9th grade tournament championship which will feature Liberty vs South Valley. The game is set for Thursday, Feb. 4th at 5:15 pm at South Valley Junior High.

Both teams have had excellent seasons. The Liberty freshmen, coached by Ryan Stegall, have a current record of 16-2. Nate Gulliford, who guides the South Valley squad, has a record of 17-1.

It should be an exciting game. Good luck to both teams! Go JAYS!