In a face-off between two top teams in Kansas Class 6A, Shawnee Mission South proved to Mill Valley why it’s a No. 1 sub-state seed and possible sunflower league champs.
The Raiders, ranked No. 2 in Class 6A, topped the No. 5 Jaguars, 74-61, on Friday night at Mill Valley. SMS (17-1) secured one of the top four Kansas East substate seeds and kept its hopes alive for a Sunflower League title.
After Mill Valley (13-4) jumped to a 14-7 lead after the first quarter, the Raiders surged with a 24-point second for a 31-23 halftime lead.
“I think for the first time all year we were nervous and were playing a little timid,” Raiders head coach Brett McFall said . “We usually score a lot more than that so I just told them to relax the second and we started to get rolling”.
From there on, the Raiders kept the Jaguars at an arm’s distance, paced by junior Max McKenna’s 16 points – 12 in the final period. The Raiders closed down the game with a perfect 7-of-7 from the line.
Sophomore Conor Kerrigan led the inside attack for the Raiders, as the 6-foot-6 sophomore netted a team-high 20 points.
“Our key to the game was to try and get the ball inside and try to spread out their defense to get more open looks and we did a really good job of that and also getting back,” Kerrigan said. ” On defense and not letting their big three get too many open looks.”
Mill Valley’s trio of Carter Kaifes (19 points), JaKahi Carter, and Reece Riedel (15 points apiece) led the Jaguars in scoring.
South remains tied with Shawnee Mission Northwest atop the Sunflower League standings with just one loss apiece, but the Cougars beat the Raiders head-to-head. Mill Valley and Olathe South trail with two losses each.
The Raiders secured a substate top seed with just one loss, while SMNW (15-3), Blue Valley (15-3), Olathe North (13-4), and Mill Valley remain in the hunt with a week to go in the regular season.
Box Score
Shawnee Mission South (74)
Gregory 9, DeBaun 7, Allen 12, McKenna 16, Kerrigan 20, Sautter 5, Featherston 5
Mill Valley (61)
Carter 15, Riedel 15, Carpenter 7, Kaifes 19, Henderson 3, Everhart 2
Threes: Allen 2, Gregory, DeBaun, Featherston, McKenna; Riedel 2, Henderson, Kaifes
![Focused on their cameras, seniors Charlie Jin and Jacob Kern take pictures and videos of the girl’s basketball game against Olathe South for KSMS on February 25. “[When I’m shooting a game], I really just think about quantity over quality. If you take a lot of pictures, you’re bound to get a good one,” Kern said.](https://smsouthnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/uVbHe1oWJJ2F276P1vfRGg480EW59O1A4stQTica-1200x618.jpg)
