Putting on a show on senior night, the Parsons Vikings boys beat the Independence Bulldogs, 7664, in SEK League action on Friday.
Parsons registered 56 of its 76 points either in the paint or at the free throw line while shooting a blistering 59.6% from the field. 29 of Parsons’ 47 field goal attempts came at the rim.
“The last few games, we’ve really won the advantage in the paint,” Parsons head coach Anthony Houk said. “Whether it’s post play or guards getting to the rim, it’s led to high percentage shots and free throws. Those lead to big quarters and big starts for us.”
The Vikings leapt ahead early and never trailed in Friday night’s showdown.
“It was our seniors getting us off that great start,” Houk said. “That’s a mindset and it’s been like that the last few games. We’re more aggressive on defense and I can’t say enough about our group. They’re selfless in how they share the ball and rebound. Even when Independence hit some big shots, we kept going.”
Dontae Sawyer, per usual, led Parsons with 20 points on 6-of-12 shooting. Sawyer has started to rely less on his outside shot — he was 1-of-5 on threes against Independence — and hunt the paint for layups and visits the charity stripe.
“He trusts guys like Damais Johnson and Joe Keal and the other guys around him,” Houk said. “Because of how well the others are playing and shooting, it’s freeing him up. That allows him to do his thing.”
Damais Johnson added 18 points and eight rebounds while Connor Largent chipped in 14 points.
“I feel where we’ve been pretty good is not overshooting the three,” Houk said. “We had the same amount of (3-point) makes as our opponent on six less shots. It’s really helped with our field goal percentage.”
Kellen Lanning led all scorers on the night, pouring in 35 points for Independence.
The win improved Parsons’ record to 12-6 overall while the Bulldogs dropped to 7-11.
Up next
Parsons has two more games to wrap up the regular season — a Monday tilt at Coffeyville and a Thursday showdown at Chanute.
“We’ve just got to stay focused on our mindset,” Houk said. “We know we have two games against state-ranked opponents. We have to see it as an opportunity to prove ourselves and move up in the standings. We want to keep a great mindset and keep shooting — we’re shooting the ball well. So keep shooting, stay healthy and we’ll see what happens.”
Damais Johnson of the Parsons Vikings splits a pair of Independence defenders for a shot at the rim on Friday night at Parsons High School. Sean Frye/Sun photo
