Second half struggles lead to Louisburg loss at Spring Hill

Louisburg junior Colyer Wingfield drives to the basket Friday at Spring Hill. The Wildcats fell 54-42 to the Broncos.

SPRING HILL — The Louisburg boys basketball team has had a difficult last couple of weeks as the Wildcats have gone up against bigger schools and better competition.

Going into Friday’s road game with Spring Hill, the Wildcats had gone up against programs 5A or above in the last four games. Louisburg made it five in a row against Class 5A Spring Hill, but the Wildcats got the chance to get back into Frontier League play.

Despite a good start, the Wildcats couldn’t get that victory they were looking for as they fell to the Broncos, 54-42, and have now lost five in a row.

“Our kids battled,” Louisburg coach Ty Pfannenstiel said. “They played with great effort all night.  It was definitely not an effort thing or coming out flat, we just have to be better offensively. We’ve had a tough stretch here, but our kids have remained positive. I love their attitudes. They are doing everything they can to get a win.”

Louisburg (3-9) put together a strong start offensively as it took a 27-22 lead into halftime and had slowed down the Bronco offense. The second half, however, was a different story.

The Wildcats scored just 15 points in the second half, and Spring Hill doubled that output in the final two quarters. 

Turnovers were also a problem for the Wildcats as they committed 14 on the night, but Spring Hill scored 16 points off those mistakes. The Broncos also took advantage of opportunities at the free-throw line as they were 14 for 18.

“Only scoring 15 in the second half really put a lot of pressure on our defense,” Pfannenstiel said. “Our defense played well enough to win, but we have to be better on the offensive end of the floor. I think we forced some things. We were forcing some shots which didn’t help. I think if we can be a little more patient on the offensive end, we can become more efficient. Bottom line is that we have to shoot the ball better and when we get to the free throw line, we have to step up and knock them down.

“Overall, we played pretty well defensively.  We turned the ball over way too much early in the game.  We have to do a better job of valuing each possession.  Turnovers are automatic empty possessions.”

Louisburg only had four players score in the contest and senior Michael Seuferling led the way with a team-high 18 points and had three steals. Junior Colyer Wingfield was also in double figures with 11 points and six rebounds. 

Junior Mack Newell had a team-high seven rebounds to go along with eight points as he was forced to sit a lot of the game with foul trouble. Senior guard Isaac Guetterman also had six rebounds.

Louisburg will try and get back on the winning track Tuesday when it hosts rival Paola. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.

LOU 11 16 7 8 — 42

SH 15 7 16 16 — 54

LOUISBURG (3-9): Michael Seuferling 7-13 3-4 18; Colyer Wingfield 5-10 1-4 11; Mack Newell 3-9 2-4 8; Maverick Rockers 2-8 0-2 5. Totals: 17-44 6-14 42. 3-point field goals: 2, (Seuferling, Rockers)

Wildcats fall on the road to Shawnee Mission South

Louisburg put together a good offensive performance as it shot better than 50 percent from the field and knocked down 10 3-pointers.

Despite those good numbers, the Wildcats didn’t have enough to slow down Shawnee Mission South in a 79-51 loss on the road. The Raiders, who are the No. 6 team in Class 6A, outscored Louisburg 23-5 in the first quarter.

Senior Maverick Rockers had a good shooting night from behind the arch as he knocked down six 3-pointers and had a team-high 20 points. Michael Seuferling had 18 points and three 3-pointers as the two players combined for 38 of the team’s 51 points.

LOU 5 19 17 10 — 51

SMS 23 22 27 7 — 79

LOUISBURG: Maverick Rockers 7-10 0-0 20; Michael Seuferling 6-15 3-4 18; Colyer Wingfield 1-5 2-6 4; Carson Kern 1-1 0-0 3; Mack Newell 1-2 0-0 2; Isaac Guetterman 1-3 0-0 2; Hunter Rogers 1-2 0-0 2. Totals: 18-38 5-10 51. 3-point field goals: 10, (Rockers 6, Seuferling 3, Kern)

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