By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
After falling to Hugoton on Thursday, the Southeast of Saline boy’s basketball team will return to Sterling for the third-place game against the Kingman Eagles at 4:30.
SES comes into the final game of the invitational at 7-3 while Kingman enters at 4-7.
The Eagles shocked Scott City, the two-seed in this year’s tournament, with a 48-47 victory in the opening round before falling 57-53 to Sterling in the semi-final on Thursday.
Now, the two will meet in a game that SES hoped to avoid, but one in which they can build some momentum heading into the home stretch of the season.
“I think our energy is going to be huge,” Trojan head coach Bryson Flax said. “Our levels haven’t been where they need to be in the last two games and that has to change against a Kingman team that’s really capable.”
While the Eagles surrender a ton of points, their offense has been able to score seemingly at will, averaging 55 points per game this season.
Assisting in that effort are three players averaging double-digits each night and a fourth averaging nine.
“They’re so balanced and it brings some challenges for us defensively in terms of matchups,” Flax said. “We have to understand who we’re guarding and what they’re looking to do because they have a lot of guys who like to score in different ways.”
On the other side of the ball, the Trojans will need to keep the offense flowing for a full four quarters without the lapses of their last two matchups.
“I want us to have tons of energy right from the start,” Flax said. “I don’t think we’ve put a complete game together in quite some time and we have to get back on track so this will be a chance for us to bounce back on a quick turnaround.”
Some of that energy can be gained as it has in the past by turning defense into offense, something that has become a hallmark of this Trojan team in 2021-22.
“I think we can push the ball if we can create turnovers or limit them to one shot," Flax said. "They’re going to pack the lane and we have to expect pressure when we get post touches and knock-down shots.”
Tip-off between the Trojans and Eagles is scheduled for 4:30 pm with the Lady Trojans to follow at 6, taking on Sterling in the girl’s championship game.
Both contests can be heard on KINA (910 AM or 107.5 FM) and streamed on Salina Post courtesy of Eagle Radio.