SM North still seeking season’s first win after 0-3 showing at tournament

Shawnee Mission North senior Damien Putnam climbed the stairs at Shawnee Mission East after emerging from the locker room Saturday afternoon with his black hood up and white headphones in.

Putnam started walking with his teammates down the hallway leading outside to the bus after the Indians (0-4) failed to earn a victory during the Arc Madness Tournament.

“I think it could have been a lot better but it was a good experience for the team,“ Putnam said on Saturday.

The Indians went winless during the three-day tournament, narrowly getting edged out by Helias High School of Jefferson City, 47-43, on Saturday.

“I feel like we are a lot better than that team,” Putnam said, referring to Helias. “We just didn’t show up.”

The Indians were down just four points at the half, 23-19, and went bucket for bucket with Helias at certain points throughout the third quarter but took the lead only once during the game.

Putnam scored nine points off of three three-pointers and had four steals, while Scott Johnson had 13 points and Michael Weathers had 10.

“I think I played alright but I could have played a lot better on defense and shooting,” Putnam said.

SM North coach B.J. Hair said he was pleased with the team’s overall aggressiveness during the contest, as it also forced nine steals and dished out nine assists.

“Our second half was better than the first half, but we more than doubled their turnovers,” Hair said after the final loss of the tournament.

Taking care of the ball proved to be problematic for the Indians, who committed a total of 43 turnovers during the tournament.

During a timeout in the third quarter of the Indians’ Friday game against St. James Academy, Hair told his squad that it needed to improve its passing.

SM North fell to St. James, 70-50, on Friday, with Johnson scoring 14 points while Putnam and Weathers put up nine and six points, respectively.

At the line, Weathers went four of five and Johnson went five of six.

Johnson had a big night on Thursday, securing a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds during the Indians’ 57-35 loss to Bishop Kelley.

The young squad’s lack of girth was obvious as the Indians got pounded in the paint and took some hard hits against teams whose starting lineups consisted mainly of seniors.

“Physically, we are not there yet,” Hair said after the loss to St. James. “Everybody has been in the weight room and we haven’t yet, so we are going to have deal with that and find a way to use what we have to create some better scoring opportunities.”

With a nine-day break before the Indians’ next game, Hair said he plans on getting back to the basics and teaching fundamentals.

“The effort is there and good,” he said. “But we just have to work on passing and taking care of the ball. If we do that, we will look like a much better team in March.”

The Indians host Northeast Kansas City on Dec. 21 at 7 p.m

SM North boys narrowly edged by Jefferson City, 47-43

Prairie Village — The Shawnee Mission North boys basketball team remained within a point of Jefferson City with less than one minute to play before a string of fouls put the lead out of reach and the Helias defeated the Indians, 47-43, on Saturday at Shawnee Mission East.

Damien Putnam scored nine points off of three three-pointers and had four steals, while Scott Johnson had 13 points and Michael Weathers had 10. The Indians lost on offense with 14 turnovers to the Helias six, but had nine assists.

“Our second half was better than the first half but we more than doubled their turnovers,” SM North coach B.J. Hair said after the loss.

Defensively,  Hair said he was pleased with the teams’ aggressiveness and committing nine steals.

The Indians were down four points at the half, 23-19, and went bucket for bucket with the Helias at certain points throughout the third quarter but took the lead only once during the game.

The Indians fall to 0-3 for the season following the Arc Madness tournament and will next play the Northeast Kansas City Vikings on Dec. 21.

St. James hands SM North boys basketball team second straight loss

Prairie Village — The Shawnee Mission North boys basketball team dropped to 0-2 after a 70-50 loss to St. James Academy in the Arc Madness Tournament on Friday at SM East.

Scott Johnson scored six of his 14 points in the first quarter for the red and black, who were up 14-13. But the Thunder fought back and outplayed the Indians in the second quarter to end the half, 37-26.

The Indians were held to just four points in the third quarter and were never able to close the gap on the Thunder’s double-digit lead.

“We played better at times and the defensive energy was better but we turned the ball over like it didn’t matter,” SM North coach B.J. Hair said after the game.

Poor passes and forced turnovers contributed to a “boatload” of turnovers for the Indians, 15-5, he said.

“It doesn’t matter if your young or not, we’ve just got to do a better job of taking care of the basketball,” Hair said. “The words out, we don’t handle pressure very well and we’re going to have to get it figured out.”

Both Damien Putnam and Michael Weathers fouled out of the contest, putting up nine and six points respectively.

At the line, Weathers went four of five and Johnson went five of six.

SM North will next play Jefferson City at noon Saturday at SM East

SMN boys downed in first round of Arc Madness tournament

Prairie Village — Scott Johnson secured a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds for the Indians, but Shawnee Mission North fell to Bishop Kelley in the first round of  the Arc Madness tournament on Thursday, 57-35.

SM North (0-2) had two players with five points, Nick Finazzo and Brendon Henderson during the game, held at Shawnee Mission East.

The Indians were 15 of 20 from the free-throw line, with Johnson scoring eight of his 14 points from the line, and committed only 14 turnovers during the contest.

Head coach B.J. Hair said his team’s lack of experience and size makes it challenging for his young squad to compete.

“We’ve got some speed but we don’t have a lot of girth,” Hair said after the game on Thursday. “We have some guys that can run and we can use that to our advantage. We can try and use speed for strength.”

SM North resumes play at SM East at 5:30 p.m. Friday in the consolation bracket against St. James Academy.