Following up its upset of No. 1 Baldwin days earlier, the Chanute Blue Comets boys upended Arkansas City, 73-44, in their last home game before Christmas on Friday night.
“We talked about our energy and effort against Baldwin on Tuesday has to be the norm for us,” Chanute head coach Devon Crabtree said. “That was our mindset going in regardless of who we’re playing. We knew how big of a game Tuesday was. We have to treat every game the same way. We didn’t miss a beat tonight. It’s exciting to see your team take pride in the things they talk about.”
Lawrence Chaney led the Blue Comets with 20 points, including seven field goals and a 5-of-6 showing at the charity stripe.
“He got out in transition and really pushed the ball to get to the rim,” Crabtree said. “And he made free throws. That makes it nice when you can get to the free throw line and knock those down. He didn’t take many bad shots. He did what we needed him to do against a team that defends that way. He can beat the first line and get to the paint.”
Chanute has had three different players — Chaney, Warrick Olson and Daniel Stanley — lead in scoring through four games.
“That’s our team’s selflessness,” Crabtree said. “We’ve got players that can get going on any given night. What we’re doing offensively gets everybody involved. It’s not a one-guy show. As the year goes on, it’ll be hard to scout us. Who do you want to stop? That’s what makes us a tough guard.”
Cruz Retana led Arkansas City with 16 points in a game the Blue Comets led, wire-to-wire.
Up next
Now 3-1 on the season, the Blue Comets hit the road twice this week with trips to Girard and Fort Scott on Tuesday and Friday, respectively.
“Everybody is excited for Christmas break to spend time with family,” Crabtree said. “Our goals are focusing on being able to keep our mind on what we want to achieve. We have to keep that in mind this week.”
Crabtree’s biggest priority is mitigating Girard’s scheme on Tuesday.
“I’ve watched a little bit of them and we’ll dive into them,” Crabtree said. “They’re one of the better-coached teams in our area. They’ve got some size. It’ll be evenly matched there. They’re always tough to guard with their ball movement. So we have to dive into our personnel and figure out how to slow them down.”
