Sub-state basketball seedings well-received as format debuts in Kansas Class 4A
Last year, Andale, Collegiate and Trinity Academy were in a four-team boys basketball sub-state and had eight combined losses; one team went to state.
This year, Trinity Academy is the No. 1 seed in a 16-team sub-state. Instead of playing a two-loss Andale team to get to state, the Knights will likely play eight-loss Circle or 10-loss Ulysses. Coach Chance Lindley said this format seems more fair.
“I like that they reward the good teams for having a good season,” he said. “To me, that makes sense. This way, at least you can host at home.
Trinity lost that sub-state title game last year 40-39 in overtime. The game was at Clearwater, about 45 minutes away from Andale, and it felt like a state semifinal.
Even Andale coach Jeff Buchanan said after the win, both teams deserved to get to state.
Buchanan said the seeding method is a good improvement. Andale, No. 2 in 4A West, will play El Dorado, which has caught a bit of fire late this season, and Topeka Hayden or Rose Hill in the sub-state title game.
“At the end of the day, it comes down to getting the best teams in the state into the state tournament,” he said. “And I think this is a really, really good step in the right direction.”
The old format is still used from 3-1A. Halstead, the defending 3A state champion, is the No. 6 seed out of eight teams. The Dragons enter the postseason at 12-8 and have to go on the road to 14-5 Belle Plaine in the first round.
If they pull the upset, they likely won’t play another team with fewer than a dozen wins. The 3A boys sub-state at Haven is the only of Kansas’ bottom three classifications without a team with a losing record. No other bracket comes close.
- Cheney, 15-4
- Kingman, 14-5
- Belle Plaine, 14-5
- Haven, 13-6
- Hesston, 12-7
- Halstead, 12-8
- Chaparral, 10-9
- Collegiate, 9-9
Lindley said though his group has been rewarded for its 18-1 sub-state season, the Knights aren’t out of the water. Hosting the sub-state tournament is a bonus, but records are thrown out once the postseason begins.
“Now it just comes down to, you just need to win one to advance,” he said. “We’re happy with where we’re at, but there is definitely more to do like there was last year.”
This story was originally published February 22, 2019 at 5:11 PM with the headline "Sub-state basketball seedings well-received as format debuts in Kansas Class 4A."