How a magical state championship season came together for Wichita Heights basketball
It was a familiar opponent in a familiar setting with a familiar result.
The Wichita Heights boys won another Class 6A state championship over Blue Valley Northwest at Koch Arena on Saturday, as two Kansas high school blue bloods clashed for the fourth time in the state finals in the last 13 years.
There was no Ed Fritz manning the sidelines for the Huskies and no Perry Ellis, Evan Wessel and Terrence Moore on the court for the Falcons, but the final result was the same, this time with Heights winning 61-54 to capture its sixth state title under coach Joe Auer — and the fourth coming over BV Northwest in the finals.
“We’re so proud to represent the City League,” said Auer, whose teams knocked off Olathe North, Olathe West and BV Northwest to the title. “We beat three teams from Johnson County to win the state championship and don’t think that we didn’t notice that. We’re happy to represent the city. The City League is the best league in the state of Kansas historically and we felt that. We felt a responsibility to put forth a great representation.”
Here the story of how a magical 23-2 season came together.
‘Feeling the magic in this gym’
When his father told him early in the season that this Heights team had a chance to win a championship, that meant something to Marcus Zeigler Jr.
His father, Marcus Sr., was a former City League standout himself, a star player for the first Wichita South team that Steve Eck coached.
“I looked up to my pops so much when I was a kid,” Marcus Jr. said. “He showed me the game, he showed me how to play, he showed me everything. I looked up to him in every way.”
That’s why it mattered so much when Marcus Jr. received the validation from his father. To Marcus Sr., the belief was simple: these Falcons defended much like his old South High teams used to.
“I don’t care how much they say this three-point line changed the game, defense, free throws and rebounding still win games,” Marcus Sr. said.
When Marcus Jr. suffered a season-ending shoulder injury last season, he dedicated himself to preparing for a state run like this one the minute he could return. His father never had to ask him if he wanted to go to the gym; he was already at the North YMCA working on his shot on his own.
“This ring,” Marcus Jr. yelled when asked about his motivation during his rehabilitation. “I had to go get it. This is all I’ve ever wanted. And we’re coming back next year too.”
Off to the side, Marcus Sr. beamed with pride. This championship was 36 years in the making for the Zeigler family.
Marcus Sr. was the caliber of player who should have won a state title, averaging 11.9 points and 12.5 assists his senior year, but never did. He graduated in 1987. The South dynasty under Eck began the following year, lasting the next decade.
“He’s the best point guard in the state of Kansas since Darnell Valentine,” Eck proclaimed to The Eagle in March 1987.
This wasn’t a championship of his own. This was even better, watching his son rack up nine points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals to lead his team to a state title. Marcus Jr. led the Falcons in scoring this season, while becoming an All-City player just like his father.
“We had a chance to do it and didn’t quite get it done,” Marcus Sr. said. “Just feeling the magic in this gym right now, this is what it must have felt like. I actually feel like I finally won one. I’m so proud of him right now. He’s got one-up on me now.”
After chasing his father’s approval his whole life, Marcus Jr. nearly came to tears when he heard his idol whisper those five words — “Son, I’m proud of you” — into his ear. The realization hit him: he was a state champion.
“I tried to hold it in,” Marcus Jr. said, smiling. “I didn’t want to show anyone my tears.”
‘Belief goes a long way’
Chase Harris played the first quarter of Saturday’s title game like he had been waiting for this moment his entire life.
He made all four of his shots to score 10 points and helped deliver about as perfect of a start as a team could hope for in a championship game, as the Falcons took a 17-2 lead over BV Northwest.
“It felt like everything had come together,” said Harris, one of two seniors on the team. “I just kept telling myself, ‘I want a ring.’”
It was a testament to how far Harris has come in the program.
He has always possessed a special ability, the gift of spontaneity that allows him to produce brilliance out of nothing sometimes. But his consistency was all over the place as a junior and Harris was just a bit player in the rotation, averaging 2.6 points per game last season.
Before the start of this season, Auer told Harris the team needed him at his best to achieve its full potential. It turned out taking ownership of a larger role brought out the best in Harris, who averaged 12.6 points and 2.3 steals as an integral part of this year’s team.
“I gained more confidence this year,” Harris said. “I didn’t have that much confidence coming in, but they kept believing in me. And belief goes a long way.”
Empowered by his coaching staff and teammates, Harris played the best game of his career in the most important game of his career. He finished with a game-high 21 points against BV Northwest on 8-of-12 shooting.
With a little bit of confidence, a role player had turned into a star.
“I can’t really explain it, but it’s a great feeling,” Harris said. “This is bucket list, a huge accomplishment in my life. I’ll never forget this.”
Listening nearby, Auer couldn’t help but smile. After coaching in four different decades, players like Harris are what keep him coming back.
“It never gets old seeing the look on kids’ faces when they’ve accomplished something like this,” Auer said. “That’s priceless. That’s what it’s all about.”
‘We always dreamed about’
When Dreylin Kemp arrived at Heights, all he wanted to do was shoot three-pointers.
But if he wanted to see the floor under Auer, he would have to reinvent his game.
“We asked him to be our best defensive player because we thought that was his niche,” Auer said. “And ever since that day, he’s completely bought into that.”
Coaches like to say the ball finds energy and no one brought more energy in Saturday’s game than Kemp, who was in a constant state of motion.
Kemp used every inch of his 6-foot-4 frame to harass BV Northwest, whether it was guarding its star player or spearheading the top of the Falcons’ zone defense. The Huskies missed their first 12 shots of the game and didn’t make a field goal until 3:33 remaining in the second quarter.
“I know my guys like Marcus (Zeigler), Chase (Harris) and T.J. (Williams) could score,” Kemp said. “I mean I think I can score too, but I know my main thing is defense. I want to shut down their best player to give my team the best chance to win and let my other guys shine.”
Auer has made a career out of motivating players to sacrifice individual stats on offense to buy into defense. Kemp is another sterling example of that.
He never knew how much he could love defense until he was challenged to embrace that end. All Kemp did was become the best defender on the best team defense in the state, which held opponents to an average of 38.3 points this season.
“It’s so crazy because this is the stuff we always dreamed about,” Kemp said. “We’ve talked about doing this since the start of the season when we started in November. It’s very emotional. I let some tears out.”
It was so emotional to Kemp because he let himself be pushed out of his comfort zone, which allowed him to accomplish things that were never previously possible.
He transformed into a fiery leader his senior season and punctuated the championship with a pair of late-game dunks that sent his teammates on the bench and the Heights’ fans in the stands into a frenzy. He even hit a three-pointer, just his fourth of the season, to finish with 14 points in the title-winning performance.
Moments after the final buzzer sounded, Kemp joined the student section, hopping on top of the railing to celebrate the championship with his peers.
“I always told myself that I wanted to be a leader, a guy that can get the job done,” Kemp said. “It was a grind. They never let me take a day off and I never wanted to take a day off. I knew this was possible and I knew we could all come together to make the perfect puzzle.”
This story was originally published March 13, 2022 at 5:58 AM.
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