Where hoop teams stand heading into finales

For almost every high school basketball team in Southwestern Kansas, Tuesday night marks the end of the regular season.

Some teams have ended their 2019-20 campaigns and are preparing for the Sub-State round, which begins next week. Sub-State brackets for Classes 2A and 3A will be announced on Wednesday, while brackets for Class 4A and Class 6A will be announced on Saturday.

Here's what it looks like we can expect to see heading into tonight's action:

Boys

Class 6A

The good news for Garden City, Liberal and Dodge City is they are safely in the Top 16 of the Sub-State field. Final seeding, though, is still to be determined.

Garden City is tied for the No. 9 spot currently, and a win tonight in their finale would keep the Buffaloes in contention for that seed, and a game at either Derby or Manhattan next week.

Liberal is tied for the No. 11 seed with Wichita-Heights, who plays unbeaten Bishop Carroll tonight, while the Redskins play at Garden City. A road win could make things interesting, especially since it’s possible that three teams – GC and Wichita-East included – could end up tied at 8-12. Liberal beat Garden City, 52-46, earlier this season.

Dodge City will be likely headed to Haysville-Campus or Lawrence for their Sub-State opener next week.

Class 4A

At one point, Ulysses was 4-1. They have won just three of 14 games since then, and the Tigers are currently 7-12 and tied for 10thin the West Sub-State. They’ll play Hugoton on Friday to wrap up their regular season.

The Tigers are currently tied for 10th in the Sub-State, and will head to either Buhler, Rose Hill or Nickerson in their Sub-State opener.

Class 3A

While the standings in the Cimarron Sub-State have looked confusing at times, the past week’s action has cleared many of the possibilities out of the way, and while two games tonight could shake some things up, the home sites for the first round are locked up.

Lakin’s late surge has the Broncs in the catbird’s seat for the top seed. That half-game difference could be great, but two amazing teams will face off this evening in Hugoton. Both will have a home game next week, regardless of who wins tonight’s tilt.

Holcomb and Colby will also open Sub-State play at home next week and were scheduled to play each other in Holcomb to determine seeding order That, however, was postponed earlier today. Scott Community will play at the team that loses, while the winner of tonight’s tilt between Southwestern Heights and Cimarron will determine whom the Holcomb-Colby winner will host next week.

Class 2A

Pratt-Skyline will be the No. 1 seed for the Elkhart Sub-State and will host Sublette in the opening round. Syracuse hosts Wichita County tonight, but both are locked into the Nos. 2 and 3 seeds. Medicine Lodge is likely to hold onto the No. 4 seed.

Stanton County hosts Sublette tonight and, with a win, would end up tied with Spearville for 5th in the Sub-State with identical 8-12 records. Elkhart will play at Syracuse in their Sub-State opener, since (if we understand head-to-head tiebreakers from KSHSAA correctly) Stanton County beat Elkhart in their regular-season matchup. Elkhart beat the team from Johnson during the Hi-Plains League Tournament.

Girls

Class 6A

Rarely do you see three teams unbeaten this late in the upper classes in high school girls basketball. Yet, in Class 6A Girls hoops this season, three teams have indeed separated themselves from the rest of the teams in the classification statewide.

Wichita-Heights, Liberal and Topeka are all 19-0, and have allowed 33 points or less per game this season. Heights may be the No. 1 seed, and they outscore their opponents by an average of 40 points per game.

Dodge City is currently sitting as the No. 5 seed and will host a Sub-State opening-round contest.

Garden City’s situation is a little more complex and in flux. The buffaloes are tied for 8th and need some help to get a home game or will play at Wichita-Southeast in the first round. Hutchinson, who is 10-8 but plays 14-2 Derby tonight, could determine who is at home between GC and Southeast – or both end up at home and Hutchinson heads to the No. 8 seed with a loss tonight.

Class 4A

Ulysses will have to play on Monday, likely at Mulvane, to get into Sub-State play. The Lady Tigers will end their regular season against Hugoton on Friday.

Class 3A

The only thing up in the air is who finishes as the No. 5 seed. Lakin needs a win at Hugoton tonight to lock into a game at Cimarron in the opening round, while Goodland would force a tie for 5th with a win and a Lakin loss. Otherwise, it’s Southwestern Heights at Scott Community, Holcomb at Colby (they play tonight as well), either Goodland or Lakin at Hugoton and Cimarron hosting either Lakin or Goodland.

Class 2A

The Elkhart Sub-State is pretty set for the seeding. Sublette locks up the No. 5 seed with a win at Stanton County or a Medicine Lodge loss to Belle Plaine tonight. Spearville is the No. 1 seed and will play Wichita County, while Elkhart hosts Pratt-Skyline in the opening round.

Syracuse will likely get Medicine Lodge, and Stanton County would host Sublette, as it turns out, in back-to-back contests.