By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Height certainly helps, but there is a bigger key to Bolivar’s defensive success.
It’s all in the hips.
The Liberators feature a trio of bigs – Kyle Pock (6’7”), Lukas Gabani (6’7”) and Joshua Bowes (6’6”) – who can guard anyone. Gabani often guards the other team’s point guard.
In Bolivar’s man-to-man defense, the odd look pays off.
“To be that tall and get down and guard like they do, it’s outstanding,” said Bolivar coach Robby Hoegh. “And they never give up their hips. That’s what we always talk about – ‘Don’t give up your hips. Be tight to your hips.’
“That’s hard for big guys. They fight for their hips all the time and they never give up on a play.”
Defense helped the Liberators win their second straight district title on Friday night – and fifth overall since 2015. Bolivar beat Parkview 46-38 in the Class 5 District 6 Tournament finals at Willard High School.
Bolivar senior Lukas Gabani finished with a game-high 17 points.
“It’s awesome. It feels like it’s the first time we’ve (won districts). We’re just as excited as we were last year,” Gabani said. “We’ve had a huge target on our back, even coming into the season. It’s been a ton of pressure the whole time.”
Bolivar was outstanding defensively in its three-game journey to the district championship.
Bolivar held Carl Junction to 23 points in the quarterfinals and state-ranked Neosho to 22 points in the semifinals.
On Friday, Bolivar held Parkview under 40 points for the second team this season; the Liberators won 48-32 at Parkview on Jan. 21.
“That’s a testament to our kids. They’re all dropping their butt, getting down and guarding,” Hoegh said. “They care about each other a lot and they care about our community. I’m really proud to coach a group like this.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
Bolivar will play the District 5 winner – Springfield Catholic – on March 12 in the Class 5 state quarterfinal round. Tip-off is set for 2:45 p.m. at Meyer Wellness Center (Southwest Baptist University) in Bolivar.
If recent meetings are any indication, next Saturday’s game will be a must-watch.
Bolivar won 60-58 at Catholic last month.
A year ago, the Liberators beat Catholic in double-overtime to capture a district title. That avenged Bolivar’s 47-40 loss to Catholic in the regular season.
Bolivar (24-3 overall) is ranked No. 3 in the most recent Missouri Basketball Coaches Association Class 5 state rankings. Catholic (23-6 overall) is slotted No. 4.
“They’ll be ready to go and so will we,” Hoegh said of Catholic. “It’s going to be awesome. There’s not a better high school quarterfinal venue, in my opinion, than SBU. When it’s packed, it’s rocking.”
The Liberators exploited their size advantage against a smaller Parkview team, working the ball inside to post players Gabani and Joshua Bowes.
“We wanted to pound it down inside, make (Parkview) not want to guard us down low,” Gabani said. “It all came from us getting it down low on the other side and skipping it over.”
Hoegh expanded on the methodical strategy.
“The first time we throw it in the post, it’s easy to double,” Hoegh said. “But if we play the backside and have another guy diving, you can’t double that. Our kids were relentless on fighting for the backside post position.”
The game was tied 12-all after the first, but Parkview only scored 12 points over the next two quarters.
Xza McArthuer’s 3-pointer brought Parkview within 37-30 four minutes remaining. Bolivar answered with a trey from Kaden Griswold.
McArthur led Parkview with 11 points. The Vikings, who are ranked No. 8 in the Class 5 state poll, finish 19-9 overall.
Bolivar 46, Parkview 38
Parkview 12 5 7 14 — 38
Bolivar 12 12 11 11 — 46
Parkview (19-9 overall) – Xza McArthur 11, Elijah Whitley 9, Shane Glass 8, Marcus Price 4, TJ Hill 4, Kevin Parker 2
Bolivar (25-3 overall) – Lukas Gabani 17, Kyle Pock 9, Joshua Bowes 8, Cooper Cribbs 6, Kaden Griswold 4, Jack Larimore 2
