By LIONEL TIPTON
ROSALIA, Kansas – Next season, the Flinthills boys basketball team will greatly resemble the squad that took the floor in Tuesday night’s Class 1A-Division I sub-state opener.
With no seniors, the Mustangs will return everyone for 2025-26. And they should have no lack of motivation after ninth-seeded Canton-Galva erased a six-point halftime deficit and eliminated No. 8 Flinthills, 63-51.
Canton-Galva, which played in last year’s 1A-Division I state tournament, displayed sound athleticism in outscoring Flinthills in the third quarter, 21-10.
Suddenly, the shots that were going in for the Mustangs in the first half started rimming out, and then they could only watch as Canton-Galva hit five of its nine three-pointers in the quarter. When the period ended, the Eagles had a 49-44 advantage and were able to fend off a Flinthills comeback in the fourth quarter.
The Eagles (12-9) will advance to a second-round game Monday at top-seeded Olpe (18-2). Should they pull off the upset, they will be able to play the semifinal and final rounds at home as the sub-state host team.
As Flinthills (11-9) looks to next season, it can take some comfort in having high-scoring guard Jake Hunter returning for his senior season. Hunter has already scored 1,000 points in his Mustangs career, reaching the milestone last Friday in a loss at South Haven.
He did his best to keep Flinthills in the game Tuesday, hitting four three-pointers and finishing with a game-high 22 points.
But after having a 34-28 halftime lead, the Mustangs managed just 17 second-half points as Canton-Galva began to pull away.
In addition to Hunter’s scoring, Flinthills will reap the benefits of another year of experience – something that Canton-Galva had with two senior starters, one of whom scored in double figures Tuesday night.
But not to be overlooked is that the Eagles also had contributions from three sophomore starters, two of whom finished in double figures.
After a 12-12 tie after one quarter, Flinthills put up 22 second-quarter points, fueled by eight points each from Hunter and sophomore Charles Farris.
But the Eagles’ third-quarter three-pointers – including three by sophomore Ethan Brozek – showed that last year’s state run was no fluke.
The relentless Canton-Galva attack took a toll on a Mustangs team dealing with injury and illness, coach Michael Hunter said.
“Our kids … they looked a little fatigued in the third quarter,” he said. “And, when you haven’t been in this situation before, you kind of press things a little bit. You miss a couple layups, give up a couple of threes – but the kids competed. Our kids played extremely well in the first two quarters, kind of didn’t play as well as we wanted in the third quarter, but they never gave up. They played to the end, for sure.”
There will be some minor changes at Flinthills, though none likely to affect the play of the Mustangs’ basketball teams.
Boys coach Hunter – Jake’s father and Flinthills principal – will see his duties change and becoming USD 492 superintendent.
And he’s convinced that better days lay ahead for the Mustangs’ program. And although his players may be disappointed right now, next season offers the promise of renewed hope.
The pivotal third quarter ultimately decided the game, he said.
“We knew they had some kids who could shoot the ball (Canton-Galva hit three three-pointers in the first half),” Hunter said. “They’re a pretty talented team – they went to State last year. Most of those kids on the team knew what to do in playoff time.
“Our kids this year had a good season – the first winning season in 14 years at Flinthills. I told our young guys that’s a pretty good accomplishment. It hurts right now, but to have that winning season to build on for next year … we have no seniors (and) we’re excited about that.”
It’s quite an achievement for Hunter’s son to reach 1,000 points with an entire senior season yet to come.
“He works hard, and he basically plays basketball year-round,” Michael Hunter said. “But he loves playing with this group of kids. He’s known some of these guys since seventh grade, and they love playing together.
“Some of our seniors (for next year) No. 33 out there (6-foot-3 Taylor Carroll), this is only his third year of playing basketball. (Sophomore Tripp Carney), it was his first year of playing varsity. Some of our juniors who started this year and played a lot didn’t have a lot of experience last year.
“Even though we lost (Tuesday night), these games help – what it takes to win games like this; what it takes to not win games like this … Hopefully, we can build on this for next year. It’s disappointing right now, but overall as I look back on this season, I’m proud of these kids.”
It could put a bit of a fire in their bellies for next season, Hunter said.
“They’re not happy they lost,” he said. “They wanted to move on and play on. For a while there, we had a four- or five-game win streak. They know they’ve got the potential to be better, and I think they’re motivated to turn it up for the summer. They’ll keep playing together and get better, and that’s what it’s all about in basketball – the more you play, the better you are and I think these kids are motivated to do that.”
Tuesday’s loss could stoke the fires of payback next year, Hunter said.
“They’ll look at this game and say they let it slip away a little bit,” he said. “The potential this team has … we’ll see where it goes next year.”
The Flinthills girls team is seeded second in the sub-state and had a first-round bye. The Mustangs (13-5) will play host to seventh-seeded Canton-Galva (11-9) at 7 p.m. Saturday in the sub-state semifinal. A victory would put them in the final next Friday against the winner of No. 3 Olpe (13-7) and No. 6 Colony-Crest (11-7).
Canton-Galva 63, Flinthills boys 51
Canton-Galva 12 16 21 14 – 63
Flinthills 12 22 10 7 – 51
CANTON-GALVA – Schamp 3 3-6 9, Beltz 4 (4) 4-4 16, Brozek 5 (4) 2-2 16, Collins 2 (1) 0-0 5, Nightingale 6 5-5 17, Harrington 0 0-2 0. Totals 20 (9) 14-19 63.
FLINTHILLS – Hunter 8 (4) 2-3 22, Farris 4 1-3 9, Carney 2 0-3 4, Randall 3 0-0 6, Scribner 1 (1) 0-0 3, Finley 1 (1) 0-0 3, Carroll 2 0-0 4. Totals 21 (6) 3-9 51.
