MANHATTAN — St. John-Hudson High School’s Jacob Milton drove hard to the basket and dished a perfect throwback pass to teammate Triston Long.
When Long drained both free throws with 12.3 seconds left, the Tigers had accomplished the rare feat of all 12 players scoring in a state tournament game.
All of Long’s teammates celebrated the fact that all 12 players contributed to St. John’s rousing 69-42 victory over Washington County in the Class 2A state basketball tournament in Thursday’s quarterfinals at Bramlage Coliseum.
St. John (24-0) advances to Friday’s 4:45 p.m. semifinals against Olpe, a 59-42 winner over Hillsboro.
St. John’s 6-foot-8 Dean Wade was dominant with 22 points, three steals and two blocks, anchoring the Tigers’ trapping defenses that forced 19 turnovers. Wade knocked down a 3-pointer and showed off a decent mid-range game.
Washington County coach Lyle Thompson said simulating the presence of Wade in practice was impossible.
“We can’t,” he said. “That Wade is the best player we’ve seen all year. He’s the whole package.”
St. John coach Clint Kinnamon said Wade played his usual solid game. Opponents have played a box-and-one on Wade and triangle-and-two matching up against Wade and sharpshooter Zuriel Reyes, who scored 10 points. The Tigers made 5 of 15 3-pointers.
“Dean was pretty efficient offensively,” Kinnamon said. “His length and athleticism present a problem. Reyes moved pretty well. It’s nice having him back because we’ve got another guy who can stretch the floor.”
Kinnamon said Wade’s offensive skill makes playing St. John’s offense difficult to defend. If you commit to much defense on Wade, St. John averages more than six 3-pointers per game. St. John shot 64 percent the second half on 14 of 22 field goals to finish as 48 percent. The Tigers’ bench scored 26 points.
“You have to pick your poison,” Kinnamon said. “Some teams have played zone and we’ve made 10 threes. We’ve seen box-and-one and triangle-and-two. We’ve got so many guys who can shoot the basketball. I look for Kade (1 for 6) to bounce back Friday.”
St. John used an effective 1-3-1 trap, in addition to a 3-2 matchup and man-to-man.
“The 1-3-1 trap really bothered them,” Kinnamon said. “We turned them over a little bit in it.”
Once St. John cranked up its defense, Thompson knew his team was in trouble. St. John forced 11 first-half turnovers. Washington County committed five more third-quarter turnovers.
Wade hit two shots, Cole Kinnamon drilled a 3-pointer and Trey Nelson scored. Jorge Calleros dished a perfect pass to Milton for a 40-21 lead.
“They picked up several transition baskets,” Thompson said. “They were pretty tenacious. They were tough.”
St. John struggled with nerves early, falling behind 7-2. But the Tigers rallied for a 30-18 halftime lead.
“We played with nerves early and got rid of them,’ Kinnamon said. “It was a game that was good for us because my starters plated 23 minutes or less.”
Kyle McGatlin led Washington County with 12 points and Konnor Penning added 10 points. Washington County shot 31 percent on 15 of 48 field goals, 2 of 17 from 3-point range.
The Tigers captured the Class 1A-Division I state championship last year at Emporia. But the Tigers’ other three basketball championships in 1974, 1982 and 2007, came in Class 2A. The Tigers were Class 2A state runner-up in 2008.
Beating Washington County (14-9) is a promising historical sign for St. John. Washington County has lost four times to the state champion in six state basketball appearances.

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
Class 2A State Tournament

BOYS

Thursday

At Manhattan
Bramlage Coliseum

ST. JOHN-HUDSON 69,
WASHINGTON COUNTY 42
WC (14-9)
Kyle McGatlin 4-10 3-3 12; Andrew Tiemeyer 2-6 5-8 9; Cole Thompson 4-9 0-0 8; Zach Otott 3-4 1-2 7; Konnor Penning 1-8 1-4 3; Joe Stegman 1-1 0-0 3; Hunter Johnson 0-1 0-0 0; Tristan Miller 0-8 0-0 0; Dawson Miller 0-1 0-0 0; Totals 15-48 10-17 42.
SJ (24-0)
Dean Wade 9-15 3-5 22; Zuriel Reyes 4-9 0-0 10; Cole Kinnamon 3-6 0-0 8; Jesus Alvarez 4-5 0-0 8; Jacob Milton 1-3 2-3 4; Gerardo Calleros 1-4 2-4 4; Kade Kinnamon 1-6 0-0 2; Trey Nelson 1-1 0-0 2; Jorge Calleros 1-3 1-3 3; Triton Long 0-0 2-2 2; Nathan Ward 1-2 0-0 2; Alexis Valenzeula 0-0 2-2 2; Totals 26-54 12-19 69.
WC                     11  7   10  14 – 42
SJ                        11 19  17  22 – 69
Three-point goals—WC 2-17 (Stegman 1-1, McGatlin 1-6, T. Miller 0-4, C. Thompson 0-1, Penning 0-2, Tiemeyer 0-1, Johnson 0-1, D. Miller 0-1). SJ 5-15 (Reyes 2-6, C. Kinnamon 2-4, Wade 1-2, K. Kinnamon 0-1, Milton 0-1, G. Calleros 0-1). Rebounds—WC 32 (Penning 10), SJ 38 (Alvarez 8). Assists—WC 5 (T. Miller 3), SJ 9 (G. Calleros 4). Turnovers—WC 19, SJ 13. Steals—WC 5 (Welch 2, Tiemeyer 2; SJ 11 (Wade 3, Alvarez 3). Fouls—SC 14, SJ 14. Fouled out—T. Miller.