March 1 - Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools

Wyandotte West – March 6, 2009Substate basketballSumner too strong for Piper in advancing to finalsSabres to play St. James on Saturdayby Donovan CorriganWhen you play with two of the top players in the state, it could be hard to receive the recognition you deserveat times. Factor in the fact that you standout on the defensive end, and getting your name in the newspapers, ornoticed by the casual fan, could be a tough task.But, for players like Davonte Chaney and Benny Parker, they get respected and praised for their unselfish playby the person who matters most—their coach.Chaney and Parker, both ball-hawking guards with quickness and ability to get to the basket, combined to score21 points, but it was their eight total steals that helped Sumner Academy surge past Piper, 83-49, in a 4Asubstate semifinal game on Thursday night.“We wouldn't be 20-2 without Benny and Davonte,” Sumner coach Dan Parra said. “They are two of the bestdefensive guards that I have seen. They create so many easy baskets by their defense. On offense they arecapable of scoring 20 (points each) a night, but everyone has a role on the team.”Sumner played stout team defense in holding Piper to 17 first half points in building an insurmountable leadby halftime. A strong defensive third quarter put the game out of reach with a 60-30 lead.“Piper is very good defensively, so we knew we had to get in transition,” Parra said. “We created a lot ofturnovers and converted them into easy baskets. The biggest key was we started to be more patient against therezone and we started pressuring their guards more. We played really good defensively.”Standouts Reese Holliday and Neil Watson continued to lead the way for the Sabres. Holliday scored 24points, grabbed 12 rebounds and dished out three assists. Watson had 12 points, seven assists and two steals.Chaney netted 11 points with four steals, while Parker added 10 points, four assists and four steals.“Reese and Neil are the catalysts to our team,” Parra said. “Neil is the floor general that distributes the ball,and sets the tone on offense. Reese is the enforcer that can score and rebound.”Piper, who finished the season 13-8, was led in scoring by guard Duane Smith, who finished with 21 points.Guard Robbie Mason had nine points, while guard Jasper Sanders chipped in four.Sumner, ranked No. 1 in 4A in the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association’s poll, will play St. James onSaturday in the substate finals. The winner advances to the 4A state tournament next week.“St. James is a very good, and discipline team,” Parra said. “They are 19-3 for a reason. They are playing theirbest basketball right now. It's going to be challenge for us, and we're looking forward to it.”