Andover’s ascension to the No. 1 spot in the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association’s Class 5A girls rankings was news to Trojans coach Hannah Alexander on Tuesday evening.
 
But the recognition her team received earlier in the day looked merited on the court as the Trojans handled No. 4 Maize South 54-40 to improve to 15-1.
 
Junior Bella Bouddhara’s game-high 16 points helped visiting Andover maintain a lead for most of the final three quarters as the Trojans snapped Maize South’s 15-game winning streak.
 
“It was a very physical game,” Alexander said. “It almost felt like a brawl, like a fight with different rounds. I thought the girls kept their composure. That’s what I was most impressed with.”
 
Both teams played fierce defense throughout the contest, forcing each other into turnovers and break opportunities. But Andover tilted the scales by holding Maize South scoreless for nearly five minutes in the second quarter.
 
The Trojans pushed their lead into double digits as Bouddhara hit two 3-pointers in the first three minutes of the third quarter, the latter making the score 28-17.
 
“Something we had put on the board before the game was let our defense be our offense,” said Bouddhara, one of the state’s leading scorers at more than 23 points per game. “I think we utilized that. We really focused on getting stops in that first half and used that to push us in the second.”

 
The Trojans traded places with St. Thomas Aquinas in this week’s KBCA rankings after Aquinas lost 43-41 to St. James Academy last Friday. Andover, which moved up from No. 2, got an opportunity to quickly validate the ranking against the Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail Division I leader.
 
Bouddhara, an All-Class 5A first-team selection last season, has led the Trojans back to the top of AVCTL II and to quality victories over ranked teams in 6A (Derby and Wichita East), 5A (Maize South, Piper, Eisenhower) and 3A (Frontenac).
 
Andover’s lone loss came in a Jan. 9 rematch with Derby, when the Trojans fell 69-53. Tuesday’s victory over Maize South was their seventh consecutive since that defeat.
 
“It’s really nice to have games like that,” Bouddhara said. “I’m thankful we’ve had chances to play games like this and against Derby. It just gets us on the map and prepares us for a run at state even more.”
 
The Trojans graduated a second-team all-state selection last year in Aliyah Green, but feature a strong junior class to go with Bouddhara. Grier Hand, who had nine points against Maize South, and Asiah Sullivan are returning starters, and 6-foot-1 reserve Bella Green handles some of the interior void left by Green.
 
On Tuesday, junior Katie Robert’s defense against Maize South’s Jaela Thompson made an impact.
 
“She’s kind of like our little secret weapon,” Alexander said. “She can literally do it all. She can guard a guard, she can guard a post, she’s just super athletic. She’s probably going to be a D-I soccer player and just does this to stay in shape and help us out, and she does a very nice job of it.”
 
Third at the Class 5A state tournament each of the last two seasons, the Trojans will complete their first week at No. 1 with a game at crosstown rival Andover Central on Friday night. Andover defeated the Jaguars 51-34 on Jan. 13 to start their current winning streak.
 
“I’ve never really paid attention to the rankings,” Bouddhara said. “I don’t think it really matters at this point. It doesn’t do us any justice. At the end of the day, it’s who is going to bring home the title. But it is nice to see that we’re getting that recognition.”
 
OTHER GIRLS BASKETBALL STANDOUTS

• Salina South senior Paityn Fritz scored her 1,000^th career point in the first quarter of the Cougars’ 42-40 loss to Hutchinson on Feb. 6. The 6-foot-3 Fritz has led South to a 12-7 record heading into Friday’s game at Maize South.
• Larned junior Cassidy Wachs banked in a 3-pointer at the buzzer to lift Larned to a 50-47 victory over Hesston in Central Kansas League play on Feb. 6. The Indians are 13-6 after a loss to Scott City on Tuesday.
• Eureka, No. 1 in the KBCA’s Class 2A rankings, improved to 18-0 with a 66-41 victory over El Dorado on Thursday. It was the second victory of the week for the Tornadoes, who topped Garden Plain 47-34 on Tuesday. Eureka senior Brenna Rucker, a Lindenwood signee, surpassed 1,000 career points in the Tornadoes’ 54-42 victory over Olpe on Feb. 2.
• Hutchinson Central Christian moved into the No. 1 spot in the KBCA’s Class 1A Division II rankings this week. The Cougars improved to 18-2 on Tuesday with a 48-20 victory over Cunningham for their seventh consecutive victory. Central Christian’s lone losses are to 1A Division I No. 1 Little River and Berean Academy.