The Warrenton boys basketball team spent part of their winter break in Kansas City for the HyVee Twelve Courts of Christmas Shootout. While both of their games did not end in their favor, the Warriors left with a new understanding of what needs to be done to have a successful season.

Warrenton played Kearney on Dec. 27 and lost 62-40. The next day, they played Lee’s Summit West and lost 48- 43.

“Hopefully we take these two losses as not a negative, but we find things we need to work on and then get us going back in the right direction for the rest of the season,” Head Coach Mark Thomas said.

The Warriors held a 4-0 season record before the shootout. After suffering their first loss of the season, Thomas noted the team bounced back well after facing its first hardship.

Despite being down 25 points going into halftime against Kearney and eventually losing by 22, Thomas touted the team for not putting their heads down.

“They could have taken that and been real upset and gotten the same kind of result the next night. But, to go out and battle against Lee’s Summit West, who was more athletic [than Kearney] and they had several good players, and to not come and lay down for those guys. I mean, we were in that game,” Thomas said.

The Warriors were up three points against West in the fourth quarter, but eventually fell.

Thomas noted that Kearney had some sizable players that were physically strong, and in general, had a well-rounded team playing style. Against West, the Warriors played against Missouri’s 2027 No. 2 ranked player Cameron Barnes according to PrepHoops, along with a team full of height.

“It was two different completely styled games and looks in the course of two days, so that was big for us,” Thomas said. “It was nice to see them come back the second night with a good attitude and get after those guys and give them a game. I don’t think Summit expected us to be able to give them a game after they saw the first night.”

Thomas was also happy to see numerous players get points on the board. Eli Peth recorded nine points against Kearney, while Mason Thompson and Deadrick Forrest both tallied seven. Forrest put up 12 against Lee’s Summit West, while Taylor Anderson had eight points.

“I was pleased to see that we were balancing our scorers, we just need to see that scoring increase,” Thomas said.

Decision-making was another area Thomas wants to see an improvement in.

With over 200 teams from 10 different states participating in the event, the Warriors were exposed to different playing styles and techniques that have been eye-opening.

“I think they saw that there’s a different kind of level of athlete out there...some guys are dunking instead of shooting layups. Oak Park [High School] had guys across the board over 6-foot-3,” Thomas said. “To be able to see the different styles of players that are out there and things you’ll have to go up against, that’s good for them to see.”

Regardless of the losses, Thomas noted the wins that came from the trip and hopes the experience will help them moving forward.

“Getting to play that better competition and physical style can help us in playing those better teams. Having an understanding that we’ve played some people that are this talented already, we know more about what to expect and things that we need to work on to get better for those teams in our conference,” Thomas said.

Warrenton will play next at home against St. Clair on Jan. 3 at 6:30 p.m. The Warriors will open conference play on Jan. 6 at St. Charles at 6:30 p.m.