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Bishop Seabury’s Jace Hoffman drives toward the basket during a boys basketball game against Christ Preparatory Academy on Jan. 13 at Bishop Seabury Academy in Lawrence.

An efficient offensive performance from the opening tip sparked the Bishop Seabury Seahawks to a 62-49 victory over the visiting Christ Preparatory Academy Patriots Tuesday night.

In addition to the high-octane offensive performance, Johnson said he was equally impressed with the Seahawks’ defensive effort as his squad wreaked havoc throughout.

“We started out playing really well defensively, and that’s something we need to be able to hang our hats on,” Bishop Seabury head coach Trey Johnson said.

The convincing win moves the Seahawks to 7-2 overall.

Freshman point guard Quintin Taylor dropped in the first five points of the game, including a breakaway lay-in resulting in a 3-point play. Senior forward Marion Stubbs punctuated the Seahawks’ game-opening 9-0 run via a thunderous fastbreak dunk. The lead swelled to 18-5 courtesy of senior sharpshooter Jace Hoffman’s 3-pointer. 

Taylor and Stubbs combined for 13 points in the opening frame as the Seahawks opened a 20-7 lead.

Hoffman continued scorching the nets from beyond the arc in the second half, draining three consecutive triples to stretch the Seahawks’ advantage to 29-11. Hoffman would later be honored early in the third quarter with a video package after setting the program’s all-time record for points during a game last week.

Following Hoffman’s scoring outburst, Taylor electrified the crowd as he darted into the open court, cocking his arm to the side and throwing down a one-handed jam en route to a decisive 39-18 halftime advantage. Taylor’s emphatic score was his first in-game slam dunk.

In the third quarter, Stubbs elevated as he corralled a pass that Cruz sent off the backboard — flushing a vicious two-handed jam over the Patriots’ beleaguered defense.

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Bishop Seabury’s Quintin Cruz takes off for a layup attempt during a boys basketball game against Christ Preparatory Academy on Jan. 13 at Bishop Seabury Academy in Lawrence.

The Seahawks led by 30 with around three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter when Johnson pulled his starters. Squaring off against Bishop Seabury’s reserves, the Patriots reeled off 17 unanswered points, while also grappling with a running clock (activated by the 30-point margin), to account for the final 13-point margin.

Taylor finished with a game-high 20 points, including knocking down 7-of-7 from the charity stripe. Hoffman concluded with 19 points while burying five 3-pointers. Stubbs chipped in 16 points and eight rebounds, and Lucien Brockhoff tallied six points.

Johnson added that he was pleased with how the Seahawks bounced back from last week’s 77-67 loss to Axtell High School. In the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association poll released on Tuesday, Axtell ranked second in 1A Div. II while Seabury sits in fourth for 1A Div. I behind Olpe, South Central and Little River.

Despite the setback, Johnson said they played with an intensity that carried over to Tuesday’s victory.

“We feel that if we can bring that same energy to every game, we’re going to be very hard to compete with,” Johnson said, adding that the 67 points represented the highest point total posted against undefeated Axtell this season, as the defensive juggernaut was only yielding around 40 points per contest entering the game.

“We played really (well), did a good job of driving that message home, and didn’t harp on the loss,” he said.

Hoffman echoed those sentiments, calling the victory a “total team effort.”

“We were smashing the boards, handled the defensive pressure really well, and were getting out in transition,” Hoffman said. “It was a really nice all-around effort.”

Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports

Bishop Seabury’s Marion Stubbs gathers himself before a layup attempt during a boys basketball game against Christ Preparatory Academy on Jan. 13 at Bishop Seabury Academy in Lawrence.

Johnson noted that the high-scoring backcourt duo of Taylor and Hoffman have developed a nice chemistry on the court and a tight friendship off the court.

“That’s my dog, he’s the freshman brother I never had,” Hoffman said, adding that the two had designs on a post-game bite at Culver’s. “That connection we have on the court really shows our willingness to make each other better. And I’ve been wildly impressed by his play as a freshman.”

Hoffman and Stubbs had a similar quick bonding experience when the latter joined the team a year ago.

“Me and Jace have a good relationship together,” Stubbs said. “We talk every day. During practice, we tell each other what we can do better and stuff like that. So me and Jace are locked in honestly.”

While Taylor joined this year’s team as a freshman looking to help replace the outgoing production of two major contributors following the graduation of Chase Honarvar and Jace “Boogie” Smith, Stubbs faced a slightly different challenge during his first year with Seahawks last season.

Hoffman, Honarvar and Smith formed a trio that returned from a state runner-up finish during the 2023-24 season. As a junior joining this established core, Stubbs had to figure out how he was going to fit in with this already accomplished group. But it became clear early on that the team’s three-headed monster had no problem adding a fourth as Stubbs averaged 14.4 points per game.

Although the team looked better than ever on its way to winning a second straight league title in the Kaw Valley Conference, the star-studded Seahawks ultimately suffered an upset loss against Frankfort in the sub-state semifinals.

Heading into this year, Hoffman and Stubbs became the top returners trying to keep the team headed toward its ultimate goal of winning a state title.

“Even though we lost Chase and Boog, I feel like we’re still trying to succeed and reach state,” Stubbs said. “Even though we have a lot of young guys, we’re still pushing to our full potential.

“We know the skills we have, we know everybody’s role.”

Mac Moore/Lawrence Sports

Bishop Seabury players celebrate an off-the-backboard alley-oop dunk by Marion Stubbs off an assist from Quintin Cruz during a boys basketball game against Christ Preparatory Academy on Jan. 13 at Bishop Seabury Academy in Lawrence.

Hoffman’s role quickly became the team’s first-option on offense, a role that Smith previously held.

His strong output to start this season helped Hoffman quickly close in on becoming the program’s all-time leading scorer, passing Smith’s career mark of 1,032 points from his three-year varsity career. Hoffman passed that mark early on during his team’s 59-49 road victory over Northeast Kansas Homeschool on Jan. 6.

When Smith and Honarvar got their varsity start as sophomores in 2022-23, Hoffman was on the court right beside them as a freshman. But during that first season together, Smith and Honarvar were the go-to scorers while Hoffman was more of a spot-up shooter. He was very successful in that role as he averaged 45% from 3-point range.

Then over the next two years, all three of Smith, Honarvar and Hoffman averaged at least 14.3 points per game. However, Smith’s role on offense kept growing a little bit more than the others, on his way to leading the team in scoring at 18.0 points per game last season.

So far this year, it’s been the addition of Taylor who has helped replace a large chunk of the production lost by the exit of Smith and Honarvar. Taylor has averaged 15.6 points through eight games.

As for the rest of that 32.3 points per game combined by the graduated dynamic duo, it’s been Hoffman who helped replace most of the remainder. Hoffman’s average of 15.6 points per game from a year ago jumped to 25.5 PPG so far this season. His hot start to the year has pushed his career total to 1,101 points.

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Bishop Seabury’s Jace Hoffman looks to pass the ball during a boys basketball game against Christ Preparatory Academy on Jan. 13 at Bishop Seabury Academy in Lawrence.

Part of Hoffman’s scoring output can be attributed to his ever-increasing willingness to fire from deep.

His number of 3-point attempts jumped from an average of 3.8 long-distance heaves per game to 7.7 over the last two seasons. With increased attempts, Hoffman saw his 3-point percentage dip to 34% as a sophomore and 31% as a junior.

But with his 3-point attempts per game bumped up to an average of 8.5 through the first eight games this season, he’s retained a 32% from long range.

Meanwhile, Hoffman is also shooting a career-best 43% from the field, thanks to his increased scoring presence from inside the 3-point line. He’s attempting twice as many 2-pointers as he did a year ago and hitting those at a 51% clip.

Even when his shot isn’t falling, Hoffman said that confidence in his shooting stroke never wanes.

“I go through ups and downs every season, but the coaching staff here has really helped me find that confidence,” he said. In addition to Johnson, the staff also includes former NBA guard and KU star Tyshawn Taylor.

“I’m always telling the coaches that ‘I’m the best shooter out here and they’re going to have a problem dealing with me,’” Hoffman said.

The Seahawks host Kansas City, Kansas’ Bishop Ward High School (3-5) on Friday.

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Bishop Seabury head coach Trey Johnson laughs following a second-half play during a boys basketball game against Christ Preparatory Academy on Jan. 13 at Bishop Seabury Academy in Lawrence.