Blue Springs South defeats Park Hill South for state title

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) - Brandon Kilgore scored 23 points to help Blue Springs South defeat Park Hill South 71-57 in the Class 5 boys basketball championship game on Saturday.

Missouri signee Kevin Puryear and KJ Robinson each added 15 points for Blue Springs South (29-2), which won in its first-ever title game appearance. The Jaguars never trailed against the Panthers (26-4), who fell to 0-2 in championship games.

The Jaguars opened the final quarter with a 45-33 lead and saw Park Hill South whittle its deficit to 57-52 on a 15-footer off the backboard by James Byrd. But they answered by scoring the next 12 points, 10 of them coming from the free-throw line.

Byrd finished with 26 points for the Panthers while Easton Fortuna scored nine.