Surname you know: Releford joins brother as back-to-back best in area hoops

The smooth, the gift for no-look passes, the almost disgusting fluidity he puts into motion in making a hard game look so easy …
As if those gifts do not place Bishop Miege High School point guard Trevor Releford in rarified air enough, there is this:
Thanks to the work of the well-rounded 5-10 junior for the Stags, who advanced to the Class 5A state championship game in Topeka before falling to three-peating state champion Highland Park of Topeka on a dramatic buzzer shot, there is now a bit more to the Releford resume.
Trevor joins his older brother, Travis Releford, as the first brother-brother combination in All-Sun hoops history to capture back-to-back All-Sun Boys Basketball Player of the Year honors. Travis performed this season as a 6-5 freshman guard for the University of Kansas.
Trevor Releford led the Stags, 23-2, with 18.6 points per game with 464 scored in the space of 25 outings. The junior also had 159 assists, at a rate of 6.3 per game.
Blessed with exceptional court vision and quickness, he had 62 steals or 2.4 per game. He made 91 of 124 foul shots, good for 73 percent.
Named to the 5A all-state first team and all-class “Fab Five,” Releford earned Most Valuable Player honors in the East Kansas League for the league-champion Stags. Releford scored 34 points with 11 assists and nine rebounds in a 78-57 win over Shawnee Mission Northwest on Jan. 24 in the championship game of the St. Thomas Aquinas Tournament. He recorded 13 assists in a semifinal win over Topeka Seaman last Dec. 12 at the Bonner Springs Tournament, which the Stags went on to win. “Trevor is an exciting player to watch,” Miege coach Rick Zych said. “He loves to play the game.”

A versatile 6-3 senior point guard, shooting guard and floor general, Arel averaged 14 points and 3.5 assists this season. SM Northwest, meanwhile, took fourth at the Class 6A state tournament.
Arel also hit 84 percent of his foul shots for SM Northwest, which finished 19-6. He played for Cougars teams that combined for 50 wins in a three-year stretch.
“Ryan was a leader both on and off the floor,” SM Northwest coach Ben Meseke said. “He always put SM Northwest first and thus led us to a league championship last year, a substate championship this year, and more wins than any time in the school’s history.
“He scored, rebounded, led in assists, took charges. You name it, and he would do it.”

The 6-3 senior point guard helped key a balanced Lancers scoring attack to the tune of 10.2 points per game, which he complemented with nearly six rebounds and more than four assists per game.
SM East, meanwhile, finished 18-7 and third at the Class 6A state tournament at Emporia. The finish at state marked the program’s best since its 2006 state runner-up team made the first and only state championship game appearance in school history.
“Winn is very smart, with a 4.2 grade-point average and 30 on his ACT,” SM East coach Shawn Hair said. “He is a hard worker who really improved this past summer. He moved from a 3 or 4 man to the point guard position, and he handled it extremely well.”

This 6-1 junior shooting guard made his presence felt immediately after transferring from Lee’s Summit West.
Givens proved vital in the Stags’ run to the Class 5A state title game and 23-2 record, averaging 17.6 points, 2.7 assists and 1.7 steals.
At the foul stripe, he hit 70 of 94 attempts for 74 percent.
A second-team all-state selection in 5A, Givens earned a spot on the All-East Kansas League first team.
“Rodney is a pure shooter,” Miege coach Rick Zych said. “He had two games where he scored over 30 points. He was the best perimeter defender for us. He is a great kid who works hard.”

Ubel, a 6-9, 220-pound senior, power forward and University of Nebraska signee, averaged 17.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game for the Jaguars in his final prep season. He also registered 33 blocked shots and 32 steals for his defensive-minded team.
Ubel hit 51 percent of his attempts from two-point range but also possessed the ability to step out and hit threes. He knocked down three-point tries at a 33-percent clip, hitting 21 of 64, and 80 percent of his free throws, draining 109 of 136. He also had 28 assists.
“Brandon had a terrific season for us,” Blue Valley West coach Donnie Campbell said. “He has improved tremendously since last year. Not just in his basketball abilities, but more importantly from a leadership standpoint. He is an outstanding student and a fine young man outside of basketball. We are excited to watch his progress at Nebraska over the next few years.”

Contact Mark Dewar at 385-6061 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

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