Vashon High and Principia met in a high school basketball game last Friday night at Edwardsville High School in Edwardsville, Illinois.
The game took place on June 26, but the crowd size and electric atmosphere in that Metro East gymnasium might have made you think it happened during the excitement of March Madness.
That’s what happens when two St. Louis powerhouse programs take the court for a big showdown. However, this Vashon-Principia dynamic is different from any other we’ve seen in St. Louis. Vashon has sat atop the area basketball food chain for decades. The Wolverines have won six state championships in the past seven years.
Principia, on the other hand, is a newcomer to the scene as a St. Louis power program. In the past three seasons, the Panthers have won a couple of state championships. Principia has also made a name for itself on the national scene, as it’s won multiple games in national tournaments. The Panthers finished last season in the top 10 of the national rankings.
What added more intrigue to this matchup was that Vashon and Principia had yet to meet on the court. A game scheduled for February 2025 fell through, leaving fans of both schools only to speculate.
Just three weeks ago, both teams were in Columbia to play in the Midwest Showcase. Twice, their games were played simultaneously on adjacent courts. I sat between the two courts so I could monitor both games. It was an interesting dynamic because although they played different opponents, it still seemed like they were playing against each other. Both teams finished 4-0 in Columbia.
People asked me if they were going to play each other in Columbia. I told them they wouldn’t, but if you were in Edwardsville, Illinois, on Friday, June 26, you could watch it happen. The schedule for the Edwardsville Live Showcase was already set and the word spread like wildfire. The anticipation for this June game was unlike anything I could imagine. The Edwardsville Live Showcase is an outstanding event that featured 75 teams from Missouri and Illinois during the live evaluation period. However, in the minds of many fans, only one game mattered.
Fast forward to last Friday and you saw a crowd at Edwardsville unlike any other for a summer event. There were folks lined up five deep around the court. Upstairs in the balcony area, they were lined up five deep around the perimeter and, in some spots, more than five deep. A huge number of college coaches were also in attendance to watch, as several high-level Division I prospects were on the floor. Teams not scheduled to play during that time were sitting courtside. It was really a sight to see.
The game itself proved very exciting with an ending that will be talked about as much as any regular-season or state tournament game well into the future. The big crowd and the atmosphere in the gym were great, and the play on the court was fierce, showing high-level intensity and competitive fire.
Vashon dominated the game from the opening tipoff at both ends of the court. Their speed and quickness were on full display as they built a 20-6 halftime lead.
A pair of Vashon legacy players led the way to this big first-half advantage. Jimmy McKinney III knocked down 3-pointers and scored on drives in the paint. Senior forward Leon Powell Jr. crashed the offensive boards for rebounds and putback baskets. The Wolverines’ lead ballooned to 21 points in the second half as they threatened to blow the game wide open.
Principia, however, had other plans. They showed their championship mettle by mounting a big second-half rally. The Panthers went to a run-and-jump trapping defense that sped up Vashon and caused turnovers. On offense, they used their huge front line to dominate play in the paint. The trio of 6-foot-9 Sekou Cisse, 6-foot-11 Tyran Frazier and 6-foot-9 Majok Ater was starting to impose its will inside.
An offensive tip dunk by Ater cut the lead to 42-41. Then, senior Kingston Money hit two free throws to give the Panthers a 43-42 lead with 38 seconds left. The Wolverines regained the lead at 44-43 on two free throws by senior forward Jaylan Mitchell with seven seconds left.
The Panthers had one final possession, getting the ball to senior guard Gassim Toure, who drove the length of the court and got off a good shot in the lane. The ball bounced off the back of the rim, but out of nowhere came the 6-foot-9 Ater, who swooped in for the putback dunk as time expired to give the Panthers a dramatic 45-44 victory. The crowd erupted.
That was a fun basketball game to witness. Neither team was in regular-season form, but both competed extremely hard and gave the fans a great show. Several different groups of people convened in the concourse area and outside the building talking about what they had just witnessed.
Although this was a summertime game that will not count toward anyone’s official record, it was an event the St. Louis basketball community will remember for a long time.