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Sports
LN Invitational Tournament of The Year written by: Justin Scott
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very year, Liberty North hosts one of the most premier basketball tournaments in the Kansas City metro. The tournament features brackets, filled with an assortment of competition from all over the metro, and is organized by Liberty North’s Athletic Director Lane Green. “The Liberty North classic basketball tournament is one of the premier preseason basketball tournaments in the area, the Kansas City metropolitan area,” Green said. But what makes the tournament unique is that it is a co-ed style tournament inviting competition from both genders. “What makes it unique is the fact that it’s a term for both boys and girls. It’s a full girls tournament and a full boys tournament, all played on the same week here at Liberty North,” Green said. While Liberty North hosted the tournament last year it was plagued by restrictions from the ongoing Covid-19 Pandemic, that removed fans from the stands. But now with lighter restrictions, Girls Varsity Head Coach Brian Rockers hopes the atmosphere of the past will return. “Well, hopefully, this year the atmosphere is back from what it was two years ago. Anytime we play in the Fieldhouse, whether it be in the tournament, or just a non-count game or a conference game, the atmosphere is huge,” Rockers said. Not only is the atmosphere of the games important but the tournament serves as a way to get a feel of the competition the teams are facing this year. “We always try to tell our girls anytime we play in a tournament, we either want to go three in a row or two and one you want to come out of those tournaments with a winning record. So doing well that week would be a huge, huge benefit for us finishing up the first parts of the basketball season.” Rockers said.
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photo by: Justin Scott Men’s JV and Varsity teams run dribbling drills in preparation for their upcoming games. The LN Invitational will be held December 6-10. “It gives all the schools an opportunity to get their feet wet,” Lane Green said.
Not only does the tournament provide the ability to get an early tip-off on the competition for the teams. But it also is a long lasting tradition at Liberty North, going almost all the way back to the schools founding. “The tournaments about 10 years old. And it’s a great tournament because it gives all the boys and girls teams who participate in a chance to see where they’re at as a basketball team to give them an idea of where they stand in terms of competitiveness.” Green said.
designed by: Justin Scott
