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The list of basketball greats at Kickapoo is a long one, but after Friday night Jared Ridder stands atop them all. The Xavier-bound senior poured in 38 points in an 85-78 win over Hazelwood Central, passing Ryan Rippee for number one on the Chiefs’ all-time scoring list.
Ridder came into the night with 1,466 points, needing 20 points to set the new mark. After scoring his team’s first 11 points, the 6’6″ Ridder set the new mark with a 12-foot jumper in the lane midway through the 2nd quarter.
“My coaches were talking to me and said just let it come, so I went out and tried to play like a team,” Ridder said. “They did a good job finding me and we came out with the win and it was a lot of fun playing them.”
Immediately after the basket a timeout was called to honor Ridder, who now has 1,504 career points. Rippee, who graduated from Kickapoo in 2012, was on hand to present Ridder with a special plaque honoring the record.
“It was really special,” said Ridder. “I’m pretty close with Ryan, so it was really special that he gave me the plaque. It’s a great honor because he was a great player at Kickapoo and it’s really good to get it from him.”
The record seemed to come pretty easy, but the win did not. Hazelwood Central (18-8) led throughout the entire game until just under four minutes to go in the fourth quarter. Ridder hit a three-pointer followed by back-to-back buckets from fellow senior Cam Davis. The Chiefs (21-4) hit their free throws down the stretch, holding on for their 11th straight win, capping a perfect home slate.
Now it’s on to districts beginning Monday when the Chiefs will play the Branson/Parkview winner in the semifinals, 7:30 pm at Hammons Student Center.
Winning districts is step one, but Ridder and the Chiefs have eyes on nothing short of a return to the Class 5 state championship game, where they fell to Chaminade last season.
“It was our goal from the beginning, so we really want to get back to the state championship,” said Ridder. “We’ve just got to stay focused every game and come out and play really hard.”
