Hot hand lifts Vashon to its fifth MSHSAA Class 4 boys state basketball championship; scoring, updates, recap

Vashon shoots the lights out, beats Benton boys to win fifth Missouri Class 4 Show-Me Showdown

Vashon takes on Benton today in the Missouri Class 4 boys state basketball Show-Me Showdown at Mizzou Arena. / Vashon Basketball Instagram

What a year it’s been for the Benton boys. For the first time in 84 years, they’ll play for a boys basketball state championship.

In contrast, their opponent in today’s Show-Me Showdown, Vashon, is chasing its fifth consecutive Class 4 title. Opening tip on Norm Stewart Court is slated for 6 p.m. at Mizzou Arena in Columbia.

The Cardinals have been here before, but there aren’t many alive today to have witnessed it. They have two state championships on their ledger, but the last came in 1941.

Still, it’s hard to call Benton a Cinderella team. They began this impressive turnaround over a year ago when they spun a 12-15 campaign in 2022-2023 into a 21-6 mark in 2023-2024. Now 29-3 entering today’s bout, they aren’t much of a surprise.

Their three losses (to Liberty North, Pembroke Hill and Blue Valley Northwest) were by a combined nine points. They won the Neosho Holiday Classic with wins over Crooked Oak (Oklahoma City, Okla.) and Memphis Middle College (Memphis, Tenn.) to close out the season’s first half.

They avenged their 33-30 loss to Pembroke Hill in the championship game of the Cardinal Classic on Jan. 18 with a 68-65 win on Feb. 26, then beat this year’s Class 5 runner-up, Summit Christian Academy, 76-73 the following day.

While averaging 62.8 points on offense and surrendering 43.3 on defense, the Cardinals went on to beat St. Joseph Lafayette in the District 16 championship, then topped St. Pius X (Kansas City), Center, and Logan-Rogersville to reach the finals.

But to be the best, you must beat the best and Vashon (26-2) has certainly been the best team in Class 4 for quite some time. The Wolverines have 15 state championships, and four runner-up finishes in the program’s history.

Save for freshmen, the Vashon team taking the floor today has never felt what it’s like to end a season without a state championship. They’ve won the title every year since 2019 (save for the Covid season in 2020) and have won seven state championships since 2016.

What’s more, this Wolverines team scores the basketball better than any of those championship teams since 2016. They enter today averaging 73.6 points per game offensively. Their defense is also salty, holding opponents to 49.3 points.

Bookmark this page and check back often as High School on SI will post expanding live updates and scoring from today's state final in the space below once the game starts.

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 Vashon vs. Benton: Missouri (MSHSAA) boys Class 4 state championship; scoring, live updates

Starting lineups

Benton: Myles Bachali, Jason Simmons, Liam Malchose, Lincoln Goodwin, Mach Mayom

Vashon: Jimmy McKinney III, Trey Williams Jr., Dehrio McCaskill, Dorea McCaskill, Terron Garrett

FIRST PERIOD

A jumper by Bachali opens the scoring and Benton leads 2-0 with 6:47 left in the first.

Dehrio McCaskill has the first two pionts for Vashon. His free throws tie it 2-2 with 6:00 left, but Malchose hits a 3-pointer to put Benton back in front with 5:47 left.

A basket by Goodwin extends Benton's lead to 9-4 with 3:17 left in the first.

Off the timeout, Vashon gets a much-needed 3-pointer from Williams to close the gap to 9-7.

Leon Powell scores his first points and Benton's lead shrinks to a point, but a jumper by Bachali makes it 12-9 off a timeout with 1:17 to go in the quarter.

Goodwin scores with five seconds left in the first to close out the quarter.

End 1: Benton 14, Vashon 10

SECOND PERIOD

A basket by McCaskill for Vashon gets it to 14-12 with 7:31 left in the half.

DUNK! Goodwin gets a big dunk to give Benton energy, but Garrett makes a jumper, McKinney III hits a 3-pointer and Powell adds a bucket of his own to make it 19-16.

Vashon is currently on an 11-2 run and leads 23-18 with 4:35 left in the half.

McKinney III comes up with another big shot, as his second 3-pointer in the quarter erases three free throws Benton had just made. It's 26-20 with 4;28 left.

Powell makes two free throws and goes back down and scores on a layup as Vashon opens up a 10-point lead, 30-20, with 2:53 left in the half.

McKinney completes a three-point play. He has nine points in this quarter. It's 35-22 with 1:47 left.

Another basket by McKinney and a 3-pointer by Williams with one second left closes out the first half for Vashon. The Wolverines went crazy in that quarter, outscoring Benton 30-10.

Halftime: Vashon 40, Benton 24

Halftime notes: Jimmy McKinney III leads Vashon with 12 points at the half, while Trey Williams Jr. has 10, Leon Powell eight, Terron Garrett and Dorea McCaskill have four each and Dehrio McCaskill has two. … Myles Bachali leads Benton with nine points, while Lincoln Goodwin had six and Jason Simmons, Liam Malchose and Mach Mayom have three apiece.

THIRD PERIOD

Garrett sinks a 3-pointer and makes another layup to open the second half and Vashon continues to pour it on. It's 45-24 with 6:38 left in the third.

DUNK! Goodwin dunks off of a fastbreak, but Garrett immediately squashes the momentum again with another 3-pointer on the other end for Vashon. It's 48-26 with 5:20 left in the third.

Williams completes a four-point play to help spark an 11-1 run and it's 56-27 with 3:08 remaining in the third.

DUNK! McCaskill gets in on the action with a dunk of his own to spark another 7-0 run for Vashon. Both teams trade baskets down the stretch, but the Wolverines lead 67-36.

End 3: Vashon 67, Benton 36

FOURTH PERIOD

Vashon has been insanely good tonight in all phases. The Wolverines are shooting a whopping 62 percent from the field (24 of 39) and 8 of 12 from 3-point range. Benton has made 33 percent (13 of 40) with 5:44 to go.

Timeout with 3:53 left. Vashon leads 75-41 and has five players in double figures right now.

Vashon leads 81-45 with 1:42 remaining.

Final: Vashon 81, Benton 45

Recap

Trailing after one quarter, Vashon found some new gears in the second quarter and put its offense in overdrive, outscoring Benton 57-22 across the second and third quarters to put it away.

Vashon finished with five players in double figures. Trey Williams Jr. led the way with 19 points, while Terron Garrett finished with 17, Jimmy McKinney III 14, Dorea McCaskill 12 and Leon Powell 11. Dehrio McCaskill chipped in six points in the win and Armon Aaron had two.

Vashon shot 61 percent from the field, knocking down 30 of 49 shots from the field and 9 of 16 from beyond the arc.

Benton made 16 of 44 shots (36.4 percent) from the field and just 2 of 11 from long range. Myles Bachali led the team with 14 points, while Lincoln Goodwin chipped in 12. Mach Mayom had four points, while Jason Simmons, Liam Malchose, and Ade Freudenthal had three each. Deontre Howard, Zavier Warner and Carter Esely had two points apiece.

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