LUKE BATES, Men's Basketball

St. John's/Tipton Senior Luke Bates has been named the NCKSSports.com/Cunningham Telephone and Cable Athlete of the Week.

Bates had an outstanding week in helping lead the St. John's/Tipton boys basketball team to the NPL Tournament championship for the fifth time in program history last week.  He scored in double figures in three of the four games in the tournament for the Blujays, saving his best performance for last with a career-high 25 points in their 66-63 win over Osborne in the championship game, scoring 17 in the first half.  Bates went 4-6 from three in the win, shooting 47% from the floor overall and adding four rebounds in the win.  In the Blujays' 51-29 quarterfinal win over Sylvan-Lucas on January 16, he scored 13 points and grabbed six boards.  Bates also helped the Blujays to a 65-54 win over Lakeside on January 17 in the semis, scoring 14 points on the night.

We will announce the winners each week. Remember, you can nominate an athlete from any school sport.