In his fourth season as a varsity point guard at Ladue High, Jack Steinbach has been and is the Rams’ on-floor leader.
He became a starter midway through his freshman season and has led the squad in points, assists and steals throughout his career. But statistics have never been his aim.
“More than anything else, I care about winning and that’s where my focus is,’’ the 6-foot senior guard said. “This team, like during my freshman year, is so close and together as a group. We play for each other and do whatever it takes to be successful. We’re in a special spot right now and hopefully we can find a way to finish it off with another couple of wins.”
In the Class 5 semifinals Friday at Hammons Student Center on the campus of Missouri State University in Springfield, Ladue (25-5) will take on Jefferson City (23-7) at 4 p.m. while Cardinal Ritter (26-4) and Pembroke Hill of Kansas City (23-5) meet at 2 p.m. On Saturday, the third-place game is at 10 a.m. and the championship will be decided at 6 p.m.
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This is Ladue’s second state trip; in 2019, when Steinbach was in eighth grade, the Rams finished third in Class 5 after losing to St. Mary’s in the semifinals before knocking off Logan-Rogersville.
“We came into the season with some expectations, returning everybody from a 16-win team,’’ Ladue coach Chad Anderson said. “It’s one of the deepest teams I’ve coached; we’re experienced and we’re definitely battle-tested. There’s a reason we won 25 games this season and we feel good about our chances this weekend. We’re going to try to play to our strengths, relying on our defense and our transition game, and hopefully do what we do.”
The Rams, who were seeded second behind De Smet in District 3 at Ladue, upended the Spartans 48-47 in that championship game and then slipped by Westminter 42-41 Saturday in the quarterfinal round at Lindenwood University.
“De Smet had five last-second shots and Westminster missed on their last shot, too,’’ Steinbach recalled. “I’ve played AAU with (Westminster’s) Kobi Williams and he might be the best player in the state. But his last shot missed and that’s given us an incredible opportunity. This team is excited about moving on and we can’t wait to get to Springfield.
“I think we’re ready. I saw that there’s a pool that said we have a 3 percent chance to win this thing. But that’s OK; we’re a team that likes to prove other people wrong.”
Steinbach will enter the state semifinal as Ladue’s leader in scoring (14.4 points per game), assists (4.67 per game) and steals (1.77 per game). He shoots 58 percent from the field and makes 75 percent of his free throws.
And he’s put up similar numbers over the last three seasons.
“Jack’s a leader, a hard-working kid whose focus has always been on the team,’’ Anderson said. “He thinks the game well and has a high basketball IQ, but the thing that sets him apart is his unselfishness. A number of times this year, he’s scored 4 or 5 or 6 points, but he’s fine with that as long as we win the ballgame.”
Late in the Rams’ season, Steinbach became the program’s fourth 1,000-point scorer, joining Terrell Lewis (2014), Mark Rogers (2016) and Jaylen Boyd (2020).
“It’s definitely something I’m proud of,” he said. “But right now, my focus is on making sure we’re prepared for Jeff City.”
Other top players for a deep and balanced Ladue squad are senior co-captain Jaylen Swinney, who averages 9.6 points and 6 rebounds, junior Dwayne Foley (9.5 points per game) and junior Sam Goellner (7.1 points per game).
Other regulars include seniors Jackson Freeman, Zion Hampton and Braylon Taylor, junior Piersson Calvert and sophomores Haydan Arnold and Trisiah Edwards.
“We’re a team that’s grown and come together through the season,’’ Steinbach said. “When we picked up win No. 20, I started to feel like maybe we had something special here. Then we set the program record for wins in a season. But for me, I think I really knew that we had a shot at something special when we beat McCluer North in the district semifinals.”
Steinbach said he’d like to play NCAA Division III basketball and study business in college. But for now his focus is on helping Ladue make a title run.
“We’ve worked hard all season for this opportunity,’’ Steinbach said. “Now hopefully we can finish it off strong.”
Jefferson City has won 10 of its last 11 and slipped by Springfield Hillcrest in overtime in Saturday’s quarterfinals. The Jays, who’ve been to state 10 times, have won just one state title (1993). This will mark their first state trip since 2004.
