KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Carthage rolled to a 62-29 win over Odessa on Wednesday at the inaugural Twelve Courts of Christmas basketball tournament at Hy-Vee Arena.
After a close first period, the Tigers dominated the second quarter to pull away for good. A lopsided fourth period put a final exclamation point on the win.
The convincing victory hikes Carthage’s record to 6-1.
Joel Pugh led the Tigers with 13 points with four 3-pointers. Max Templeman added 12 points and Justin Ray contributed 10 to give the Tigers three players in double figures.
Clay Kinder added eight points, while Britt Coy chipped in seven and Tyler Willis had six.
Carthage led 12-11 at the end of the opening frame, but the Tigers used an 11-2 second quarter to go up 23-13 at the break.
The Tigers led 42-24 entering the fourth quarter. The final frame was all Carthage, as the Tigers outscored the Bulldogs 20-5 in the period.
Carthage will compete at the Rolla Tournament beginning on Dec. 28. The Tigers meet Lincoln Prep in the opening round.
The Joplin High School girls basketball team suffered a 50-34 setback at Chillicothe on Tuesday night.
The Hornets, who improved to 7-1, are ranked fifth in Class 4 by the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association.
“Chillicothe was a great opportunity to go and play a high quality opponent, as well as being able to see a different style of basketball than what we are used to seeing,” Joplin coach Luke Floyd said. “On a personal level, it was fun to go home and play in front of family and friends.”
The Eagles trailed by six at the break, 20-14.
“From a basketball perspective, we played one of our best halves of the year the first half,” Coach Floyd said. “The girls competed hard, played tremendous defense, took care of the basketball, and did a great job all around. Unfortunately we were unable to repeat that same effort in the second half.”
Chillicothe outscored Joplin 16-7 in the third quarter to take a 36-21 lead into the fourth period.
The final frame was nearly even, but the Eagles were unable to overcome their deficit.
“We gave up two separate 8-0 runs where we got relaxed in our effort and Chillicothe made us pay,” Coach Floyd said of the second half. “At some point, we have to learn that we can’t pick and choose when we want to play hard. If we are ever going to build a successful program, effort has to become a non-negotiable for each and every team member.”
Emma Floyd and Brynn Driver scored nine points apiece for Joplin.
Izzy Yust added six points, while Brooke Nice and Ella Hafer contributed five points apiece.
Jolie Bonderer led Chillicothe with 11 points and Lucy Reeter added nine.
After the Christmas break, Joplin (5-5) returns to action at Lee’s Summit on Jan. 4.
Joplin boys basketball suffered its first loss of the season after falling 60-47 to Parkview in the Eagles’ final game of the 2021 calendar year.
Joplin was held to three points and trailed by nine after the first quarter. Trailing by 10 at the intermission, the Eagles cut the deficit to six midway through the third before the Vikings (7-2) responded and built the lead back to double digits to start the fourth. Joplin was never able to trim the deficit back to single digits before the final horn.
Joplin sits at 7-1 as it heads into the winter break. The Eagles host the Kaminsky Classic basketball tournament starting on Jan. 6 with a matchup against Jefferson City.
“It’s a good record going into the break,” Joplin coach Bronson Schaake said. “Obviously, this is not how you want to end (2021). But, I think you are always going to get hit in the mouth at some point in the season. … It’s always good to see what you need to work on, too. It’s not always going to be pretty, but that’s just how it goes”
Joplin senior Always Wright dunks it on the break in the Eagles’ loss to Parkview on Tuesday. Photo by Shawn Fowler.
GAME ACTION
Parkview made it difficult for Joplin’s offense to have success in the first quarter, limiting the Eagles to just three points with several empty possessions and turnovers over the first eight minutes of action.
“They were physical with us,” Schaake said of Parkview’s defense. “They bumped us off the screen and roll, even on the drive. They deterred us from where we wanted to go.”
The Vikings opened with the first two scores of the game on buckets inside by senior G Elijah Whitley and senior F Marcus Price. Joplin got on the board on a free throw from sophomore F Whit Hafer with 3:46 on the clock, which was followed by a bucket on the baseline drive by senior G Always Wright. The Vikings closed the period with the final eight points on 3-pointers from Whitley and sophomore G TJ Hill and two free throws from senior F Shane Glass.
Parkview pushed their lead as high as 15 points in the second period after using an 8-0 run over the middle portion of the quarter. Much of the Vikings’ success came inside when Whitley and Glass both grabbed offensive rebounds and scored on the putback before Whitley and Xzavia McArthur drove to the hoop for baskets.
“They killed us on the glass,” Schaake said. “I don’t know what they have in the first half, something like eight to 10 points just on offensive putbacks. When you are down 10 and you aren’t shooting well, you can’t give up offensive rebounds. They just killed us on the boards.”
Joplin junior Terrance Gibson pulls down a rebound in the Eagles’ loss to Parkview on Tuesday. Photo by Shawn Fowler.
The Eagles found life at the end of the first half, closing on a 7-2 run to trim the lead to 10 at the intermission, 24-14. Sophomore G All Wright had all seven points for Joplin, scoring on the break before driving for a bucket and knocking down a 3-ball from the corner with 20 seconds left.
Joplin cut the lead down to six, 30-24, midway through the third quarter when senior G Always Wright scored seven straight points on a three-point play, a fall-away jumper from the high block and a pair of charities.
Parkview answered back with the next six points, highlighted by a 3-pointer from Hill, to push the lead back to double digits, 36-24, with less than three minutes to play in the third quarter. The Vikings ultimately took a 43-30 lead into the final quarter of action.
“I thought we had a little energy there in the third to cut it down to six,” Schaake said. “For some reason, we just hit another wall, probably when they had a couple putbacks again. When you play defense and then give up an offensive rebound for a putback, that is deflating and it kills the momentum you’re trying to get.”
Parkview junior G Amarre Clark drilled a corner 3-pointer to start the fourth and push the Vikings’ lead to 16. Joplin cut the lead to 12 several times before Parkview used a 7-0 with less than three minutes to play to extend the cushion to an insurmountable 19 points, 59-40. Whitley had a second-chance 3-pointer from the wing before breaking loose for a dunk on the break off an Eagle turnover. McArthur closed the run with a score on the drive left.
SCORING LEADERS
Whitley led Parkview with 17 points, while Glass finished with 12 and Price 10 to give the Vikings three players in double figures.
Always Wright led Joplin with a game-high 21 points, while All Wright finished with 13 points.
ROGERS, Ark. — Webb City’s boys basketball team dropped to 5-2 on the season after a 74-64 non-conference loss at Rogers Heritage on Tuesday night.
The Cardinals held the lead at the end of the first quarter, but the War Eagles went ahead for good late in the first half.
Heritage (6-5) never relinquished its lead in the second half.
The Cardinals held a 19-10 lead after Cohl Vaden’s third 3-pointer of the opening frame.
Led by Vaden’s 11 first quarter points, Webb City took a 23-15 advantage into the second quarter.
But the War Eagles outscored the Cardinals 24-11 in the second quarter, and the hosts took a 39-34 lead into the break.
After a 9-2 run, Heritage took a 48-40 lead with 3:40 remaining in the third quarter.
Heritage was clinging to a 50-46 lead at the end of the third quarter.
Webb City pulled within two on three different occasions in the fourth quarter, including with 3:25 remaining on Trey Roets’ old-fashioned 3-point play, but a lack of defensive stops down the stretch was too much to overcome.
The War Eagles finished the game on a 15-7 run.
Kaden Turner scored 23 points on 10 field goals and three free throws for Webb City, while Vaden added 17 points. Vaden hit three treys in the first quarter for Webb City’s only 3-pointers of the game.
Dante Washington and Roets added nine points apiece for the Cardinals. A 6-4 junior, Roets battled early foul trouble.
Webb City will take on Holland Hall from Tulsa at the 12 Courts of Christmas event at 4 p.m. on Dec. 29 at Hy-Vee Arena in Kansas City.
