Joplin’s spirited fourth-quarter rally fell short, as Ozark held on late for an 81-73 Central Ozark Conference victory on Tuesday night inside Kaminsky Gymnasium.
The Tigers, who scored the game’s first eight points, led from start to finish.
For the hosts, a lack of defensive stops was too much to overcome.
“We didn’t want to guard anybody,” Eagles coach Bronson Schaake said. “We got beat on the same stuff and we gave up easy buckets. When you try to get momentum but can’t get stops, it’s hard to come back from that. We just didn’t want to guard tonight.”
Ozark held a double-digit advantage for a large part of the night before the Eagles trimmed their deficit to six late in the game.
“At least we didn’t lay down,” Schaake said. “If we could have matched that intensity at the start of the game it would have been a different ballgame. I was proud of the guys for the fourth quarter, but we have to find a way to start off better and not wait until the fourth quarter.”
NAMES & NUMBERS
Joplin slipped to 14-7 overall and 2-3 in the COC.
Senior guard Always Wright poured in 31 points to lead Joplin. Wright converted 12 field goals, including three treys and two dunks, to go with four free throws.
“He’s incredibly skilled,” Schaake said. “He can get to the rim and he can hit the jumper. He does a lot of good things for us.”
Sophomore guard All Wright added 18 points for the Eagles. Senior guard Brantley Morris contributed 11 points and made three treys and sophomore guard Quin Renfro had nine points.
“I thought Brantley came in and hit some big shots,” Schaake said. “And Quin’s starting to attack the rim.”
Ozark hiked its record to 14-7 and 3-1 in the COC.
Senior guard Ethan Whatley scored 22 points to lead four Tigers in double figures. Sophomore Jace Whatley added 13 points, while senior Tyler Harmon had 12 and senior Devyn Wright scored 10.
GAME RECAP
After trailing by eight right away, the Eagles trimmed their deficit to four by the end of the first quarter at 18-14 after both Always Wright and Whit Hafer threw down dunks.
Ozark began the second quarter on an 11-2 run to go up 29-16 before Morris buried his third 3-pointer of the first half to bring the hosts within 10.
Always Wright scored Joplin’s final six points of the first half, but Ozark held a 41-32 halftime advantage.
The third period was nearly even, as the Tigers outscored the Eagles 19-17 for a 60-49 lead.
Always Wright scored 15 of Joplin’s 24 fourth-quarter points, but the Tigers never relinquished their lead.
The Eagles cut their deficit to six twice in the final minute before Ozark’s Ethan Whatley sank four late free throws.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Joplin hosts Republic at 7:30 on Friday night.
