LEBANON, Mo. — Senior Dominick Simmons splashed home a corner 3-pointer with two seconds left in regulation to lift Joplin past Lebanon 55-52 in the semifinal round of the Hall of Fame Classic on Friday.
CHAMPIONSHIP BOUND
The Eagles improve to 10-4 on the season with the win and advance to take on Rogersville in the championship game at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
SCORING LEADERS
Always Wright finished with 15 points to lead Joplin. Carson Wampler added 11 points, and Terrance Gibson finished with 10. Simmons and All Wright each closed the win out with eight points.
Josh Napper finished with a game-high 20 points to lead Lebanon. Tristan Wilson added 11, while Ty Matlock and Caleb Falzone both scored six.
GAME NOTES
Joplin took an 11-8 lead into the first quarter after jumping out in front of Lebanon thanks to back-to-back 3-pointers from All Wright and Always Wright to open the game. The Eagles stretched the lead to 16-10 midway through the second quarter following a 3-pointer from Wampler and a score on the break from All Wright.
Falzone scored on the give-and-go, while Napper sank a triple to bring Lebanon within one of the lead, 16-15. Falzone and Napper combined for 15 of the Yellowjackets’ 17 points in the first half.
Joplin closed out the half on a 6-2 run to take a 23-17 advantage into the second half, with Always Wright scoring on a fast-break dunk before All Wright knocked down a floater. Gibson added an offensive board for a putback to close out the first-half scoring.
The score remained tight throughout the third period, with Joplin clinging to a 37-35 advantage heading into the final eight minutes of action. The Eagles never trailed in the game until Napper grabbed an offensive rebound for a putback score with 4:25 to give the Yellowjackets their first lead, 43-41.
Joplin tied the game on two free throws from LT Atherton before Always Wright earned a steal for a fast-break dunk going the other way for a 45-43 advantage. Gibson added an inbounds score from the block moments later to push the lead to 47-43 with 2:20 left.
Lebanon tied the game back up with less than two minutes to play on a second-chance 3-pointer from Napper to make the score 48-48. Gibson pulled down on offensive rebound and scored on the putback to give Joplin the lead back with less than 90 seconds to play. The Yellowjackets tied it for the fourth time in the final quarter with 15 seconds left on an inside score from Wilson, but the Eagles pushed the ball down the floor with Simmons sealing the win on his late corner 3-ball.
