Nixa used a first-quarter surge to gain a double-digit lead that Joplin was unable to overcome on the way to a Central Ozark Conference 76-47 win on Friday inside Kaminsky Gymnasium.
Joplin (11-8, 2-2 COC) started the game with a 4-1 lead over the first several minutes after baskets from Terrance Gibson and Always Wright. Nixa (18-3, 4-0 COC) responded with 13 unanswered points to take a 14-4 lead at the 2:15 mark of the opening period. Jaret Nelson led the way for Nixa with six points in the run.
“We actually had a very good start,” Joplin coach Jeff Hafer said. “We jumped out to a 4-1 start and I believe they went on a 13-0 run to make it 14-4, but after that, we played them pretty well after that in the first quarter.
“Nelson murdered us during that stretch where they were able to pull away just by getting on the offensive glass and getting good post position. At different points, we were pretty good at swarming the post, but they are well coached and they are a very in-sync team in terms of their offense. They know what they are looking for.”
Carson Wampler and Always Wright each knocked down 3-pointers near the end of the first to trim Joplin’s deficit to single digits, 16-10.
Nixa pushed the lead back to double digits early in the second quarter before Joplin cut the lead to seven on a stepback 3-pointer from Always Wright and a score on the drive by Dante Washington near the midway mark to make the score 26-19. Nixa ended the first half with a 3-pointer on the wing from Colin Ruffin to take a 35-24 cushion into halftime.
Playing with the double-digit lead, Nixa methodically pulled away from Joplin, using a three-point play from Jason Jones and a mid-range bucket by Kael Combs as part of a 6-0 run to push the margin to 45-28.
“There is a level of physicality in an environment like this that you have to be willing to play,” Hafer said. “They were way more physical than us. And a lot of times, it was just one guy against three of ours.”
Nixa held the same 15-point lead to start the fourth quarter and opened the period with a 13-2 run to push the lead to 67-41 with four minutes to play, sealing the win in the process.
“We have to be tougher on the defensive glass and on the defensive end,” Hafer said on what his team needs to do in order to compete for a full game against a team the caliber of Nixa. “That’s it. That’s just the bottom line. It’s hard work. It has to be done in practice, where our habits have to get better. We have flashes of it, but it has to present for four quarters of a basketball game if you’re going to win at a high level.”
SCORING LEADERS
Nixa had four players finish in double figures, with three more one basket away. Combs led the way with 17, while Ruffin finished with 14. Nelson added 11 and Kaleb Wofford added 10 in the win.
Always Wright led Joplin with 16 points, while All Wright finished with 10. Washington added eight, with Wampler scoring six.
UP NEXT
Joplin is at Ozark for a 7:30 p.m. tip on Tuesday.
