WEBB CITY, Mo. — A steady barrage of 3-pointers propelled Willard to an 81-70 win over Webb City on Tuesday night in Central Ozark Conference boys basketball action inside the Cardinal Dome.
The visiting Tigers made 13 field goals from beyond the arc, including seven in the game-changing third period that saw the visitors pull away.
“We were awful defensively,” Webb City coach Jason Horn said. “We gave up way too many wide open looks from 3 to their better shooters. We couldn’t keep them out of the lane. We just weren’t very good defensively tonight. You tip your hat to Willard. They did a good job of finding the open man and they moved the ball quickly. We didn’t move the ball quick enough on offense. We had some sticky hands and held the ball too long. You’re easy to defend when you do that.”
Receiving votes in the Class 5 poll, Webb City slipped to 15-6 overall and 2-3 in the COC.
Webb City made 29-of-51 field goal attempts (57 percent), but went just 8-for-25 (32 percent) from 3-point land.
Junior guard Barron Duda scored 23 points and made four treys to lead the Cardinals. Sophomore guard Eli Pace added 14 points, while senior forward Alex Martin and sophomore guard Holton Keith added 10 points apiece.
The Cardinals had 20 turnovers to the Tigers’ 10.
Willard improved to 9-12 and 2-2 in the conference.
The Tigers made 28-of-54 field goal attempts (52 percent), including 13-of-32 from long distance (41 percent).
Junior guard Drew Quinlan scored 20 points and knocked down six 3-pointers to lead Willard, while junior guard Russell Roweton added 17 points. Two others reached double figures for the Tigers, as senior Riley Wolf scored 14 points and sophomore Braxton Boyer had 11.
Neither team was able to gain much separation in the first half.
Playing at home for the first time since Jan. 13, Webb City held a 20-18 lead at the end of the back and forth first quarter.
The Cardinals were up 24-18 early in the second quarter, but the game was deadlocked at 31 with just over two minutes to play in the first half.
Willard closed the half on a 7-4 run, and the visitors held a 38-35 advantage at the break.
The Tigers got going in a big way in the third period. Led by the seven made treys, Willard outscored Webb City 26-15 in the third period to take a 64-50 lead.
“They made six 3-pointers in the first half and then made seven in the third quarter,” Horn noted. “You have to guard somebody. We didn’t guard anybody. They had wide open looks.”
The Tigers never relinquished their lead in the final frame. The Cardinals trimmed their deficit to 10 with a minute to play, but the Tigers’ cushion was never in serious jeopardy.
Webb City hosts Class 6 No. 8 Republic (19-2, 3-1 COC) on Friday. Republic suffered a 62-58 loss to Nixa on Tuesday.
“They have as good a team as we’ll play all year,” Horn said of Republic. “It will be tough, so we just have to get back to work at practice and try to get better.”
FULL STATS: Webb City HS (webbcitycardinals.com)
