WEST PLAINS RALLIES TO DEFEAT CARTHAGE
CARTHAGE, Mo. — Carthage built an 11-point third-quarter lead only to see West Plains rally back to earn a 56-54 win in the fifth-place game of the 74th Carthage Invitational on Saturday.
“We played better,” Carthage coach Nathan Morris said. “We executed well in the first few quarters. They were missing a ton of shots early. We decided to switch things up … but they did a great job of adjusting.
“Even in our losses, we were able to score points in stretches, but then we would go cold. If we can figure out how to put that together for a full basketball game, we’ll be able to put some points up. We’re just not paying attention to all the little details that go into a basketball game right now.”
The Tigers (1-2) held a 35-33 lead with 4:27 to play in the third period before using a 9-0 run to push the lead to 11, closing out the quarter with a 44-35 advantage. Silas Templeman started the run with a score inside before Max Templeman scored four straight for Carthage. Joel Pugh knocked down a 3-pointer to close the run.
West Plains opened the fourth quarter with a 9-2 run to tie the game at 46-46 with 4:24 to play. Carthage’s Patrick Carlton fouled out at the 5:38 mark before Daegan Green and Taylor Harrison knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to knot things up.
Carthage cut a five-point deficit, 56-51, to two when freshman Justin Ray sank a deep 3-pointer with 6.3 seconds left to make the score 56-54. Ray earned his first start of the season and finished with 11 points.
“Justin earned himself his first start today,” Morris said. “He is a kid who does absolutely everything the correct way. If he makes a mistake, he learns from it. He has been around basketball a long time. I am really happy for him. We put him in some tough positions, but hopefully that will pay off down the line for a 14 year old to get that experience.”
West Plains missed two free throws with 3.2 ticks remaining, but the ensuing half-court heave for the Tigers fell short as the final horn sounded.
Pugh scored 14 to lead Carthage, with Max Templeman adding 12. Silas Templeman scored eight and Carlton finished with seven.
Harrison finished with a game-high 18 to lead West Plains, while Bristol Wood finished with 16.
UP NEXT
Carthage travels to Springfield Central for a 7:30 tip on Dec. 15.
LEAVENWORTH OUTLASTS CARL JUNCTION
Leavenworth and Carl Junction took a 33-33 tie into the fourth quarter before the Pioneers outscored the Bulldogs 16-13 in the final period to earn a 49-46 win in the seventh-place game of the Carthage Invitational.
Alex Baker led Carl Junction (0-6) with 14 points, while Kyler Perry finished with nine. Josh Cory added eight points and Blake Poorman scored six.
JJ Darthard and Jalen Vaughan each scored 12 to lead Leavenworth, while Eddie McLaughlin scored 11.
UP NEXT
Carl Junction travels to Seneca for a 7:30 tip on Dec. 15
NIXA STARTS FAST TO BEAT RAY-PEC IN CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Nixa limited Raymore-Peculiar to five points in the first quarter and seven in the second on the way to a 32-12 advantage by halftime. The lead was too large for a Panthers comeback, with the Eagles pulling away to a 52-34 win in the championship game of the Carthage Invitational.
Jason Jones led the way for Nixa with 15 points, while Colin Ruffin and Jaret Nelson each scored 10.
Iryn Allen led Ray-Pec with 14 points.
