NEOSHO, Mo. — In a stunning turnaround, Neosho erupted for 24 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to earn a 62-44 come-from-behind victory over Huntsville (Ark.) in the Black bracket semifinals on Wednesday at the 2021 Neosho Holiday Classic.
With the win, the Wildcats (7-2) will meet the rival McDonald County Mustangs (6-4) in the bracket’s championship game at 6:30 on Thursday night.
“You want to be in the championship no matter who you’re playing, but it’s a little more fun when you’re playing a team from right down the road,” Neosho coach Zane Culp said. “It should be a really fun atmosphere. It’s going to be a fun game to watch.”
A spot in the title game wasn’t looking very likely for the tourney hosts midway through the third period. The Wildcats, who trailed by nine with 3:47 left in the third period, entered the fourth quarter down six.
But as soon as the final frame arrived, the hosts appeared to flip a switch in what was a remarkable turn of events.
Simply put, Neosho dominated the fourth quarter on both ends of the floor, holding the Eagles scoreless over the final eight minutes of action while exploding for 24 points.
“If you hold a team to zero points in the fourth quarter, you’re probably going to win,” Culp said with a smile. “The boys responded to a tough third quarter. Huntsville’s good. They fight and they’re tough. We tried to get them out of sorts with a halfcourt trap and it worked. And like I said, if you hold a team to zero points in a quarter you’re in good shape. It was a fun fourth quarter.”
The hosts got off to a great start, as Carter Fenske’s third trey of the first quarter and a hoop from K’dyn Waters gave the Wildcats a 17-7 lead. But the Eagles finished the opening frame on a 6-2 run to pull within six at 19-13.
Huntsville outscored Neosho 18-11 in the second period to take a 31-30 lead into the break.
The Eagles led throughout the third quarter and went up 41-32 on a bucket from Mason Davidson. Huntsville’s lead was 44-38 at the end of the third quarter.
“If you would have told me at that point that we were going to win by 18 I probably would have said you were crazy,” Culp said.
But things suddenly changed as the final period of the contest began, as the Wildcats found their stride offensively and defensively.
Brock Franklin sparked the Wildcats with seven straight points, a corner 3-pointer and two pull-up jumpers from near the foul line. Those points gave Neosho a 47-44 lead.
From there, the Wildcats continued to roll. Waters, Isaiah Green and Franklin all contributed hoops as the hosts pulled away. A trey from Waters made it 57-44.
On the other end, the Eagles simply couldn’t get a shot to fall.
Free throws from Waters, Kael Smith and Michael Day extended the lead to 18 down the stretch.
“We just kept chipping away and then all of a sudden we were up 10,” Culp said of the late rally. “When you’re getting stops, offense is easier. And we didn’t turn the ball over as much in the fourth quarter. We’d been averaging nine or 10 turnovers a game this season and we had 10 in the first half.”
Waters scored a game-high 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting and also had four assists and four rebounds to lead the Wildcats (7-2). Despite what appeared to be a bloody nose, Franklin made 5-of-8 field goal attempts for 12 points.
“Brock Franklin hit three or four shots in a row and guarded their best player all night,” Culp said. “I’m really proud of him.”
Fenske added 11 points, while Smith and Green contributed eight and seven points, respectively. Smith had a team-high six rebounds and three blocked shots, while Green handed out four assists.
Neosho made 24-of-42 field goal attempts (57 percent), including 6-of-14 from behind the arc.
Huntsville made 17-of-51 shots from the floor. The Eagles misfired on all 17 attempts in the final frame. Davidson scored 16 points to lead Huntsville (8-4).
McDonald County knocked off Lamar 65-53 in the other semifinal (See related story).
Huntsville (8-4) will take on Lamar (5-4) at noon on Thursday in the bracket’s third-place game.
