It was a fantastic day of basketball Saturday as six local small school squads punched their ticket for the Final Four coming up at the end of the week. Here is what we saw on this Quarterfinal Saturday.
Hambleton’s 27 not enough as Blue Eye punches Final Four ticket
The Blue Eye Lady Bulldogs have been a buzzsaw of the likes we haven’t seen in a long time. They ran through the regular season and districts, but the real eye opener was a 56-30 sectional win over #3 Miller. Blue Eye continued their run Saturday with another impressive win over Dora and one of the most lethal scorers, Cassidy “Noodle” Hambleton. Blue Eye jumped out 10-0 early behind an air barrage from the three point line. Blue Eye would hit six 3’s including one from Avery Arnold that was intended as an entry pass to sister Riley. But, hey sometimes you have those kind of days. Hambleton struggled to get going early as she just saw four points fall in the opening quarter. Blue Eye led 26-9 after one. “Noodle” would get cooking in the second getting seven to fall, but another good quarter from the Lady Bulldogs saw the lead swell to 39-18 at the break. Blue Eye’s Kya Warren went nuclear in the second half to finish with 22 points. Hambleton cut the lead to 24 in the fourth quarter but her 27 points were not enough to overcome the buzzsaw that is Blue Eye as the Lady Bulldogs took this one 67-42.
Garrett Davault isn’t a dude he is THE dude
What a game we had in Republic as we had a top 5 showdown as #1 Norwood took #5 College Heights with a trip to the Final Four on the line. College Heights came out on fire going up 7-0 early. However, Garrett Davault showed once again that he is the best small school player in the area and maybe even the entire state. He erupted with a pair of deep 3’s. However, it was a College Heights 3 from Miller Long tied the game at 15 after one. College Heights size continued to wear down Norwood as Ethan Meeks and Curtis Davenport helped College Heights overcome Davault’s 15 point half led at the half 29-28. Davault continued his run into the third quarter as he jumped out with five points early in the half. Then the war of attrition began. Both teams began to struggle to put the ball in the hole behind solid defense. Norwood would emerge from the quarter leading 38-36. The lead didn’t last as Miller Long would tie the game with a pair of free throws on the first possession of the quarter. The teams would trade leads for the first part of the quarter. College Heights opened up a three point lead with about 5 minutes remaining. For the final five minutes the outcome of the game was definitely in question but one thing that was not was the atmosphere. IT WAS ELECTRIC! The two teams kept trading the lead, but Norwood held a 49-48 lead with 1:20 after a Peyton McDaris putback. McDaris had an opportunity to push the Norwood lead at the line with :25 remaining, and he hit both of them giving Norwood a 51-48 lead. Miller Long had a decent look with about 13 seconds left for a tying 3 but left it short. A few more made free throws by Davault and it would write the book on the game and send the Pirates to their second straight Final Four 53-48.
Strafford Lady Indians down Licking to return to Final Four
The first quarter of play was very deceptive. Strafford’s Emma Compton, Laney Humble, and Matti Walker had their way with the Lady Wildcats everywhere except on the scoreboard. Fierce play by Licking’s Abby Sullins, Hannah Medlock and Kiley Ingram was able to overcome turnovers and after trailing 4-0, Licking would tie it before the buzzer at 8. The second quarter started off being dominated by Licking. The Lady Wildcats used their distinct size advantage to bully the Lady Indians in the paint on both ends of the court. That was able to open up a 22-18 lead under four minutes left in the opening half. The final four minutes, Licking struggled on the defensive glass and Strafford was able to make a run tying the game at 25. Licking would go on a small run and would lead 27-26 at the break.
The third quarter was dominated defensively as Licking used their size to fill the lane and not allow easy buckets. Strafford used their speed to wreak havoc on a Licking team that doesn’t have a true ball handler. Neither team was able to pull away as Licking spent most of the quarter up 2-4. However, a bucket by Compton and a three by Emma Mullings at the buzzer gave Strafford a 33-32 lead going into the fourth. The final quarter was electric by the Lady Indians as Laney Humble hit a pair of early threes and Licking wasn’t able to recover. Though the Lady Wildcats kept battling until the end, The Lady Indians take care of business 51-43.
Gaige Pitts Sends Thayer to Final Four With Late Game Heroics
The nightcap at SBU was one of the most anticipated matchups of the day. Top ranked Thayer battled a top 5 foe in Strafford. Thayer has already made Bolivar a cozy second home as the Bobcats knocked off Branson, Republic, and Bolivar across town in the Bolivar tournament. Despite being the underdog, Strafford used the energy from the girl’s game and smacked Thayer in the mouth early. The Indians capitalized on a tough shooting start from Thayer and jumped out early. They took a 16-7 lead into the second quarter after an AK Rael dunk gave Strafford all of the momentum in the game. The second quarter played out similarly although Thayer’s Jordan Andrews was able to get it going a little bit. But Strafford’s steady game allowed them to hold a 29-23 lead at the break.
With as much momentum Strafford secured in the 2nd quarter, Thayer matched it if not surpassed it in the third. A pair of dunks by Thayer electrified the Bobcat faithful as Jordan Andrews’ slam sparked a Bobcat run. A Gaige Pitts 3 would give the Bobcats the lead with a little over a minute remaining in the quarter. Strafford’s AK Rael answered with a bucket to give the Indians the lead right back. But Pitts did it again, this time at the buzzer as Thayer the 40-39 lead going into the final quarter.
The dogfight was on from there as the teams went blow for blow for the majority of the fourth quarter. The teams were tied at 48 for about two minutes until Andrews hit a 3 just past the 2:00 mark to go up 51-48. The teams stayed there for a while, but a Thayer free throw made it 52-49 with 25 seconds left. That was still too much time for Strafford as AK Rael came down and hit the shot of his career knocking down a 3 with 9 seconds left in regulation. Just as it looked like we going to OT, Gaige Pitts from Thayer nails the game winner as Thayer survives.
BOYS RESULTS
Class 1 Quarterfinals
3/5 Results
Thomas Jefferson 35
St. Elizabeth 54
Up Next Final Four
St. Elizabeth Stanberry
South Iron Wellsville-Middletown
Class 2 Quarterfinals
3/5 Results
Alton 49 Norwood 53 Lakeland 54
Bernie 51 OT College Heights 48 Bishop LeBlond 54
Up Next Final Four
Norwood Bernie
Bishop LeBlond Putnam County
Class 3 Quarterfinals
3/5 Results
Thayer 55
Strafford 52
Up Next Final Four
Thayer Charleston
Lafayette County Duchesne
GIRLS RESULTS
Class 1 Quarterfinals
3/5 Results
Walnut Grove 30
Golden City 28
Up Next Final Four
Walnut Grove Leeton
Delta South Nodaway
Class 2 Quarterfinals
3/5 Results
Blue Eye 67
Dora 42
Up Next Final Four
Blue Eye Ellington
Wellington-Napoleon St. Paul Lutheran
Class 3 Quarterfinals
3/5 Results
Strafford 51 El Dorado Springs 55
Licking 43 East Buchanan 24
Up Next Final Four
Strafford West County
El Dorado Springs South Shelby
