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A neighborhood game that had great promise playing on the homecourt of NKC. We had #1 Oak Park on the road against #7 NKC. As expected from the jump this was going to be an “earn what you get” sort of matchup. Defense was the star of the game in the first half as the Northmen took a 23-18 lead into intermission. Both teams loosened up a little in the 2nd half with NKC battling back to take a 39-37 lead into the final stanza. It was Oak Park in the 4th quarter as they closed it out and maintained bragging rights at least for now. Winning 58-51.

This was a good one. It was back and forth with a lot of intensity on display by both teams. Then Ky Coleman decided to step into the moment in the 3rd quarter rattling off 15 points in that quarter to create some separation and go on to close it out 74-59. Kearney is an under-sized team that is really scrappy and does not quit. They didn’t quite have enough to stay in this one, but they are fun to watch.

This looked like a good matchup on paper. Both teams with strong records and played to a 1pt. win for Barstow just a couple of weeks ago. Well not so much. This was Barstow all the way from tip to buzzer. The damage was done in a balanced way. This team has won 5 of their last 6 and look to be making a push in the right direction come post-season. On the SCA side, I see a ton of potential and think they are a year away from realizing their best. They are well-coached and talented, but just young and experiencing some growing pains along the way.

This was the battle of styles and in the end New Madrid won out 62-51. Rogersville came out and was successful in trying to control tempo with good decision-making and making the game be played in the half-court. Come the 4th quarter New Madrid’s defensive pressure and transition game is what won it for the Eagles.

This game started out as a nice local matchup for a semifinal of the Nixa Invitational. 1st half was a back-and-forth affair with multiple kids showing out. But it came down to Nixa just having more weapons and depth than the Hornets and pulled away with an 81-58 win and a berth in the championship game against New Madrid.

I was looking forward to catching the Liberty vs LS West game on Tuesday night. The Titans took care of business after a back-and-forth contest in the 1st half. They won it going away 57-44. I like the potential of this LS West team. They have good talent with plenty of experience meaning they have played in plenty of important games. Sometimes it looks like they are going through the motions and likely why they have been tripped up a few times this season. But they have the goods. We’ll see if they can bring the heat down the stretch. Some prospects that stood on this night.