Scott Central defeats state-ranked Doniphan

MORLEY - The Scott County Central Braves defeated the Doniphan Dons at Ronnie Cookson Gymnasium on Tuesday night, 74-70.

The Dons came into the game as the fifth ranked team in Class 3 and were riding a 12-game winning streak. The Braves ended the streak with quickness and solid play in the paint.

Scott Central forward duo of Caleb Johnson and Drew Thomas combined to score 48 points and the Braves garnered 11 steals as a team to defeat the red-hot Dons.

"Our kids fought hard for this win tonight," said Scott Central head coach Ronnie Cookson. "Doniphan has a great ball club and lucky for us, they missed some shots tonight that they usually make. The kids really wanted this win and they gave 100 percent effort. Doniphan has a great coach (Jason Andrews) and some good athletes."

Thomas paced the Braves in the first quarter, scoring 10 of the team's 15 points in the quarter. Doniphan's 6-foot-3 forward Nick Webb led the Dons with six points and after one quarter of action, the game was tied at 15.

Scott Central's Caleb Johnson looks to score.

In the second quarter, the action picked up as Doniphan outscored the Braves 22-20 in the quarter and enjoyed a 37-35 lead heading into the half.

Adam Carpenter, a 6-1 guard for the Dons, caught fire in the second quarter with 12 points and hit a late 3-pointer in the quarter to give Doniphan their halftime lead.

For the Braves in the second, Thomas netted 11 points to finish with 21 first half points.

"They hurt us inside," said Andrews. "Scott Central just wanted it more than we did. I don't know if we were complacent or what, but we didn't play our best basketball tonight."

The Braves continued to pressure the Dons and pound the ball in the paint in the third quarter. Johnson took over where Thomas left off in the first half and scored 11 points in the quarter. Scott Central outscored Doniphan 19-15 in the third and led 54-52 heading into the fourth.

Doniphan battled in the fourth and cut the Scott Central lead to 66-65 with 2:50 to play in the game. The Braves responded with four consecutive points over the next minute of action capped by a steal and breakaway lay-up by freshman Bobby Hatchett. Scott Central led 70-65 with 1:40 left in the contest.

"I think our press bother them a little bit," said Cookson. "We didn't get many turnovers, but I think it threw them off balance. We got out in transition and scored some easy baskets in the first half that kept us in the game. I don't think Doniphan has seen many teams that can get up and down the floor like we can."

The Dons cut the lead to 70-67 with 1:10 on the clock on a nice pass from Carpenter inside to a wide-open Charles Wilson for an easy lay-in.

On the next offensive possession for the Braves, Johnson got lose down low and scored a two-point basket to increase the lead to 72-67 with one minute left in the game.

Doniphan had three missed opportunities on their next possession and just could not get the ball in the basket. Scott Central's D.D. Gillespie finally hauled down a defensive rebound and was fouled by the Dons. Gillespie hit both free-throws to seal the win for the Braves.

"We got some open looks but the shots didn't fall for us," said Andrews. "We had numerous chances to win the game, but we couldn't get the big shot to fall. Scott Central got some easy looks at the basket early on. We didn't defend their transition game very well."

Webb led Doniphan with 21 points and had seven rebounds. Carpenter finished with 16 points, six rebounds and three assists for the Dons.

Doniphan's bench produced in a big way against the Braves. The Dons' bench outscored Scott Central's 20-4 and were led by Chandler Wilson, who pumped in 16 points and was a beast on the boards with a game-high 15 rebounds (eight offensive).

The Dons won the rebounding battle with a solid effort on the offensive glass. Doniphan had a 34-27 rebounding edge over the Braves, including a 16-4 advantage on offensive rebounding.

Thomas led the Braves with 28 points and Johnson scored 15 of his 20 points in the second half. Gillespie was solid for Scott Central at his guard position with 18 points, a team-high 10 rebounds and grabbed three steals. Hatchett led the Braves with eight assists and four steals.

Doniphan (19-3) hosts the Caruthersville Tigers on Friday night, while Scott Central (18-4) travels to Steele to battle the South Pemiscot Bulldogs. Both games are slated to start at 6 p.m.

The Risco Tigers exited the Tri-County Conference Tournament at Gideon in the first round on Tuesday night against the fourth seeded North Pemiscot Mustangs, 76-65.

Turnovers cost the Tigers an upset and a chance to play in the second round.

"Turnovers were our downfall tonight," said Risco head coach Brandon Blankenship. "We battled back after a rough first quarter and trailed 38-31 at halftime. We committed over 25 turnovers and we can't win playing like that."

Despite issues handling the ball, Risco battled to within eight points of the Mustangs in the fourth quarter before time ran out on the comeback.

Senior Ricky Davis continued his stellar play for the Tigers and ended with a game-high 36 points. Kyle White chipped in eight points for Risco.

North Pemiscot had a balanced attack with Parker Watkins leading the way with 21 points. Josh Tomlin went for 16 points, Todd Hoggard had 13 and Michael Gilboe chipped in 11 points for the Mustangs.

Risco (5-15) travels to Neelyville next Thursday at 6 p.m.

Risco's junior varsity club is still alive in the JV tournament and will battle the Cooter Wildcats on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.

The Oran Eagles were defeated at home on Tuesday night by the Advance Hornets, 64-61.

Oran enjoyed a 33-23 lead at halftime but were outscored 41-28 in the second half, including 24-14 in the fourth quarter.

Chris Asmus paced the Eagles with 17 points and Chase Seyer chipped in 16 points.

Alex Steil led the Hornets with 22 points and Adam Baker was next with 13 points. Rusty Hendricks and Trenton Moses contributed 11 and 10 points respectively for Advance.