Scott County Central survives scare from Kelly

sports@standard-democrat.com

SIKESTON -- It might not go down as a win in the books, but the Kelly Hawks certainly weren't hanging their heads after their latest matchup Tuesday with Scott County Central.

Against a team they'd already lost to twice this season, by 42 and 33 points respectively, the Hawks held a one-point lead at the half and remained within a possession going into the fourth quarter.

Ultimately it was hot second half from Braves' senior Javonta Daniel that proved the difference as they held on for a 73-60 win, even after losing two of their top three scorers to foul trouble.

"We're maturing as a basketball team," Hawks' head coach Ryan Garnett said. "We're continuing to grow, mature and believe in each other and the program. We take pride in our school and community. There's absolutely no quit in us at all."

For the Braves, who have now won nine-straight, this isn't how they wanted to go into their 10-day break. With only a seven man bench, players such as Daniel and junior Jeffery Porter had already picked up three fouls before the half to limit their minutes.

This allowed Kelly to take an seven-point lead as late as midway through the second quarter before a brief Scott Central comeback closed them within a point at the break, 32-31.

After only scoring two points in the first half, Daniel came alive to start the second. He hit four of his first five shots and scored eight-straight points to start the half.

Kelly's Dalton Huffman (12) calls for the ball while Scott County Central's Matthew Blissett defends Tuesday at Scott County Central High School. (Brent Shipman photo)

Kelly's Dalton Huffman (12) calls for the ball while Scott County Central's Matthew Blissett defends Tuesday at Scott County Central High School. (Brent Shipman photo)

Daniel's run gave the Braves their biggest lead up to that point, 39-31, before Kelly closed the gap to go into the fourth trailing 49-46.

A 10-0 run by Scott Central to start the final period, including four points by Daniel, gave the Brave's their biggest lead of the night, 59-46, and five minutes to play.

"He's extremely hard to stop," Garnett said of Daniel "We wanted to even double him and he's almost too quick to even double. We kept playing physical and they were able to get it to Javonta and he was able to dominate a little down low. We just didn't have an answer.

"Our guys fought Daniel hard to the end, but when it comes down to it he was a better player tonight."

With time slipping away the Hawks managed to cut their deficit to eight points, 66-58, with 2:23 left on the clock, fouling out both Daniel and fellow Brave senior Matt Blissett in the process.

The loss of Daniel and Blissett left Scott Central without anyone on the bench and Porter playing with four fouls.

A steal from Drake Kesler with just under two minutes to play, however, led to an easy lay up for Porter and the Braves went into clock killing mode soon after. Kelly fouled, but Porter sunk 5 of 6 free throws in the final 1:18 to seal the win.

"It's kind of a wake up call for us," Scott Central head coach Frank Staple said. "We're winding down to the end of the season and we can't ever get comfortable and we can't ever underestimate any opponent. Tonight Kelly played hard and really put it to us."

Led by Daniels, the Braves (18-4) had five players post double-digit scoring totals.

Daniels finished with a game-high 21 points, including 19 points in the second half. He went 8 of 11 (73 percent) from the floor while collecting a rebound and a steal.

"He had some foul trouble there in the first half," Staple said of Daniel. "That just gives guys an opportunity to step up. When he came back in we really wanted to get it in to him. He kind of took us on his shoulder, got us a lead and gave us a little breathing room."

Trevion Moore was second on the team with 15 points, shooting 6 of 9 (67 percent) overall and 5 of 6 (83 percent) inside the arc.

Porter added 14 points to the Braves' cause while Kesler scored 13 points to go with six rebounds, three assists and five steals. Before fouling out, Blissett collected 10 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals.

On his team's foul trouble, Staple said, "We were thin and we haven't had a problem with that yet. It kind of bit us in the butt tonight. We just have to go and work on our defense, sliding our feet.

"That's what we have to focus on, just getting better and being at our best going into districts."

For Kelly (8-13), Maurice Davis scored a team-high 17 points, including a 5 of 8 effort at the free throw line. Ty Householder was the only other Hawk in double digits with 12 points, including seven points in the fourth quarter alone.

"Give credit to Kelly," Staple said. "Those kids played well and worked their butt off. That's a team that's really improving. Their coach has them going in the right direction, so hats off to Kelly. That's a heck of an effort."

Scott Central 12 19 8 24 -- 73

Kelly 17 15 14 14 -- 60

SCOTT CENTRAL (73) -- Drake Kesler 13, Jeffery Porter 14, Tre Moore 15, Javonta Daniel 21, Matt Blissett 10. FG 22, FT 23-36, F 17. (3-pointers: Moore 1. Fouled out: Daniel, Blissett.)

KELLY (60) -- Maurice Davis 17, Kade Proctor 2, Ty Householder 12, Dalton Huffman 6, Cayden Williams 6, Levi Alsup 6, Jacob McClain 4, Isai Campos 1, Conner Dittlinger 6. FG 24, FT 9-14, F 23. (3-pointers: Householder 1, Williams 2. Fouled out: Alsup, McClain.)