Mustangs Boys Basketball Finishes Season
Led by 23 points by mid-season transfer Jonathan Dunn, the Logan-Rogersville Wildcats defeated an upset-minded McDonald County, 64-51, in the opening round of the Missouri Class 5, District 11, Basketball tournament on March 1 at Logan-Rogersville High School.
McDonald County, the number four seed, gave the top-seeded Wildcats all they wanted in the first-round matchup.
Logan-Rogersville hit a pair of three-pointers on its first two possessions of the game to take an early 6-0 lead, but the Mustangs outscored the Wildcats 15 to 12 in the remaining seven minutes of the first quarter to trail 18-15 at the end of the period.
A three-pointer by Cross Dowd to open the second quarter tied the game before Teddy Reedybacon scored from down low to put McDonald County on top, 20-18, early in the second quarter.
Logan-Rogersville answered with four straight points to take a 22-20 lead, but Dowd sank another trey to put McDonald County on top, 23-22.
But over the final four minutes of the half, Logan-Rogersville went on a 14-2 run to take a 36-25 lead at halftime.
The Wildcats led by 14 points midway through the third quarter, but McDonald County was able to cut the margin to 52-42 entering the fourth quarter.
Dowd opened the fourth quarter just as he did the third, with a trey, to make the score 52-45 with over seven minutes left in the game.
Logan-Rogersville then scored six straight points to build a 58-45 lead, but Pierce Harmon connected with an old-fashioned three and Eli McClain hit from down low to cut the lead to 58-50 with 2:16 left.
The Wildcats hit four three throws, along with a dunk by Dunn down the stretch, to lead the win.
“They hit two threes to start to put us down, 6-0, but after that, we put the game together,” said coach Brandon Joines. “In my opinion, I think we outworked and out-hustled them. We did everything we could to outplay in almost every aspect except for one lull at the end of the first half. At the end of the first half, we had about a three-minute spell where we gave
them some easy buckets off turnovers. Other than that, we took care of the ball and did our jobs. Despite the loss, nobody wants that loss, we had a turning point moment tonight. We proved we can compete with anybody.”
Dowd finished with 19 points and Reedybacon added 12 to lead McDonald County. Rounding out the scoring for the Mustangs were Eli McClain with seven points, Harmon six, Sterling Woods five, and Cole Martin two.
Dunn went 7-for-7 from the free-throw line and added 16 points from the floor, most of those coming on dunks, while Kanon Gipson had 18 to lead the Wildcats.
“Moving forward, we appreciate everything we have gotten from our seniors — Ireal Marcos and Jackson Clarkson. They have put in the work and things haven’t always been what they wanted, but they have stayed with us. As we move forward, I think they will know they had a part in that transition. I have made the statement several times this year, ‘last year was transition, this year was progress and next year we arrive.’”
McDonald County finishes the season with an overall record of 8-15, including a 3-3 record in the West Division of the Big 8 Conference.
aurora
McDonald County scored 53 points in the second half on the way to an 88-74 win over Aurora on Feb. 23 at Aurora High School.
The Mustangs’ secondhalf offensive explosion was keyed by Harmon and McClain. Harmon scored 17 points in the third quarter, while McClain took over in the fourth quarter by scoring 12 points in the final eight minutes.
McDonald County jumped out to a 17-12 lead after the first quarter and stretched the margin to 35-23 at halftime. McDonald County took a 63-44 lead into the fourth quarter.
Harmon finished with 33 points to lead McDonald County, while McClain had 20 and Reedybacon hit double figures with 14. Rounding out the scoring for the Mustangs were Cross Dowd with seven points, Garrett Gricks with five, Woods and Martin three each, Marcos two and Dalton McClain one.
McDonald County added a 66-49 win in the junior varsity game. The Mustangs led 38-27 at halftime and then built a 59-40 lead after three quarters.
Colton Ruddick led McDonald County with 14 points, followed by Destyn Dowd with 11, Isaac Behm 10, Dalton McClain nine, Weston Gordon eight, Levi Malone six, Devin Swanson five and Harrell three.
springfield Catholic
Springfield Catholic jumped out to a 34-13 lead at the end of the first quarter and cruised to a 75-35 win on Feb. 26 at Catholic High School in Springfield.
The Irish led 49-20 and stretched their lead to 71-28 after three quarters.
Reedybacon scored 12 points and Cross Dowd had 10 to lead McDonald County. Rounding out the scoring for the Mustangs were Woods with six points, Eli McClain four, Gricks two and Harmon one.
Catholic added a 76-50 win in the junior varsity game.
Josh Pacheco led McDonald County with 12 points, followed by Behm with nine, Swanson seven, Toby Moore six, Destyn Dowd five, Gordon three and Dalton McClain and Harrell two each.
McDonald County avoided a sweep with a 44-40 win in the freshman game behind 17 points from Moore and 14 from Pacheco. Rounding out the scoring for the Mustangs were Tucker Walters with nine, Sam Barton three and Rylan Armstrong one.