Middle school Tigers wrap regular season, TCC tourney on tap

The seventh and eighth-grade Nevada Middle School Tigers wrapped their respective regular seasons last week, with a pair of home games Tuesday and Thursday against Carl Junction and Joplin on the hardwood.

Led by Evan Rea’s team-high 12 points, the eighth-grade Tigers toppled Carl Junction, 43-41.

“We came out and executed and played hard for four quarters, which is what we talked about in practice and before the game,” said Nevada eighth-grade head coach, Neil Barnes. “We knocked down some crucial free throws in the fourth quarter to seal the win.”

In addition to Rea’s dozen, Owen Swearingen chipped in 11, as the Tigers notched their second victory of the season. In the B-game, Nevada fell to Carl Junction, 34-21.

A few blocks away at Franklin. P Norman Community Center, the seventh-grade Tigers followed suit against Carl Junction, as Drew Beachler’s game-high 16 points lifted Nevada to a 40-26 victory. Forward Case Sanderson added 10 points, as Nevada collected its sixth victory of the season. Meanwhile, Nevada’s B-team rolled to a 33-24 win over Carl Junction.

In Thursday’s return to the court the Nevada eighth-grade team was upended by Joplin, 38-21. Nevada concluded its regular-season slate, 2-8 overall. Nevada’s eighth-grade B-team was tripped up by Joplin, 44-24, wrapping its season 0-9 overall. Rea was Nevada’s leading scorer in both contests, finishing the night with a combined 16 points.

The Nevada seventh-grade Tigers fell to Joplin, 45-29, finishing their regular-season 6-5 overall. Nevada’s seventh-grade B-team concluded its season on a high-note, besting Joplin, 29-24, to finish 4-3. Trent Otter paced Nevada’s A-team with nine points, while Jeremy Rivas led the Tiger B-team hoopsters with eight points.

TCC Tournament

After drawing the tournament’s No. 5 seed in the six-team bracket — the eighth-grade Tigers defeated No. 4 Neosho, 41-36, in the opening round of the season-ending Tri-County Conference eighth-grade tournament in Carl Junction on Monday.

“Overall, this was the best we have played so far this season,” noted Barnes, adding, “as a coach you want your team to play its best basketball at the end of the season.”

Nevada (3-8) was paced by Eli Cheaney’s game-high 13 points, while Swearingen added 10.

“Our guys played hard and knocked down some big shots late in the game, and then made their free throws to help seal the victory.”

Barnes said he is thrilled by the improvement his squad has shown throughout the season, as the Tigers square off with top-seeded Carthage, tonight at 5:30.

“I’m very proud of how much this group has improved,” he said. “They are doing the little things that we’ve been talking about everyday, and they are seeing some success as a result. I am glad to get to coach this group for a couple more games.”

The seventh-grade Tigers also drew the No. 5 seed, and dropped a heartbreaker to No. 4 Carthage, falling 38-37 in the opening round on Monday at Neosho Junior High.

For the Tigers, Otter poured in a game-high, 20 points, as Nevada concludes the season 6-6 overall.

“I am very proud of the boys and how hard they worked all season,” said NHS seventh-grade head coach, Rob Miner. “We played extremely well tonight, but just came up a little bit short. We lost to Carthage by 20 the first time we played them this season, so tonight was a little better in that aspect. We put ourselves in a position to to win, but just missed some shots that we usually make.”