Tigers still have trouble with Cardinals

By Joe Warren

Nevada Herald

While it may not have been as bad as the Jan. 11 thumping that Webb City put on Nevada, the Tigers still struggled against the Cardinals Friday as they were beaten 57-42.

Playing without two starters because of injuries, the Tigers were able to keep Webb City from pulling away until late in the game, a big difference from the first meeting between the two teams.

In the first game Webb City dominated the entire game, cruising to 73-38 win.

Friday was a different story, as the Tigers were as close as five points with only two minutes left in the third quarter before Webb City was able to take control.

The Cardinals used two big runs to provide their 15-point margin of victory.

The first was in the first half. Webb City ended the first quarter and began the second with a 12-0 run that turned a 7-6 lead into a 19-6 advantage.

On Senior Night at Wynn Gymnasium, the Tigers were determined to not have a repeat performance between the two schools.

A 3-pointer by J.R. Mills ended the first run, and by halftime the Tigers had clawed to within seven points at 24-17.

In the third quarter neither team was able to generate much offense as back-to-back buckets by senior Adam Gullett made it 26-21 with only 2:31 remaining in the period.

After the second Gullett basket, a 17-foot jumper from the right corner, Webb City coach Eric Johnson called a timeout and halted the Tigers' momentum.

The Cardinals came out of the timeout with a 3-pointer by Landon Zerkel, and when Caleb Powell scored with 1:23 remaining in the third, Webb City was back up by 10.

Eric Atkinson made two free throws at the end of the period and Nevada was down 31-23 going into the final quarter.

Webb City put the game away to start the fourth going on their second run, this time a 9-0 jaunt, building a 40-23 lead.

From there the game got sloppy as both teams exchanged numerous fouls. Before the final buzzer sounded, four players had fouled out.

In the final home game and capper on the regular season, Nevada coach John McNeley was pleased that his team battled hard despite being short-handed.

"I don't think the sting had left," McNeley said of the 35-point loss last month. "We felt like they rubbed our face in it a little bit. I wish we could have played it at full strength (Friday)."

The game was an emotional one for the coach and his five seniors. Two of the seniors, point guard Ben Wilson and defensive leader Taylor Rainey, were out with injuries. That left Gullett, Atkinson and Luke Rainey as the only seniors left and they all started.

Atkinson scored six points, all from the free-throw line as the 28-percent free-throw shooter coming in went 6 of 8.

Gullett finished with four points and Rainey also had four.

Taylor Rainey, wearing an ankle brace that went halfway to his knee, got some token playing time in the fourth quarter with the game out of reach, giving him a chance to go out in front of the crowd one last time. He played less than a minute before McNeley took him back out and the fans sent him off with a final farewell.

The emotion was evident in the final period as McNeley was given a technical foul when he yelled at one of the officials over inconsistent calls.

McNeley said it was just a matter of pent up frustration boiling over.

"I just expressed a month's worth of frustration," McNeley said.

Nevada finished the regular season 10-15, 2-6 in the Southwest Conference. They will be the third seed in the district tournament this week as they take on Carthage in the first round Tuesday in Carl Junction.

The two teams met twice this season, with each winning on their home floor.

Webb City finished 13-11, 4-4 in the conference. They are the second seed in the tournament.

Notes: Atkinson fouled out midway through the fourth period, and when he got to the bench McNeley gave him a big hug ... Mills scored a career-high 20 points in the game to lead all scorers ... Bryan Campbell also fouled out, scoring only six points in the game while handling much of the point guard duties ... Nevada turned the ball over 20 times, only the second time this season they have had that many ... Webb City had five players score at least eight points, but senior Brayden Drake, their leading scorer, had only two.