Middle school basketball competes at Joplin North

JOPLIN, Mo. -- The Nevada Middle School seventh and eighth grade boys' basketball teams got their regular season schedules under way Tuesday night with the first road game of the year at Joplin North Middle School.

Head coach Robert Miner's seventh graders took the A game by a final score of 41-14 and nearly echoed that dominant performance with a 22-8 victory in the B game. Conner Bobbett led the offensive effort for Nevada in the B game with seven points and Derek O'Dell put up a team-high nine points in the A game.

Results were mixed for head coach Neil Barnes' eighth graders as they took the A game by a final score of 37-17, but Joplin North came back to salvage a split with a 22-19 victory in the B game. Tristan Smith led the offense for Nevada with 16 points in the A game, while Tanner Handly and Chandler Holland tied for the team lead with six points apiece in the B game.

The seventh graders are scheduled to play in a tournament at El Dorado Springs Thursday, Friday and Saturday, while the eighth graders will be off until Monday, Jan. 10, when they host Webb City.