Dandy debut: Gayman's 30 point effort leads Tigers to Carthage Invite title game

Saturday, December 3, 2016

A impressive debut by Nevada Tigers junior forward Clay Gayman, led top-seeded NHS to a 57-55 victory over fifth-seeded Carthage High School Friday night at the 70th annual Carthage Invitational.

Gayman finished the contest with 30 points, 16 rebounds, and three blocks, as the Tigers improve to 3-0 overall (2-0 West Central Conference).

A key play in the contest came late, as Nevada senior forward Patrick Ferry's block preserved a one point lead. With under a minute to play, Tigers senior Myles McNeley knocked down 1-of-2 free throws to put Nevada up 57-55.

A Carthage shot attempt at the buzzer nearly fell as Nevada prevailed, advancing the Tigers to the tournament championship game, where they match up against second-seeded Neosho High School. Tip off is slated for 4:30 p.m., today.

Nevada head coach Shaun Gray said he was thrilled with the Tigers first-half play.

"The first 10 to 12 minutes of the game, the first quarter and through most of the second quarter ---- we played our best basketball of the season," Gray told the Daily Mail.

"It was the most energized I've seen us through three games," he said. "We really made it tough on Carthage to score, holding them to three baskets in the first quarter."

Gray was especially pleased with his squad's play coming out of the halftime break as they outscored Carthage 19-8. Gray, however, said the Tigers faltered in the fourth quarter, nearly relinquishing a 14-point lead.

"We were playing way to fast late in the game," he said. "Took some quick shots and had some turnovers where we were trying to make the perfect pass through traffic or over peoples heads. And playing in a hurry allowed Carthage to get back in the game."

In addition to Gayman's 30 point effort, point guard Matt Sommer finished with eight points and eight assists; Hunter Mason, seven points; Ferry, six; Braeden Hinton, five; and McNeley, one.

"We led from wire-to-wire," Gray said, "and really were the better team for the entire game. Unfortunately, it was really the first time that we have been tested down the stretch like that."

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