2024 Scott-Mississippi: Scott City upends East Prairie

ORAN, Mo. — Scott City pulled off the upset, defeating defending champion East Prairie 84-63 in the Scott-Mississippi Conference Tournament Semifinals on Tuesday.

The win propelled the third-seeded Rams (16-3) to their first championship game appearance since 2021.

“Our kids played hard, limited their runs and stuck together throughout the entire game,” said Scott City coach Mark Dannenmueller. “Everyone that played stepped up and did something positive. Our team defense was good, with all players contributing.”

The game started close, with the second-seeded Eagles (15-4) leading 7-6 after a Connor Marcum 3-pointer.

However, Scott City closed the quarter on a dominant 14-3 run, led by Mark Panagos's nine points, to take a double-digit lead into the second quarter.

East Prairie clawed back in the second, tying the game with 1:20 remaining. But Scott City regained control, leading 35-32 at halftime.

“They hit us with a couple of runs throughout the game,” Dannenmueller said. “Especially the second half and we never got rattled. We seemed to come down and hit a big shot every time they were on a little run.”

The Rams further extended their lead in the second half, reaching double digits again thanks to Panagos' free throws. Despite closing the gap to 56-48 by the end of the third, East Prairie never fully recovered, ultimately falling short.

Scott City sealed the victory in the final minutes, pulling ahead by 20 points on Kobe Watson's free throws.

“All credit goes to Scott City,” said East Prairie coach Gary Scott. “They did a great job on both ends of the court.

Scott City will take on top-seeded Kelly (16-4), ranked No. 10 in Class 3, in the championship game on Friday at 7:45 p.m., while East Prairie faces fifth-seeded Scott County Central (10-11) in the third-place game at 5:15 p.m.

“It's always a great day when you can play for a championship,” Dannenmueller said. “They are well coached and are a very good team. We are going to have two great days of practice to get ourselves ready for Friday.”

__SCOTT CITY 84, EAST PRAIRIE 63__

Scott City 20 15 21 28 — 84

East Prairie 10 22 16 15 — 63

Scott City (84) — Kobe Watson 28, Mark Panagos 19, Braeden Walton 14, Brenden Beussink 8, Jackson Gloth 6, Jaylen Rulo 5, Kalen Conner 2, Kaden Lowery 2. FG: 31. FT: 17-23. F: 16. (3-pointers: Watson 2, Walton 1, Rulo 1, Panagos 1. Fouled out: None.)

East Prairie (63) — Ty Wallace 18, Kamron Farmer 14, Connor Marcum 11, Noah Johnson 10, Evan Kenedy 7, Braylan Cade 2, Tavion Ware 1. FG: 26. FT: 8-16. F: 20. (3-pointers: Wallace 2, Marcum 1. Fouled out: Cade.)