Advance boys basketball bounces back, shoots past Woodland into fifth-place game in Christmas Tournament

Advance boys basketball coach Bubba Wheetly hasn't always been thrilled with how his team has played this year, even in victory. But he walked away from the court Tuesday afternoon feeling pretty good about his team.

Just 14 hours after the Hornets had suffered a frustrating four-point loss to Charleston in the championship bracket, the fifth-seeded squad started fast and didn't let up, dropping No. 8 Woodland 73-53 in a fifth-place semifinal of the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament at the Show Me Center.

Advance (7-2) first took a lead two and a half minutes into the game, when Preston Wuebker hit a 3 to put the Hornets up 6-4. They led the rest of the way.

Woodland's Jake Long shoots as Advance's Dawson May defends during the second quarter of a fifth-place semifinal in the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015 at the Show Me Center. (FRED LYNCH)

"I thought we came out with a lot of intensity and I thought we played really well -- aggressive in the press and we never let up," Wheetley said. "We still have a few -- a lot of -- things we need to clean up, but I thought we did pretty good.

"We really needed this win today. We really did. Coming off the loss to Charleston and the kids were down -- we had a really good chance to win that one last night. The kids come out with their heads down a lot of times, but they picked it up."

Woodland was looking to bounce back from its own loss to top-seeded Jackson in a quarterfinal, but after a Michael McCormick mid-range jumper gave the Cardinals a 4-3 lead at 6:14 of the first quarter, they chased all afternoon.

It was a disappointing end to a disappointing tournament for Woodland (7-3).

"I feel like [Advance is] very well coached and they have good players, but our overall focus is us and we did not do the things that we needed to do throughout the tournament," Cardinals coach Logan Nutt said. "It was a poor showing from us in the tournament. I know that and our guys know that.

"Overall our goal is to reach our best ability, and I feel like we took a step backward this tournament. ... We got to play some quality opponents who exposed us and showed us where we need to get better. ... We need to get back to work on what we need to improve. We know who we are and we need to act like it."

Armani Vermillion led Advance with 21 points, while Wuebker pitched in 19. The Hornets hit nine 3-pointers, including five in the second quarter. Dawson Mayo added 10 points and nine rebounds.

Woodland's top scorer was Tyler Womack, who had 19 points. Michael McCormick had 14. Cole Schlief, who had been a key scorer for the Cardinals, was held to five points and didn't score until third quarter.

Woodland was without big man Zach Beel, who suffered and ankle injury in the team's first-round win over Oran. Beel went through warmups with his teammates and was in uniform, but remained on the bench for the duration of the game.

"They're missing their big gun and he's a dang good player, but I thought we played hard," Wheetley said.

Woodland coach Logan Nutt talks to Cole Schlief and Bruester Young during the third quarter of a fifth-place semifinal in the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2015 at the Show Me Center. (FRED LYNCH)

Just 10 seconds after the Hornets went ahead for good in the first, Wuebker stole the ball and took it in for a layup, and Woodland began to chase the game. McCormick hit a pair of free throws at 3:44 to pull the Cardinals within two, but they failed to draw any closer, as Mayo sparked a 7-3 Advance run, capped with 2 seconds left in the first when Austin Ladd took a pass from Whitson and landed his shot for a 17-11 advantage after eight minutes.

The Cardinals began the second quarter with a Jake Long basket that cut the deficit to just four points, 17-13, but Advance exploded for 22 points in the period, with Wuebker slipping in a trey on a pass from Mayo at 6:33 for a 20-13 advantage, and Mayo muscling the ball in a minute and a half later to maintain an eight-point edge.

The Hornet press created some easy points, as a 9-2 swing late in the period led to a 39-21 lead after Armani Vermillion drove to the right block, drew contact and laid the ball in. The converted three-point play pushed the gap to 39-21.

A pair of free throws from Woodland's Jake Long sent the game to halftime at 39-23.

The third quarter saw Advance go on an early 8-4 swing, with Vermillion scoring in transition at 6:23 before getting a feed from Wuebker less than 20 seconds later for another bucket. He then capped that run with a jump shot for a 48-31 lead midway through the period.

Womack came alive for Woodland in the fourth, scoring its last 14 points of the quarter, including a 3-pointer with 33 seconds left in the frame.

But the Hornets took a 15-point lead into the final period of play, and began the fourth quarter on a 7-0 run, getting to the line for six free-throw attempts. Vermillion hit a pair with 4:30 left in the contest to push the difference to 22 points, 65-43.

Advantage held its largest lead -- 23 points -- after Brendan Crader hit a free throw with 1:12 left to play.

Advance moves on to face Scott County Central, which defeated Scott City 75-72 on Tuesday, in Wednesday's fifth-place game. Tipoff is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.

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Advance 17 22 18 16 -- 73

Woodland 11 12 20 10 -- 53

ADVANCE (73) -- Armani Vermillion 21, Brendan Crader 1, Dakota Welty 3, Preston Wuebker 19, Brian Whitson 10, Austin Ladd 9, Dawson Mayo 10. FG 23, FT 18-23, F 12. (3-pointers: Wuebker 5, Whitson 3, Welty. Fouled out: None.)

WOODLAND (53) -- Jake Long 9, Cole Schlief 5, Connor Goodwin 2, Tyler Womack 19, Paul Duncan 4, Michael McCormick 14. FG 19, FT 11-16 F 15. (3-pointers: McCormick 2, Womack 2. Fouled out: None.)