Bell City looks for its fifth straight sectional win over SCC

~ Both teams are state ranked entering tonight's Class 1 game.

Rivals Bell City and Scott County Central will meet today in a Class 1 sectional contest for the fifth straight year.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7:45 p.m. at Poplar Bluff High School.

The Cubs (25-3) have won all four previous sectional meetings against the Braves (23-2), and then have gone on to appear in the state final four each time.

Bell City coach Brian Brandtner said his team will have to limit its turnovers and rebound well to make it five straight sectional victories over Scott County.

"Not turning the ball over is probably going to be key to this game," Brandtner said. "If we turn the ball over and they get easy baskets, it's probably going to be a long night for us.

"Defensively, we have to eliminate second-chance points for them. We've got to rebound the basketball well, and we've got to try to contain them a little bit. We know they're going to score some and they're going to hit some shots. We've just got to eliminate second chances for them."

Not turning over the basketball and rebounding effectively are easier said than done against Scott County, which is known for its strong full-court pressure on defense. The Braves have proven the ability to maintain a fast pace for four quarters and battle back when trailing.

The two teams played Nov. 30, with the Cubs posting a 75-72 victory in the championship game of the Oran boys basketball tournament. Bell City led by 14 points at the end of the third quarter, and increased its advantage to as many as 17 points early in the fourth. But Scott County staged a comeback, using its strong defense to pull within one point of the Cubs with 51 seconds remaining. But the Cubs were able to hang on for the win.

"Scott County is going to make runs," Brandtner said. "They are too good of a team not to put points on the board. The key is just to limit the run game. They are going to score points, and we've got to prevent them from not getting them in bunches. Obviously, we need to take care of the basketball and make better decisions late in the game. But you're not going to stop them. You've just got to hope to limit them."

Brandtner's Cubs are led by 6-foot-1 senior guard Nick Niemczyk, a nominee for the McDonald's All-American High School Game who has scored more than 2,000 points in his high school career. Niemczyk posted 41 points Thursday in the Class 1 District 2 title game win over Lesterville.

Bell City's 6-0 forward Phillip Gross also has been impressive in the postseason. He averaged 15.3 points per game in three district contests.

"You see Nick Niemczyk in the box score leading the way most [nights], but he'd be the first one to tell you that it's everybody," Brandtner said. "Everybody has got to do their jobs. Guys on the bench, when they come off, we can't have a drop off. And we've just got to execute the plan we've been working on the past couple of days.

"Phillip is one of those guys where if he plays well, I like our chances. He's a great athlete, a great competitor. If we can get Phillip Gross going, then that opens up Niemczyk a lot. We've been trying to look to Phillip a lot more lately."

A balanced attack

Brandtner said he is not focusing his game plan on stopping one Scott County player. The Braves, led by coach Ronnie Cookson, who led the Braves to 12 state titles, feature a number of scoring options, including 5-10 senior D.D. Gillespie, 6-0 junior Drew Thomas and 6-1 senior Caleb Johnson.

Brandtner said his defense must account for every Braves player at all times.

"They all penetrate well," Brandtner said. "They've got some good shooters and Caleb [Johnson] inside. It's not just one of those things where you can just stop one or two of them. It's going to have to be a team effort. We're all going to have to do our jobs."

Scott County has inserted 6-2 freshman Otto Porter into its lineup as a starter for the past few games. Cookson said last week that the move was to add more height to his lineup. Brandtner said Scott County is a better team with Porter's size added to the mix.

"Otto, he's a great player," Brandtner said. "He's long. He makes his shots. He definitely doesn't make too many mistakes. We definitely need to know where Otto Porter is at all times on the floor. Yeah, I think he makes them a pretty darn good basketball team. They were good without him. But I think he helps them a ton."

Cookson did not return phone messages inquiring about what his team needs to improve upon to beat the Cubs.

Brandtner said it should be a fun game to watch.

"Any time you throw great players in with a legendary coach, then you're going to have a great basketball team," Brandtner said. "And we know we've got our hands full. They're well coached. They get after it. They rebound well and we're going to have to bring our A game. There is no doubt about it.

"They've got a bunch of great players. We've got a bunch of great players, and I just think it's going to be a good basketball game."

Girls bracket

Delta and Scott County Central also will meet today in a Class 1 sectional contest.

Tipoff will be at 6 p.m. at Poplar Bluff High School before the boys game.

Scott County (10-10) upset Delta (22-2) last year in the sectional round, ending the Bobcats' perfect season.