Braves guards relish electric atmosphere

Drew Thomas and Bobby Hatchett were understandably disappointed with the outcome of the titanic high school basketball game.

But Scott County Central's star guards seemed to take solace in the fact they had just taken part in something special.

More than 7,000 amped fans piled into every nook and cranny of the Show Me Center for Wednesday night's highly anticipated matchup between Class 4 state power Sikeston and Class 1 state power SCC.

It's doubtful any of those people felt they didn't get their money's worth after Sikeston outlasted the Braves 86-85.

"It was great," said Hatchett, a lightning quick junior point guard who scored 17 points, many on knifing, acrobatic ventures into the lane. "It was everything I expected."

Ditto for Thomas, a hard-nosed senior guard who was well below his season average with 12 points as he acknowledged his shot deserted him at times.

"I couldn't hit the side of a barn tonight," Thomas said. "But I thought it was a great game. Everybody played hard. I thought we really prepared for it.

"Unfortunately, we didn't come out on top."

But only by the slimmest of margins as both teams put on a show in front of not only the sold-out crowd, but also at least five Division I head coaches or assistants.

Those coaches made the trek to check out the minimum of four potential Division I prospects on the court.

That quartet includes Thomas, Hatchett and SCC's smooth, rail-thin 6-foot-7 sophomore Otto Porter, who led the Braves with 22 points, 20 coming in the first half.

SCC, however, wound up having no answer for Sikeston's D-I recruit.

Michael Porter, a powerful 6-6 senior who already has been offered several Division I scholarships, piled up 33 points, 24 in the second half. He scored the game's final six points as Sikeston rallied from an 85-80 deficit in the last two minutes.

Porter -- a cousin to both Otto Porter and Hatchett -- scored on a put-back with 18 seconds left for what proved to be the game-winning basket.

"We knew that from the get-go," said Thomas when asked how difficult it would be to stop Michael Porter.

The Braves still had an opportunity to pull out the victory, and the plan was for Hatchett to penetrate in the final seconds.

After Sikeston committed a foul with 12 seconds left -- SCC was not yet in the bonus -- Hatchett got hung up and had to dish off to Thomas, who eventually passed the ball back to Hatchett.

Hatchett drove the baseline, but his shot from about 10 feet was deflected as he tumbled to the floor just before the buzzer sounded.

"Just get the best shot we could get," Hatchett said of the final play. "I got in trouble and passed it to Drew. He got it back to me. I took it to the hole and tried to draw a foul."

There appeared to be some contact, but the officials had been consistent all night in letting the players go at it without blowing the whistle too much.

"I thought I did," Hatchett said when asked if he got fouled. "But no excuse."

A classic like this game needed no excuse. That's why Hatchett could smile even after the Braves (17-2) saw their 16-game winning streak end.

"I loved it," he said. "I've been waiting to play a game like this."