C3D2: The 'District of Death' lives up to the hype

The Class 3 District 2 boys basketball tournament lived up to the hype as the "District of Death."

The first round saw Scott City (22-5) narrowly defeat Woodland (21-6) and Kelly (21-5) edge Saxony Lutheran (17-10) on Tuesday, Feb. 20, at Notre Dame Regional High School.

These are the records of a state final four, and they're all in one district tournament.

"I've been coaching since 1982," Kelly head coach Noel Trimmer said. "This is my 42nd year and I can honestly say it is the hardest district I've ever been in my entire career. That little nickname that the media has been giving it, the 'District of Death', is pretty appropriate because [Tuesday], two really good teams are going home. Saxony can very easily be playing for the championship ... and a 21-win team is going home."

Among the three high-stake games, two of them instant classics, Kobe Watson was the star of the night. The Scott City junior scored a career-high 40 points to lead the Rams past the Cardinals 85-78.

"Everybody just kept getting the ball to me and I had to go through the hoop," Watson said. "Once I got the confidence I just knew if I got to the basket, I was gonna score."

Woodland, led by Korbin Kinder (20 points), Brayden Hastings (19), and Calvin Layton (17), kept pace ahead of the Rams throughout the first three quarters. Trailing 60-57, the Rams rallied in the fourth quarter on the backs of Watson's 13 points and Kaden Lowery's two baskets from the three-point line. Brenden Beussink (13 points) and Mark Panagos (12) rounded out the double-digit scorers for Scott City.

It's an unfortunate end for a Woodland team that started with back-to-back 100-point games and finished with 21 wins for the second consecutive season.

Kelly's Michael Dollins drives toward the basket with Reece Eftink behind him in the Class 3 District 2 Tournament on Tuesday, Feb. 20, at Notre Dame Regional High School. Tony Capobianco ~ tcapobianco@semoball.com

The closest game of the night was between Saxony Lutheran and Kelly, which ended 62-61 in favor of the Hawks. Michael Dollins led the Hawks with 19 points including seven during their fourth-quarter rally. Dalton Forck and Ross Peters each scored 16 points for Kelly. Peters' two free throws in the final minutes sealed the victory for Kelly.

"All three of them on any given night can go off for 20-25 points," Trimmer said. "With those three, and Reece Eftink is averaging 11 points per game, so we're averaging four of our five double digits every night, and that balanced scoring makes it very difficult."

Luke Eggemeyer led the Crusaders with 24 points, while John Hartmann and Owen Bucheit added 14 points each. Eggemeyer's eight points led to a 23-point third quarter to enter the final period with a 45-41 Crusader lead, but the senior was held to only three points as the Hawks snatched victory from the jaws of a season-ending defeat.

"We went to that triangle on defense and we put Ross Peters on him," Trimmer said on defending Eggemeyer. "Ross' job wasn't to stop him. It was to deny him the ball because we know if Eggemeyer gets passed over Ross then we're gonna have to clap with everybody else but the key was Ross standing between him and the ball."

Notre Dame's Kolton Johnson drives toward the basket against Valle Catholic in the Class 3 District 2 Tournament on Tuesday, Feb. 20, at Notre Dame Regional High School. Tony Capobianco ~ tcapobianco@semoball.com

Notre Dame played the proper host and began the triple-header with a 73-36 blowout win over Valle Catholic. The win was all but secured for the Bulldogs after a 27-8 first-quarter lead.

"It was definitely one of our best starts of the year," Notre Dame head coach Jeremy Brinkmeyer said. "We came out and played really hard on the defensive end, which led to us being successful on the offensive side."

The Bulldogs also scored 21 points in the third quarter while holding the Warriors to 15 points in the second half. Kolton Johnson led the Bulldogs with 24 points including six baskets from the three-point line.

"He's been shooting the ball really well and playing really good defense as well," Brinkmeyer said. "We talked about it all the time, don't be afraid to search for your shot and he's been doing that and they've been falling."

Brett Dohogne scored 12 points, followed by 11 from Trenton Schumacker, and nine from Hudson Dennis. The Bulldogs made a total of 12 three-point shots and were 9-of-11 from the free-throw line.

This is Notre Dame's second straight home victory by 30+ points. The Bulldogs will host Kelly in the semifinal round on Thursday, Feb. 22. The Bulldogs (12-15) went from not winning a game at home to being dominant in their friendly confides. This is also the first matchup between Notre Dame and Kelly outside of the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament since 2011.

"We're the same team that we've been," Brinkmeyer said. "We've just continued to work and focus every day and getting better."

Scott City will take on top-seeded Charleston (12-14) for the first time since the 2020 Class 3 state tournament. The Blue Jays, who won the C3D2 title last year, have won all eight matchups against the Rams.

Should Scott City and Kelly win on Thursday, a fourth matchup between the rivals would decide the district championship. Kelly has won the previous three rounds and was rewarded with the Scott-Miss Conference Tournament championship and fifth place trophy at the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament.

And still, the Rams would want nothing more than a third shot at revenge over the Hawks. When asked about the possibility of Round 4 on Saturday, Watson answered, "I hope so."

__Southeast Missourian teams in district semifinals, Feb. 22__

C1D2: Leopold vs. Risco

C1D3: Oak Ridge vs. Bunker

C2D3: Advance vs. Meadow Heights

C2D4: St. Vincent vs. Crystal City