Central rallies past Pats

The Central boys basketball team had more than a week off after dropping two straight games at the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament.

After the first half on Saturday at the Tiger Shootout, the Tigers looked like the layoff had taken a toll on them, as they fell behind Parkway South 31-22 at halftime.

Behind strong post play from junior Darnell Wilks and stout defense, Central roared back for a 67-55 victory at Central High School.

Central improved to 7-5 and 2-0 at home.

"We came out sluggish that first half, but the second half we executed well," Central coach Derek McCord said. "That second half may have been our best second half of the year."

Parkway South (7-3) moved its lead to a game-high 35-23 early in the third quarter, but Central used a 9-0 run to close the gap to 35-32. The Tigers edged back into the contest by scoring in transition, beating the Patriots down the court several times for layins during the run.

"It seems like when we get those transition baskets, it gives us a shot in the arm on defense," McCord said.

Sophomore guard Adrian Cox hit a 3-pointer with 1:40 left in the third to give Central its first lead of the game at 39-38. David Deisher ended the quarter with back-to-back three-point plays to push the lead to 45-38 after three quarters.

The fourth quarter was all about free throws for the Tigers. Central went to the line 20 times in the period and maintained a lead of at least eight points throughout the final quarter.

Wilks finished a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter. Overall, Wilks was 10-for-12 from the line, with all 12 attempts coming in the second half.

"I knew every time I made it, I was holding my hand up there, so I just tried to do that every time," Wilks said.

Plagued by foul trouble in the opening half, Wilks scored just four points in limited playing time. Wilks had 16 points after the break to finish with a game-high 20, including a dunk late in the game to punctuate the win.

McCord said the coaches told Wilks at the half to post up strong, believing if he did that he would either get fouled or score every time.

"He was a man down low in that third quarter," McCord said. "That was the difference in the game."

While the Tigers struggled on the boards early in the game, Central finished with a 37-22 edge in rebounding. When the Tigers won six of seven games earlier this season, they were routinely outrebounding their opponents.

"We won six out of seven and in that span we outrebounded our opponents in seven of those games," McCord said. "We had a renewed commitment from our guys in hitting the boards."

Central finished with four of its starters in double figures. Deisher added 14 points, Jajuan Bell had 13 and Cox finished with 11. Kourtney Lewis and Tyler Terry each had three points apiece off the bench, but really made their presence felt on the defensive end.

"Many of those guys that came off the bench, they usually don't get many minutes, but they really gave us some good minutes," Wilks said.

Added McCord: "Kourtney Lewis, Tyler Terry and Derek Walker, they really stepped up there in the second half."

Grant Steward led Parkway South with 16 points. Mario Scott, the Patriots top scorer, did not see action against the Tigers.

Central 67, Parkway South 55

Parkway South 15 16 7 17 -- 55

Central 13 9 23 22 -- 67

PARKWAY SOUTH (55) -- Julian Gilliam 5, James Hicks 11, Grant Steward 16, Quincy Williams 11, Dan Salivar 2, Kelann Campbell 2, Ashton Woods 1. FG 18, FT 16-25, F 26 (3-pointers: Steward 2, Williams 1. Fouled out: Steward)

CENTRAL (67) -- Darnell Wilks 20, David Deisher 14, Jajuan Bell 13, Adrian Cox 11, Tyler Terry 3, Kourtney Lewis 3, Derek Walker 1. FG 21, FT 22-33, F 21 (3-pointers: Cox 2, Bell 1. Fouled out: Deisher)

Notre Dame 65, MICDS 52

Notre Dame won its seventh straight, as four starters scored in double figures for the Bulldogs at the Tiger Shootout.

Sophomore forward Ryan Willen led the charge with 16 points, 14 of which came in the second half.

"I thought Ryan Willen had a really good game," Notre Dame coach Paul Hale said. "He did a good job on the boards."

Notre Dame (13-1) trailed only twice to Mary Institute-Country Day School, with a 16-15 lead early in the second MICDS' last lead. The Bulldogs finally pulled away late in the third thanks to their relentless press.

Alex Ressel had 13 points, Kirk Boeller added 12 and Xavier Delph finished with 11.

Mustafa Abdul-Hamid led MICDS with 27 points.

MICDS 11 14 13 14 -- 52

Notre Dame 15 18 17 15 -- 65

MICDS (52) -- Mustafa Abdul-Hamid 27, Bryson Banks 12, Michael Hollo 8, DiMarcus Wilson 3, Jordan Martin 2. FG 21, FT 6-14, F 17 (3-pointers: Abul-Hamid 4. Fouled out: none)

NOTRE DAME (65) -- Alex Ressel 13, Xavier Delph 11, Kirk Boeller 12, Ryan Willen 16, Frankie Ellis 7, Abe Dirnberger 2, Ty Williams 4. FG 24, FT 12-23, F 15 (3-pointers: Boeller 2, Delph 1, Willen 1. Fouled out: Williams)

Berkeley 73, Jackson 70

Confusion over the official scoring nearly helped Jackson pull even with Berkeley in the final minute, but Berkeley held on for a win at the Tiger Shootout.

Drue McNeely's second of two late 3-pointers pushed the gap to 72-70 according to the scoreboard, and after Columbus Curry hit one of two free throws, the lead went to 73-70.

Berkeley missed its final four free throws, but the Indians could not capitalize on their late 3-point shots.

According to the Berkeley scorebook and several media scorebooks, McNeely's final 3-pointer should have made the score 73-69, with the final score 74-69.

Hunter Grantham led Jackson (12-3) with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Kyle Pridemore had 12 points and McNeely added 11.

Nick Jones and Whitney Noise combined for 29 of Berkeley's 33 second-half points.

Berkeley 15 26 16 16 -- 73

Jackson 25 13 10 22 -- 70

BERKELEY (73) -- Whitney Noise 25, Nick Jones 19, Antonio Campbell 9, Shawn Bracy 8, Reggie Spears 6, Kevin Jones 3, Columbus Curry 4. FG 29, FT 13-22, F 15 (3-pointers: Spears 2, K. Jones 1, Campbell 1. Fouled out: none)

JACKSON (70) -- Hunter Grantham 20, Kyle Pridemore 12, Drue McNeely 11, Aaron Redecker 8, Spencer Goodman 7, Jake Leet 5, Steven Spradlin 3, Colby Illers 2, Ryan Leet 1. FG 28, FT 8-13, F 20 (3-pointers: McNeely 3, J. Leet 1, Goodman 1. Fouled out: Redecker)

Fredericktown 55, Saxony Lutheran 54

Mike Francis hit a short jumper with 32 seconds left to lift Fredericktown to a win at the Tiger Shootout.

Saxony Lutheran (9-3) got the ball back with 7.8 seconds remaining but could not convert on a last-second shot.

Tim Lorenz scored 20 points and Casey Petzoldt added 12 for Saxony. Alex Jauch added 10 points.

Fredericktown 11 17 9 18 -- 55

Saxony Lutheran 13 14 15 12 -- 54

FREDERICKTOWN (55) -- Mike Francis 13, Mike Stapfer 11, Jake Clauser 10, Dustin Bess 7, Jerod Williams 5, Eli Skaggs 5, Ryan Sawyer 2, Ryan Thompson 2. FG 23, FT 4-11, F 12 (3-pointers: Bess 1. Fouled out: Stapfer)

SAXONY LUTHERAN (54) -- Trey Maevers 5, Lauren Lueders 5, Tim Lorenz 20, Casey Petzoldt 12, Alex Jauch 10, Ben Courtois 2. FG 21, FT 9-11, F 12 (3-pointers: Maevers 1, Lueders 1. Fouled out: none)