Doniphan shooting scorches Central

How tough is the SEMO Conference?

It's difficult enough that a sharp-shooting Doniphan squad and a young, athletic Cape Central team found themselves in a battle for the basement.

Doniphan shot a scorching 66 percent from the floor through the first three quarters and won 84-67 Tuesday at Central High, preventing the Tigers from picking up their first conference victory.

In a game that was more competitive than the final score, it was also fairly apparent why the teams have been struggling against other conference opponents. The teams combined to start just one senior, Doniphan's Brian Pulliam, who scored a game-high 23 points.

Matt Cardin, one of two seniors on the Tiger roster, came off the bench to score a team-high 21 points for Cape Central. Junior Anthony Harris added 14 points and Jay Ruark finished with 10.

"Matt is really shooting the ball well," said Cape Central coach Derek McCord. "He spends a lot of time in the gym and you can really tell."

"This team needs a lot with just two seniors, me and Elliott (Swoboda)," said Cardin. "I kind of like coming in off the bench. It give me a chance to come in and fire up the team."

A young Tiger team started two sophomores and three juniors against Doniphan, a factor that has played against Central all season.

"That would help if we had some other guys with experience," Cardin said. "They could come in and hit some big shots, too. In a close game like that, they know how it feels."

Doniphan (5-9, 2-3) led wire-to-wire, but was never able to shake Central (4-13, 0-4) until the fourth quarter.

Central trailed 35-28 at halftime and made a game of it in the third quarter, where Cardin scored nine of his points. An offensive putback by Dorian McElmurry cut the lead to 40-38.

Ruark again pulled the Tigers to within 42-40, but Doniphan scored on three straight possessions for a 48-40 advantage.

"We kept fighting back but it always seemed like they had an answer for us," said Cardin.

Doniphan shot 57 percent for the game.

"They won this game this summer and this fall, they just didn't win it tonight," said McCord. "They're gym rats. They shoot the basketball."

jbreer@semissourian.com

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