East Prairie and Kelly win conference clashes

EAST PRAIRIE, Mo. — A strong second quarter propelled East Prairie over Scott County Central 80-67 on Tuesday, Jan. 9.

The Eagles (11-2) pulled away and never looked back against the Braves (7-7) in the Scott-Mississippi Conference showdown.

“We had a big second quarter and that turned out to be the biggest difference in the game,” said East Prairie coach Gary Scott. “We were able to force some turnovers and capitalize off of them. We had multiple guys scoring the ball tonight and were hard to stop offensively.”

Noah Johnson paced the attack with 23 points, while Connor Marcum chipped in 14, Evan Kenedy added 13, and Kamron Farmer contributed 11, showcasing the Eagles' balance.

Scott County was led by Cortavian Banks with 19, while Asher Britt and Namarius Banks-Warren scored 18 and 14, respectively.

East Prairie hosts Caruthersville (7-3), while Scott County Central is on the road at Class 3, No. 8 Charleston (8-7) on Friday, Jan. 12.

Kelly's Ross Peters (0) shoots in during game earlier this season.Dennis Marshall ~ Standard-Democrat

__HAWKS GROUND EAGLES__

ORAN, Mo. — Kelly’s defense was the undisputed star of Tuesday's Scott-Mississippi Conference matchup, holding Oran in check throughout a decisive 55-24 victory.

The dominant defensive performance powered the Hawks (11-2) to a vital conference victory over the Eagles (4-9), which could be the difference between a favorable and a challenging tournament path.

“We played our best defense of the year,” said Kelly coach Noel Trimmer. “Our offense was powered by Ross Peters and Dalton Forck. We played a solid game on both ends of the floor.”

Peters scored a game-high 18, while Forck added 14 points and 14 rebounds. Michael Dollins also had a double-double contributing 10 points and 11 assists.

“Kelly’s defense forced into a bad shooting percentage and they did a good job of exploiting some mismatches offensively,” said Oran coach Joe Shoemaker. “We are continuing to work every day in practice to improve and we are anticipating those improvements to start showing during games.”

Oran travels to St. Vincent (8-6), while Kelly hosts Chaffee (3-9) on Friday, Jan. 12.

While the regular season showdown between East Prairie and Kelly isn't until February 9, both teams are locked in a tight battle for the top seed in the Scott-Mississippi Conference Tournament, which begins January 27, each win adding weight to their case as they navigate the remaining schedule.

__EAST PRAIRIE 80, SCOTT COUNTY CENTRAL 67__

SCC 16 18 12 21 — 67

East Prairie 13 32 17 18 — 80

Scott County Central (67) — Cortavian Banks 19, Asher Britt 18, Namarius Banks-Warren 14, Zavior Mize 8, Courtney Sanders III 6, Ty Murray 2. FG: 28. FT: 9-14. F: 8. (3-pointers: Mize 2. Fouled out: None).

East Prairie (80) — Noah Johnson 23, Connor Marcum 14, Evan Kenedy 13, Kamron Farmer 11, Tripp Shoemaker 6, Tavion Ware 5, Ty Wallace 5, Braylan Cade 4. FG: 34. FT: 7-12. F: 14. (3-pointers: Marcum 2, Wallace 1, Farmer 1, Johnson 1. Fouled out: None).

__KELLY 55, ORAN 24__

Kelly 16 14 17 8 — 55

Oran 5 7 2 10 — 24

Kelly (55) — Ross Peters 18, Dalton Forck 14, Michael Dollins 10, Reece Eftink 5, Skyler Still 2, Truman White 2, Cannon Kirkpatrick 2, Tucker Miller 2. FG: 26. FT: 2-7. F: 16. (3-pointers: Peters 1. Fouled out: None).

Oran (24) — Elijah Shoemaker 5, Kole Burger 3, Cooper Senciboy 3, Owen Forehand 2, Nolan Loper 2, Carson Kern 2, Cole Diebold 2, Gabe Dirnberger 2, Nathan Pobst 2. FG: 10. FT: 3-6. F: 13. (3-pointers: Shoemaker 1. Fouled out: Shoemaker).