Malden boys basketball team downs Oran in OIT, advances to face Scott County Central

ORAN, Mo. -- It came down to the charity stripe in the last semifinal of the Oran Invitational Tournament.

The third-seeded Malden Green Wave finished 20 of 26 (77 percent) from the free-throw line and outlasted the second-seeded tournament host Eagles 70-63 on Thursday.

The Green Wave (2-0) were led by senior Cortez Dobbins, who finished with a game-high 25 points, while 6-foot-5 teammate Trevor Ison added 21 points.

"Outstanding effort all the way around from our kids," said Malden coach Andrew Halford, whose squad will face Scott County Central for the title tonight. "That's what we look for."

The Eagles (1-1) jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter. Garrison Mangles dished the ball inside to Hunter Schlossler, who capped off an 11-4 run with a layup and forced Malden to take its first timeout of the game with 3:51 remaining in the first quarter.

"We're working on preaching to these kids about playing harder every possession," Oran coach Joe Shoemaker said. "We're not there yet, but we're getting there. Tonight was a little closer than we have been, but we're not practicing as hard as we need to. You notice that sometimes when we take breaks, so that's something we're working on."

The Green Wave got within three points at the end of the first quarter and opened the second quarter with back-to-back 3-pointers by Alejandro Gordon and Ison, giving Malden its first lead of the game at 18-15.

"They really got up and put some pressure on the basketball with their quickness," Shoemaker said. "We didn't adjust well enough to it, didn't execute well enough. That's something we'll work on in practice and get better at."

Dobbins gave the Green Wave plenty of momentum going into the break after knocking down a deep trey near half court at the buzzer, extending Malden's lead to 29-25.

"That was a game-changing opportunity," Halford said about Dobbins' shot. "We came out in the third and let down a little bit, but we were able to bounce back also. Even as big of an opportunity as that was, we still gave up the lead later in the third."

The third quarter saw three ties and three lead changes, but the Green Wave pushed their lead to 45-42 when Reginald Reed scored on a layup as time expired in the third.

Malden's Cortez Dobbins and Oran's Garrison Mangles watch for the rebound in the fourth quarter during the semifinals of the 59th Annual Oran Invitational Tournament Thursday, Dec. 4, 2014 in Oran, Missouri. (Glenn Landberg)

In the fourth quarter, Malden held a 57-50 lead before the Eagles went on an 8-2 run capped by a free throw from Schlossler to cut the Green Wave's lead to one point.

Meanwhile, Malden pounded the boards throughout the game. Shoemaker said Ison's presence in the paint led to Oran's mismatch in rebounding.

"I told our kids it's hard for us to rebound one on one with them. We're not going to win that matchup," Shoemaker said. "We've got to try and go rebound as a team against him. There were times we did it, and we were successful. But there were times we stood and watched. That's something we can't do if we want to be successful. We're just not big enough."

After missed opportunities late in the quarter, Malden took advantage as Dobbins, Orlandis Farr and Ison each knocked down pivotal free throws.

The Green Wave were 17 of 19 from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter, while the Eagles were 9 of 16.

"We did very well down the stretch," Halford said. "We turned it over a little bit too much, but we were able to knock down some free throws and secure some rebounds."

Jacob Priggel led Oran with 22 points, while Schlossler added 19 and Max Priggel contributed 12. The Eagles finished the game 23 of 37 (62 percent) from the field.

Despite his team's struggles from the free-throw line, Shoemaker was pleased to see his team continue to compete late in the game.

"I don't think our kids ever quit battling. *... That's just something we're going to have to get in practice and work a little harder on," Shoemaker said about the free-throw shooting.

Malden will take on Scott County Central at 8 p.m. today in the championship game. Oran will face Advance in the third-place game at 6:30 p.m. today.

"I'm excited. These kids are excited," Halford said. "We're building something. *... We had a great opportunity against a good team tonight, and we're going to have the same opportunity against a great team tomorrow night in Scott County. We're looking forward to it."

Oran 15 10 17 21 -- 63

Malden 12 17 16 25 -- 70

ORAN (63) -- Jacob Priggel 22, Max Priggel 12, Hunter Schlossler 19, Garrison Mangles 4, Preston Hahn 3. FG 23 FT 16-27. (3 pointers: J. Priggel 1. Fouled out: Mangles.)

MALDEN (70) -- Cortez Dobbins 25, Trevor Ison 21, Shaeen Perkins 8, Orlandis Farr 4, Reginald Reed 4, Alejandro Gordon 4, Shamaudre Barber 2, Dremond Robinson 2. FG 23 FT 20-26. (3-pointers: Dobbins 1, Ison 1, Perkins 1, Gordon 1. Fouled out: Barber.)

Scott County Central topples Advance

Scott County Central's Jeffery Porter drives past Advance's Austin Ladd in the third quarter during the semifinals of the 59th Annual Oran Invitational Tournament Thursday, Dec. 4, 2014 in Oran, Missouri. (Glenn Landberg)

Jeffery Porter scored a game-high 29 points to lead the Braves to a 90-66 win over Advance in Thursday's first semifinal.

The Braves (4-0) jumped out to a 27-11 lead at the end of the first quarter but were outscored 21-18 in the second quarter.

"We just couldn't stop their speed," Advance coach Bubba Wheetley said. "Overall, I thought our boys played hard."

Drake Kesler sparked an impressive third quarter for Scott County Central. He finished with 12 points, including 10 in the third.

"They shot the ball so well the whole game," Wheetley said. "They shot well, and their defense shut us down a little bit."

Javonta Daniel also added 23 points for the Braves, while teammate Skylar Lemons contributed 16 points.

The Hornets (1-1) were led by Dalton Wilson, who finished with 25 points. Preston Wuebker added 18 points on four 3-pointers, and Dawson Mayo had 13 points for Advance.

"That game's behind us now," Wheetley said. "We've got to get ready for Friday night and come out of this thing with hopefully third [place]."

Advance 11 21 18 16 -- 66

Scott County Central 27 18 24 21 -- 90

ADVANCE (66) -- Dalton Wilson 25, Preston Wuebker 18, Dawson Mayo 13, Austin Ladd 6, Alex Morse 4. FG 27 FT 8-9. (3-pointers: Wuebker 4. Fouled out: none.)

SCOTT COUNTY CENTRAL (90) -- Jeffery Porter 29, Javonta Daniel 23, Skylar Lemons 16, Drake Kesler 12, Matt Blissett 4. FG 24 FT 11-14. (3-pointers: Kesler 2, Lemons 2, Porter 1. Fouled out: none.)