New Madrid works past slow start, dominates Dexter

NEW MADRID – It was Basketball Homecoming Night at New Madrid County Central High School on Friday and several of the Eagle boy’s players took part I n the pregame ceremonies as escorts for the various Homecoming Queen candidates.

That is thought of as a necessary distraction for most coaches, and that proved to be the case for the Eagles – for a while.

New Madrid County Central overcame a slow offensive start and eventually dominated Dexter at both ends of the court dominating the Bearcats 52-35.

“The difference,” veteran Eagle coach Lennis McFerren said afterward, “was all the hype with Homecoming. You could tell, that is what it was.”

Through the initial 12 minutes of the game, Dexter (12-5) was effective at both ends, as they built an advantage by limiting New Madrid County Central to a mere 10 points. However, McFerren called a timeout in the second quarter and his team began to play with the ferocity that one would expect from the Class 3 No. 1-ranked team in the state.

“I was proud of our guys and thought we played great in keeping them in front of us,” Dexter coach Chad Allen said. “The main thing was they started getting offensive rebounds. That is really what got them going.”

The Eagles (10-5) outscored Dexter 15-9 in the second quarter, as their athletic players blocked numerous Bearcat shots and pounded the offensive glass with abandon.

Following the first quarter, New Madrid never allowed Dexter to score in double figures again in a period.

“These guys work hard,” McFerren said of his team. “They work hard in practice. They have worked hard, but they weren’t learning anything.

“Tonight, they tried to do things.”

What McFerren was referring to was the play of his team of late.

The Eagles had dropped two of their past three games, but in fairness, those defeats were to Charleston and Cape Central, two teams who have combined for 33 victories this season.

New Madrid maintained its mojo following halftime, as it opened the second half on a 6-0 run and forced Allen to call a timeout, and by the end of the quarter, the dominating inside play of several New Madrid players had resulted in Dexter senior center Peyton Boles fouling out with nine-plus minutes remaining in the game.

“We didn’t have good block-out assignments,” Allen lamented. “We’re going to have to look at the film and do a better job of that.”

New Madrid County Central junior forward, Jadis Jones, defended Dexter senior scorer Cole Nichols and held him to 14 points, but just three free throws (and no baskets) in the critical third quarter when the hosts pulled away.

Bearcat senior shooter Truman Krapf finished with 12 points.

Eagle junior guard BJ Williamson led his team with 22 points, while Jones finished with 19. Both players were animals on the glass, as well.

New Madrid senior Brayden Newsom was also effective defensively and totaled 10 points in the win.

The Bearcats are the top seed in the upcoming Stoddard County Athletic Association Tournament at Dexter and will face No. 8-seed Bell City (3-12) on Monday at 8:30 p.m.

New Madrid will host Malden (13-5) on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.