Risco, Cooter to scrap for Tri-County Conference title

RISCO – And then there were two.

From a field of eight Bootheel high school basketball programs, home-town hosts, the first-seeded Risco Tigers and the second-seeded Cooter Wildcats both emerged victorious at Thursday's Tri-County Conference Tournament semifinals at Roy Hon Gymnasium.

Risco head coach Brandon Blankenship's Tigers (18-3) defeated fifth-seeded Clarkton head coach Cole McBroom's Reindeer (7-16) 67-36 and Cooter head coach David Mathis' Wildcats (15-7) took out sixth-seeded Gideon head coach Keenan Buchanan's Bulldogs (7-15) 78-46 to advance to Friday's final round of competition.

And the Wildcats threaten a “three-peat” performance.

“We won the conference tournament the last two years in a row,” Mathis told The Delta Dunklin Democrat. “So we're looking for a third win on Friday.”

That triple-threat comes at a price – the Tigers are 18-3 for a reason – and Mathis' squad will search out what some might call an unexpected result.

“Risco is just really, really good,” Mathis said. “It's gonna be one of those nights where you just gotta pull an upset.

“Nine out of 10 nights they could beat us by 30,” he added. “But maybe one night, we can get 'em.”

Cooter Wildcats' long-distance threat Jayden McLevain at ThursdaysTri-County Conference Tournament at Risco. McLevain blasted five three-point shots in the semifinal's fourth quarter alone. Photo by Steve Hankins

For any other team, that might be a tall order considering the Tigers fielded five players who scored in double digits during the semifinal round.

But Mathis' squad fared nearly as well.

The Tigers' Landon Baker scored 10; Eli Rodgers dropped 18; Owen Fortner was good for 13; Sammy Smith had 11; and Aaron Denson nailed 10.

Mathis' bunch included four players with double digit numbers. Tyson Banks had 20; Ryce Lynn walked away with 10; and big man at center Caleb Gunnels stashed 15.

That leaves a room for a fourth man, a Wildcats' rocket launcher.

Mathis fields a hoops sniper whose long-range skills are deadly on the hardwood.

“That's Jayden McLevain,” Mathis said. “If he hits the first couple he may hit 20.”

For real.

McLevain dropped seven threes for the Wildcats, five in a row during the final quarter alone that brought fans to their feet and cemented McLevain as the semifinal's top scorer with 27 points.

“He shot it really, really well,” Mathis noted.

Does Blankenship have cause for concern?

Of course.

But his confidence in his team is unshaken.

“Our five scoring big, that's just testament to our guys sharing the basketball and us having multiple weapons,” Blankenship said. “Now we get the opportunity to play for a championship at home. It's a real thrill to bring a championship game home to Risco.”

Mathis and his boys are anxious to achieve yet another milestone, a conference title for the third straight year.

The Tri-County Conference Tournament final that pits the Risco Tigers against the Cooter Wildcats commences at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Risco High School's Roy Hon Gymnasium.