SCC take down Oran in Scott-Mississippi Conference championship

The Oran Eagles appeared ready to upset the No. 1 seeded Scott County Central Braves and defend their title in the championship of the Scott-Mississippi Conference Tournament.

Jeffery Porter had other ideas.

The sophomore netted a game-high 28 points, helping the Braves weather a rocky first half and pull away for an 80-69 win to regain the trophy that Oran took last year.

"We've asked a lot of him as a sophomore," Scott County coach Frank Staples said. "He had some growing pains as a freshman and now he's getting in position. We told him early on, we're going to put the ball in your hands and you're going to have to make some plays. He's all about getting his teammates involved. He's such a good kid, smart player, and he really just kind of opened it up for us."

Porter certainly wasn't shy in the final game.

Scott County (11-4) got sweet revenge a year after the Eagles blitzed the Braves 90-64 to halt the Braves' run of six consecutive championships.

Porter scored 16 as a freshman last year in the title bout, a steppingstone on his way to the performance Friday night.

"Just trying to get my teammates involved and attacking the goal," Porter said.

It didn't always appear the Braves were going to knock off the defending champs.

Oran came out swinging.

The Eagles (12-5) forced five turnovers in the first quarter, and Scott County missed its opening five shots as Oran bolted to an 8-0 lead.

Oran's defense limited the Braves to long perimeter shots, and the Eagles did a good job corralling the rebound and hitting outlet passes for easy baskets at the other end.

"On some of the long shots they missed we were able to get up and down the floor in transition and get some easy looks," Oran coach Joe Shoemaker said. "That's always nice."

Staples was forced to use his first timeout just over two minutes into the game and his team trailing 8-0.

The Braves got the message, roaring back and taking a 21-18 lead after the opening eight minutes.

Oran wasn't rattled. The Eagles had just four turnovers in the first half and were effective from the field.

The Eagles took a 31-27 lead with 4 minutes, 38 seconds remaining in the half but couldn't shake the Braves.

Oran held a 37-34 lead with under a minute to play, but Larandis Banks buried a 3-pointer with 28 seconds left to tie it at 37-37. Oran's Garrison Mangels countered with a basket with 18 seconds left to give the Eagles a 39-37 lead at halftime.

"They're just good," Staples said. "I tell everybody I have so much respect for that coaching staff and those kids. They're just a good team. They came ready to play, and we knew they would. We just had to weather the storm and just kind of keep pushing and pushing and just fight through it, and we were able to come out with the win."

Scott County came out with defensive intensity in the second half, hit the boards and started making jumpers to put the heat on the Eagles.

The teams were deadlocked at 44-44 three minutes into the third quarter when Scott County made its move.

The Braves used an 8-0 spurt to take a 52-44 lead.

"We knew we came out sloppy in the first half," Banks said. "We kind of let the game get away from us. We just wanted to come out in the second half, slide our feet more, and get a couple defensive stops and we knew we could win the game."

Scott County forced five Oran turnovers and limited the Eagles to 6 of 17 shooting from the field in the third quarter.

"We had a couple, like I said, sloppy turnovers to start [the second half]," Shoemaker said. "Then on top of that we went through a stretch where I think we missed three or four layups at the rim. You got to finish those. You really put yourself in a hole when you have some of the sloppy turnovers. They were picking up the defense up a little bit, but you just got to be able to handle the basketball."

The Braves managed to not allow Oran any closer than six points and held a 58-52 lead with less than 10 seconds to play in the quarter.

Porter held the ball at the top of the key for the final play before driving past his defender, drawing help from another Oran defender. He then kicked the ball out to a wide open Banks who buried the 3-pointer to make a 61-52 game heading into the fourth.

"Just wearing them down, " Porter said. "They were getting a little tired and all our running and stuff paid off. We started running and getting to them."

It was a much different Braves team than the opening 16 minutes.

"We just had to do a better job defensively, and then on the offensive end we were just kind of rushing and kind of jumbled," Staples said. "So we just kind of put the ball in Jeffery's hands, spread the floor, and let him, Larandis [Banks] and Juwan [Owens] kind of make some plays. We knew that would open up some things for us, and it did."

Scott County scored the first two buckets of the fourth to make it 65-52. Oran never cut the deficit to single digits until 37 seconds remained in the game.

Porter sealed the game at the line in the fourth, going 6 of 6 from the charity stripe.

"He's very good with the basketball in his hands when they kind of clear it out. It's hard to rotate and help because you can't get there in time," Shoemaker said. "I don't think he missed a free throw tonight -- he certainly didn't in the fourth quarter. He's a good player; tip your hat off to him. We get to see him one more time. We'll battle him next time."

Banks added 16 points for the Braves, and Juwan Owens and Javonta Daniel scored 11 and 10, respectively.

Chance Tenkhoff paced the Eagles with 16 points.

Seth Ressel added 15 and Jacob Priggel and Hunter Schlosser joined the duo in double figures with 12 and 11, respectively.

Scott County 21 16 24 19 -- 80

Oran 18 21 13 17 -- 69

SCOTT COUNTY (80) -- Juwan Owens 11, Larandis Banks 16, Jeffery Porter 28, Kendall Blissett 6, Javonta Daniel 10, Matthew Blissett 9. FG 27, FT 11-15, F 12. (3-pointers: Owens 1, Banks 2, Porter 2. Fouled out: none)

ORAN (69) -- Thomas Trankler 7, Jacob Priggel 12, Chance Tenkhoff 16, Seth Ressel 15, Garrison Mangels 8, Hunter Schlosser 11. FG 27, FT 6-7, F 14. (3-pointers: Trankler 1, Tenkhoff 2. Fouled out: Priggel)