Scott City pounds Puxico, now one win shy of 20

By defeating Puxico 65-43 at home on Saturday, Feb. 10, the Scott City Rams (19-4) are now one win away from their first 20-win season since winning the district title in 2020.

It's a drastic improvement from the Rams' 11-15 season in 2023 and 13-14 record in 2022. There was an internal belief that Scott City would be a contender this year, but even this exceeded outside expectations.

"We thought we had a chance to be pretty good," Dannenmueller said. "Had a lot of guys back from last year, and we won six out of the last seven last year in the season. Then you add Kobe [Watson] and Mark [Panagos] and then a couple of freshmen that are added in as well. So we thought we had a chance to be pretty good."

The Rams defeated a Puxico team that had 19 wins for the first time since MSHSAA.org started keeping track of records in 2009. Landon Burchard led the Indians with 17 points while Jett Hancock added 10 points.

The Rams previously dispatched Perryville on the road on Friday to give head coach Mark Dannenmueller his 200th career win.

"Just means that I've been coaching for a long time," Dannenmueller said. "I just think about all your players that you coached along the way because in my eyes all those wins belong to them. That's how I look at it."

The Rams jumped on the Indians early with an 18-6 first quarter. Seven different players found the basket as Scott City scored 21 points in the second quarter to enter halftime up 39-22, punctuated by a buzzer-beater by Kalen Conner.

"We kind of gotten off to some slow starts so we really wanted to come out and set the tone and we did defensively," Dannenmueller said. "They stayed in and stuck together and just guarded."

Kobe Watson led the Rams with 18 points and eight rebounds. Watson has been Scott City's leading scorer for most of the games he's been on the court, including his 19-point night at Perryville on Friday.

"He's a really good player and makes everybody's job a little bit easier when you got a guy on the court that can shoot it and handle it and finish it," Dannenmueller said.

Watson missed a chunk of the season due to injury and it didn't stop the Rams from dominating the competition. With him back in the fold, everyone is thriving in their roles.

"Kobe missed a lot of time and we still won a lot of games when he was out," Dannenmueller said. "We had a bunch of dudes step up and play well. Now that we've got him back, everybody else is sliding back to their other roles. But now they've got confidence."

Jackson Gloth was the other Scott City double-digit scorer with 11 points. He also grabbed five rebounds and led the defense with five steals.

"Jackson is the glue of the team," Dannenmueller said. "He's a coach's dream because he does every little thing that you ask him to do and he never complains."

One of the hallmarks of a successful team is chemistry, and there's no doubt that Scott City sports a close-knit squad.

"I think every successful team has those types of kids that like each other," Dannenmueller said. "We have a bunch of different personalities, but they're fun personalities and they're just a really good group to coach."

Scott City has lost only to two teams this season, Cape Central in the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament, and Kelly three times. A fourth meeting may come in the Class 3 District 2 Tournament later in February. C3D2 is considered one of the most competitive districts in the state. Along with Scott City and Kelly leading the way with 19 wins, there's also Saxony Lutheran (17-8) and Woodland (17-5).

Scott City will have one more game at home on Monday, Feb. 12, against East Prairie, followed by a game at the home of the Memphis Grizzlies against St. Paul Lutheran (Feb. 14), and the conclusion of the regular season at Notre Dame on Feb. 15.

"We're just going to try to get ready for East Prairie and be better," Dannenmueller said.