Scott County Central boys basketball team reaches Class 1 quarterfinals

~ Braves keep fifth straight Class 1 title in sight with an 83-77 win against Risco

BLOOMFIELD, Mo. -- Scott County Central boys basketball coach Frank Staple saw a perfect example of his team's growth this season during Tuesday's Class 1 sectional against Risco.

Risco's Caleb McCord capped off his team's comeback with a 3-pointer to tie things with 5 minutes, 25 seconds left in the game, causing the night's loudest eruption at Bloomfield High School.

Early in the season the Braves might have folded, but not now. They replied with a run of their own and eventually won 83-77 to advance to the state quarterfinals.

"I think it's a sign of maturity," Staple said. "Early on in the year we would have fell apart. There's no doubt about it. We would've fell apart. Now the guys understand that in basketball, runs are going to happen. They were able to respond, and they made the final run count."

Scott County Central’s Chris Brown takes a shot as Risco’s Josh Earnheart looks on during the second quarter.

Staple took a timeout after McCord tied the game, and SCC (16-13) forced turnovers on five of Risco's next seven possessions to help it go on an 8-2 run to regain some separation.

"We just said this is our game," SCC junior Larandis Banks said about the talk during the timeout. "We've got this. So we just came out and kept on pushing."

Risco's prolific 3-point shooters were a main focus for SCC's defense entering the game.

"We knew we needed to defend the 3-point shot," Banks said. "We knew Risco had a couple shooters. We just wanted to get out and check them before they got hot."

There were mixed reactions after the game as to how the Braves executed on that point.

Risco (18-11) got off 26 attempts from 3-point range, most of which Risco coach Brandon Blankenship thought were good looks, but the Tigers only connected on seven of them.

"Our defense was horrible," Banks said. "They just had an off night."

On the other hand, outside shots weren't what kept the game close most of the night.

"Overall, I thought we took away the 3," Staple said. "They didn't beat us from the outside. Again, we just gave up way too much down low, and that's just, again, all credit to No. 40 from Risco."

No. 40 for Risco is 6-foot junior Brandon Bixler, who finished with a game-high 31 points, pretty much all of which came in the paint.

"Brandon had a really good district tournament," Blankenship said. "He's really kind of stepped up for us. And then when I saw they didn't start either one of their big guys. I felt like [Matthew] Blissett and [Tyler] Masters was their big guys, so we made it a point to try to go inside early. Plus we figured that they were going to try to be extended out on our shooters."

Bixler had nine points in the first quarter and 17 in the first half.

"The big kid just got position on us," Staple said. "We talked about that all week. Two keys -- we had to stop the 3-point shooters and we had to stop the big kid from getting position. He just destroyed us on the inside. He had a great game. That's something we've got to improve on if we're going to advance further."

Risco's only lead of the game came at 5-3 in the first quarter, and SCC spent much of the first half slowly building its lead despite Bixler's performance. The Braves led 50-39 at halftime, which was their biggest lead of the half.

Banks and senior Jaylen Porter, the only two starters on last season's state championship team to return this year, helped the Braves get off to a good start by combining to score 16 of 25 first-quarter points.

"That's the biggest thing ever," Porter said of the good start. "If we come out dead, we're going to be like that all night. If we come out hyped, ready to go, you're in for a show."

Banks finished with 27 points, while Porter had 13. Senior Chris Brown added 11.

Risco started its slow comeback in the third quarter. The Braves scored just two points over an almost four-minute span over the third and fourth quarters as Risco went on an 11-4 run that was capped by McCord's 3-pointer.

"They just had a lot of momentum swing," Staple said. "That's what happens in basketball. You just kind of have to weather it. I thought we made a lot of mistakes. We weren't where we needed to be in our press tonight. I thought we got a little frazzled offensively, but what I was proud was when they came down and tied it, we didn't panic. The guys said we were going to win this game, and they kind of came out and calmed down."

SCC (15-13), which is seeking is fifth consecutive state title and sixth consecutive trip to the final four, will face Eminence (24-5) in a Class 1 quarterfinal at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Bearcat Event Center in Dexter, Mo.

SCC 25 25 14 19 -- 83

Risco 22 17 20 18 -- 77

SCOTT COUNTY CENTRAL (83) -- Chris Brown 11, Larandis Banks 27, Jaylen Porter 13, Tyler Masters 6, Matthew Blissett 9, Javonta Daniel 2, Kendall Blissett 4, Jeffery Porter 9, Cameron Blissett 2. FG 34, FT 11-25, F 17. (3-pointers: Brown 1, Banks 2, J. Porter 1. Fouled out: none)

RISCO (77) -- Josh Earnheart 4, Caleb McCord 17, Austin White 7, Jordan Pavy 14, Matt Cummins 2, Hunter Knight 2, Brandon Bixler 31. FG 30, FT 10-12, F 19. (3-pointers: McCord 3, Pavy 4. Fouled out: White, Knight)