The Republic Tigers overcame a 10-point deficit in the 4th quarter to beat Hillcrest in overtime 43-41, capturing the Gold Division championship in the Blue & Gold Tournament. Republic outscored Hillcrest 16-6 in the 4th quarter to tie the game, then outscored the Hornets 6-4 in the extra period.
A key stretch came in the final 2 1/2 minutes of regulation. Republic spread the floor offensively, extending Hillcrest’s defense and leaving the interior open. Grant Hancock took advantage, delivering six of his team-high 13 points during that stretch to help the Tigers draw even.
Republic had to overcome a shaky start. The Tigers committed 11 turnovers in the first half, playing in front of a huge crowd at JQH Arena.
“A lot of these kids are young, and this was a difficult stage for them to walk into,” said coach Gary Stanfield.
“I thought we were tight. But the halftime good news was that we were five points down. We came out and we played better, as we knew we would, in the second half. Things fell into place.”
The Tigers trailed 12-7 after one period, and 20-15 at halftime. It was 31-21 after three quarters, before the comeback began.
Besides Hancock, no Tiger scored in double figures. Payton Looney and Nick Yocum had seven points apiece. Jake Fletcher and Cody Geiger scored six, and Marcus Miller added four.
The Blue & Gold championship is the first for Republic since 1992. They beat Aurora in double overtime that year to win the Blue Division.
Republic improves to 8-1. They have now beaten three teams assigned to their district — Hillcrest, Marshfield and Rogersville — giving them an inside track on the top seed when postseason play rolls around.
“We’ve defeated the top three other teams in the district, which is good,” said Stanfield. “But we’ve got to play good basketball from here out. We’ve got ourselves in a nice position. We need to keep ourselves there.”
Hillcrest suffers its first loss of the season, falling to 9-1.
