Too many Republic turnovers led to too many easy buckets by Larkin (Ill.) and sent the Tigers to their first loss of the season, 72-64, in the Route 66 Shootout in Waynesville. A 26-point effort by Cody Geiger wasn’t enough to pull the Tigers back from a big early deficit.
Larkin’s defensive pressure on the perimeter caused trouble for Republic from the outset, as the Tigers fell behind 12-3 in the first five minutes of the game. During an especially crucial stretch early on, Larkin guard Kendale McCullum stepped into the passing lane and picked off a pass on three straight possessions, giving Larkin six straight points off turnovers.
Republic gradually adjusted to Larkin’s quickness and closed to within two points 21-19, with 1:55 left in the half. But Larkin outscored Republic 8-2 the rest of the way, and took a 29-21 lead into halftime.
“I think we were a little shell-shocked,” says coach Trevyor Fisher. “I think once we settled down, we were okay there for the rest of the first half. We just turned it over too much in the 3rd quarter and it got away from us a little bit.”
The 3rd quarter turned out to be the most important stretch of the game for Larkin. After Geiger scored to open the 2nd half, Larkin’s defense took control again, forcing multiple turnovers as the Royals expanded their lead to 20 points.
“The difference in the game was their pressure, and our guards not being able to handle it,” says Fisher. “In the second half, we turned it over a few times, they got their confidence up, and they have really good players and they started making shots.”
The Tigers didn’t quit. They slowly chipped away at the lead, and eventually whittled it down to eight point, when Brock Yocum drained a 3-pointer from the left corner to cut the lead to 64-56. But Larkin answered by beating the Tigers press for two quick buckets, and Republic was never able to get any closer.
“We learned a lot about our team and we’ll bounce back,” Fisher says. “We never quit. You can take that as a coach. A lot of teams just could have quit and died down, but we kept playing…and that’s a good sign.”
Geiger led all scorers with 26 points. Grant Hancock had 13, and was the only other Tiger in double figures..
Republic falls to 5-1 overall. Their next game is at home next Thursday against Reeds Spring.
