Republic coach Trevyor Fisher knew his team would have to play a physical game to come away with a road win at Webb City Friday night, and they responded just the way he hoped, grinding out a 48-39 victory. Grant Hancock anchored the inside, leading the Tigers with 12 points.
“We had a great week of practice. We’ve come in here two times, and just didn’t have it. But we came in this time and matched their physicalness. You’ve just got to know it’s Webb City and play through it,” says Hancock, who hit four of five free throws down the stretch.
Coach Trevyor Fisher says he was happy with the way his team answered the bruising style of Webb City.
“I thought we matched their physicalness and toughness all night long,” says Fisher. “I thought Grant did a really nice job of going to the boards and getting rebounds. For the most part, we matched their physicalness, which we knew we had to do to win the game.”
The game went back and forth, with both teams putting together scoring streaks that grabbed the momentum for a time. The Tigers jumped on top early, and led 14-7 after one quarter. Webb City fought back, but another Republic run toward the end of the second quarter made it 24-17 at halftime.
In the third quarter, the intensity went up a notch, and officials let both teams play. Webb City outscored the Tigers 9-8 in the period, and Republic led 32-26 going into the final period. There were only three total fouls called in the third quarter.
In the fourth, the Cardinals grabbed the momentum early, and took the lead for the first time at 35-34. That was the only lead they would have all night.
With the game tied 37-37, Hancock made two free throws. The Tigers got a stop on the defensive end, and Hancock was fouled. He hit one of two tosses, and the lead was 40-37.
Webb City answered with 1:09 left, making the score 49-39, and that was as close as the game would be. Republic picked up a couple more defensive stops, hit its free throws, and ended up winning by nine.
“It says a lot about our team to actually give up the lead down the stretch, and still come back and make enough plays to win the game,” says Fisher.
Cody Geiger added 10 points for the Tigers. Dylan Bekemeier scored eight, and Ty Abney and Jake Fletcher had six apiece.
The win makes Republic’s record 18-2 on the season.
