Every one of Republic’s offensive weapons was firing at Ozark Friday, and none was more on-target than Canyon Smith’s jump shot. Smith drained six three-pointers in the first half and finished with 27 points to lead the Tigers to an 89-62 blowout over conference rival Ozark. It was the 20th win of the year for Republic.
When Ozark’s defense tried to tighten up on Smith, it opened the door for the rest of the Republic lineup. Dylan Bekemeier scored 12 points and Brock Yocum had 11. And Cody Geiger, held in check with only six points in the first three quarters, exploded for 12 in the 4th to finish with 18.
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“When you’ve got that many offensive weapons, you can’t take everything away, for the most part, when we’re locked in and playing the right way,” says Republic coach Trevyor Fisher. “We did a good job of attacking under control again, like we did against Willard. Finding the open guy. Making the extra pass. We’re hard to guard when we’re clicking on all cylinders like that.”
The game’s outcome was never really in doubt, with Republic jumping ahead 27-10 in the first quarter. When Jordan Kerr banked in a three-pointer from 28 feet out as the buzzer sounded at halftime, Republic led 50-31.
The 1st half belonged to smith, who had 23 at the break. He made his first five three-point shots before missing one.
“He’s a phenomenal shooter, and whenever he shoots it, I am shocked when it doesn’t go in,” Fisher says. “But it just didn’t happen overnight. He shoots hours and hours, even during the season. After practice, he’ll be there an hour after practice, still shooting. There’s no secret to why he’s a good shooter. He’s put in the work.”
And even though opponents know Smith can shoot the lights out, they often leave him open. Fisher says he’s not too surprised, given the nature of Republic’s offense.
“I give that a credit to having all those other weapons. Guys can’t key on him. Dylan does a good job of drawing defenders and kicking, and making the extra pass. Cody draws the attention to the inside. It all goes back to having multiple weapons on the floor.”
Jordan Kerr added eight points for Republic. Chase Hoffmann had five. Dillen Ramsey scored four, and Josh Vaughn had two.
Republic improves to 20-3. They’re 5-1 in the Central Ozark Conference. Ozark falls to 12-12 and 3-3.