Republic used an 11-0 run to start the fourth quarter and put away Carl Junction in a 55-43 win at home Tuesday night. Four Tigers scored in double figures, led by Treydon Rackley and Mitch Coiner, with 14 points apiece.
The Tigers clung to a one-point lead at halftime, 23-22, and Carl Junction quickly jumped out in front early in the third quarter. The Bulldogs scored six straight points to take a 28-23 lead. The teams traded buckets for most of the next six minutes, and Republic had regained a 39-27 lead as the fourth quarter began.
That’s when the Tigers went on their 11-0 run, spurred by pressure defense and the play of Treydon Rackley.
“We needed a little spark after a poor performance in the first half. We were fortunate enough to get a few turnovers and convert,” coach Trevyor Fisher says. “Treydon Rackley really put us on his back. He was all over the place with rebounds, steals, taking it to the basket. He just asserted himself, which we failed to do in the first half.”
“I was just thinking to get the ball and go as fast as we could, because we had to speed up the tempo,” Rackley says. “The first half, we were playing to their speed and as you saw, it didn’t go good at all.”
The Tigers stretched their lead to 50-37 before Carl Junction got its first bucket of the fourth quarter with 3:50 remaining in the game. The Tigers were able to run out the clock from there and pick up the win.
“It was huge for us,” Rackley says of the victory. “It adds some confidence. Even though it wasn’t the greatest of games, we still got out with a ‘W’ and that adds confidence to all of us as we go on.”
The Tigers improve to 2-2. Fisher says they’ll need to get better at working through adversity as the season moves on.
“Right now, we’re a feel-good team. When the ball’s going in the basket, everyone’s feeling good and we look good. When the ball’s not going in the basket, we put our heads down and we mope and it carries over to other parts of the game,” he says.
Ty Stevens and Tristan Ollar added 11 points each for the Tigers. Devon Ward had three and Cameron Doke scored two.
Republic has a week off. They’ll play again next Tuesday when they travel to Springfield Parkview.