Republic overcame a slow start to roll over Aurora in the opener of the Pink & White Lady Classic at the O’Reilly Family Event Center in Springfield Tuesday, 62-36. Republic fell behind 7-0 and didn’t take its first lead until the 4:42 mark of the second quarter, but blew the game open early in the second half.
Both teams started sloppily, perhaps a symptom of the 11:00 a.m. tip-off time. Aurora led after the turnover-filled first quarter 11-10, and held the lead for the first 11 minutes of play. But Republic slowly worked its way back, and grabbed a 26-25 lead at halftime.
In the opening minutes of the third quarter, Republic took over. The Lady Tigers outscored Aurora 14-2 to start the second half, building a 40-27 lead. Aurora never got closer than 11 points the rest of the way. Republic’s defense was a key to the victory, as the Lady Tigers held Aurora to 11 points in the second half.
Four players scored in double figures for Republic, led by Kaemyn Bekemeier with 14.
The Lady Tigers, seeded second in the tournament, improve to 8-1 this season. They advance to the quarterfinals of the White bracket. They’ll face seventh seed Lebanon Wednesday at 3:30 pm. Lebanon beat Thayer 60-50 in their first-round game.
Score by Quarters
Aurora 11 14 7 4 – 36
Republic 10 16 20 16 – 62
Individual Scoring
Kaemyn Bekemeier 14, Molly Blades 13, Alaina Norman 12, Lauren Chastain 10, Misora Nambara 7, Alex Price 4, Molly Mason 2