Republic picked up the offensive pace in the second half, and it paid off in a 62-55 win over Hillcrest in the quarterfinals of the Blue & Gold Tournament at Great Southern Bank Arena in Springfield Tuesday. Ahlante Askew led the charge for the Tigers, scoring 16 of his game-high 23 points in the second half to help second-seeded Republic overcome the upset-minded seventh-seeded Hornets.
Two weeks ago, Republic went to Hillcrest and dismantled the Hornets by 22 points, 77-55. But Hillcrest stepped up its defensive intensity and matched the Tigers play for play for most of the game. After the easy win at Hillcrest, the second-round matchup worried Republic coach Tim Brown before the game started.
“When the bracket came out, we weren’t thrilled to see them as a seven seed, to be honest,” he said. “They have four guys right now that are really explosive offensively. They’ve got four guys who can make shots, drive it, get it to the rim.”
Amarre Clark was the highlight for Hillcrest offensively, but foul trouble limited his effectiveness. Despite sitting out most of the third quarter after he picked up his fourth foul, Clark finished with 19 points to lead the Hornets. He scored 12 of those in the fourth quarter as Hillcrest tried to fight its way back from a deficit.
The most important stretch of the game was in the third quarter, when Republic built a 30-28 halftime lead to 44-34. The Tigers finished the quarter on a 12-2 run, and held Hillcrest to six points over the eight-minute span. Republic’s guard tandem of Askew and Brenley Hagewood handled the bulk of the scoring in the quarter, combining for 12 of Republic’s 14 points.
“I was proud of our kids. We talk about winning as many four-minute battles as we can, and I thought that last four minutes of the fourth quarter was what we needed,” Brown said.
After a slow start to the offense, Brown said the Tigers found their rhythm in the second half.
“I thought we were very slow and methodical and not aggressive in our cuts to get into our offense. We were very unorganized in the first half,” he said. “After halftime, we were much better at our pace and getting
guys to the right spots, and it looked closer to the way that it needed to.”
The win improves Republic’s record to 7-1. Hillcrest falls to 5-4. The Tigers advance to the semifinals of the Blue Division. They’ll play Hartville (3), which advanced with a quarterfinal win over Camdenton, 55-41.
Score by Quarters
Hillcrest 19 9 6 21 – 55
Republic 17 13 14 18 – 62
Individual Scoring
Ahlante Askew 23, Brenley Hagewood 16, Isaiah Nabors, Khamari Edwards, Gunner Ellison 6, Aslan Ebisch 3
