Only three other teams in Republic history have won as many games in a row as this year’s Tigers. For three quarters, Republic coach Tim Brown thought his Tigers played as well as they have all season. They were so good that they held up against an offensive onslaught by Carthage in the fourth quarter, hanging on for a 70-64 win.
The win is the 19th of the season for Republic and the 18th in a row. That matches similar winning streaks by two previous teams – in 1961-62 and in 1992-93. The 1962-63 state champions hold the Republic record with a 28-game winning streak.
Against Carthage Friday, Republic got off to a fast start for the third game in a row. Brenley Hagewood made three three-pointers in the first quarter to lead Republic to a 21-11 lead after eight minutes. Republic had increased its lead to 14 points by halftime, 38-24, and eventually led by 20 points at the end of the third quarter, 53-33.
“Honestly, I thought it was the best three quarters that we’ve put together consistently this year,” said Brown. “I thought we were able to just continue to stack possessions. They made a little run and made some shots after we had a double-digit lead, and I thought we handled it and got it back to 14 there at halftime.
“And our third quarter was really good. We got whatever we wanted offensively and we did a nice job defensively.”
But the fourth quarter was a different story, thanks largely to Max Templeman. The senior guard exploded for 17 points in the final eight minutes, helping Carthage to cut the lead to four points, 62-58, with 1:39 remaining. Carthage scored 31 points in the fourth quarter.
“The last three games we’ve been in this position where we’ve played really good basketball teams and they just kind of made it ‘open gym,’ and good things happened for them,” Brown said of the fourth-quarter run by Carthage. “We’ve got to find a way to continue to stay organized and disciplined during that stretch and make them guard us longer and finish possessions.”
Republic struggled at the free throw line most of the night, but after the lead shrunk to four, Ahlante Askew made two big foul shots to push the lead to six. Then Askew fed Isaiah Nabors for a fast break layup to make it eight, 66-58, with 1:13 to play. Hagewood made a layup and drew a foul on Republic’s next possession. When he made the free throw, the lead was nine, and Republic held on from there.
Templeman finished with 29 points for Carthage.
Three players scored in double figures for Republic, led by Hagewood’s 19. Askew had 16 and Khamari Edwards added 14.
Republic’s next game will be Tuesday at unbeaten Nixa. The two teams have a combined record of 39-1. Nixa moved to 20-0 by beating Joplin Friday. Republic’s only loss is to out-of-state Springdale, Ark.
Score by Quarters
Carthage 11 13 9 31 – 64
Republic 21 17 15 17 – 70
Individual Scoring
Brenley Hagewood 19, Ahlante Askew 16, Khamari Edwards 14, Isaiah Nabors 6, Aslan Ebisch 5, James Rexroat 4, Jordan Douglas 3, Gunner Ellison 2
