Republic (4-0) knocked down 15 three-pointers – the second-most in program history – to defeat Branson 75-69 in a non-conference game Friday night.
Brody Blades hit a career-high eight threes and finished with a career-high 28 points to lead the Tigers.
Brenley Hagewood, who had averaged 25 points in Republic’s first three games at the Republic Invitational, added 19 points, including 14 in the second half. He connected on four three-pointers.
The teams traded the lead six times in the first half before Republic took a 30-28 advantage just before halftime. The Tigers never trailed again.
Ryder Davis, who finished with 11 points on three three-pointers, sparked a key second-half sequence after Branson had cut Republic’s lead to 49-46. Davis knocked down a three-pointer, took a charge on the defensive end, then hit another three to push Republic’s lead to 55-46.
Davin Parks added 12 points for Republic. Keiran Govan scored just three points but repeatedly broke down Branson’s defense to set up open teammates on the perimeter and in the paint.
Coach Tim Brown said the balanced offensive attack showed his team’s maturity.
“We have a slogan around here: ‘Be happy for your brother on his birthday.’ And Brody had a big birthday today and his teammates were happy for him,” Brown said. “We had a lot of guys that just showed maturity. We talked about (Branson’s) junk defense probably being in the forecast, and they did that, and we got great looks early. It just took a while to get the rhythm of the kind of shots that we needed.”
The school record for three-pointers in a game is 17, set in 2021 at the Bolivar Tournament against Camdenton. That’s the night when Drew McMillin made 16 three-pointers of his own, and Devon McMillin added one more. The third-highest single-game total for Republic is 13.
Jayce Culver led Branson (2-3) with 23 points and Brody Gillespie added 16.
The Tigers will take their perfect record to Springfield Hillcrest next Tuesday in their final game before Christmas.
Score by Quarters:
Branson: 9 19 20 21 – 69
Republic: 11 19 28 17 – 75
Branson Scoring:
Jayce Culver 23, Brody Gillespie 16, Griffin Mehrhoff 9, Tegan Asbury 7, Luke McCormick 5, Elijah Lashley 5, Kamden Sutton 4
Republic Scoring:
Brody Blades 28, Brenley Hagewood 19, Davin Parks 12, Ryder Davis 11, Keiran Govan 3, C.J. Uhl 2
