With the crowd roaring and the stakes high, Republic survived a wire-to-wire battle at Parkview Friday night, seizing the Central Ozark Conference West championship with a hard-fought 49-45 victory. The Tigers battled back from a four-point halftime deficit to finish a perfect 5-0 in COC West play, displaying their championship mettle when it mattered most.
In a game that featured 12 lead changes and 10 ties, neither team led by more than four points until the final margin. The playoff-like intensity provided a perfect tune-up for district play, which begins next week.
“This was a big-time atmosphere. Call them grinders—it was a big-time grinder,” Republic coach Tim Brown said. “That four-point deficit seemed like a lot in this game, and we found ourselves down four a couple times. I think the final score may have been the biggest lead we had throughout the game.”
Brenley Hagewood led Republic with 25 points, including five three-pointers. He scored eight points in the second quarter and nine in the third as Republic battled back from the halftime deficit. He sparked a key sequence for Republic late in the third quarter with the Tigers trailing by four points. He first a blocked shot on a Parkview fast break to turn away a Viking layup. Then he made a three-pointer at the other end of the floor a few seconds later, cutting the lead back to one and giving Republic momentum heading to the final period.
Republic led 14-13 after one quarter, but Parkview outscored the Tigers 14-9 in the second period to take a 27-23 lead into halftime. The Tigers regained momentum in the third quarter, outscoring Parkview 13-10 to cut the deficit to one point heading into the fourth.
The Tigers took control in the final period, outscoring Parkview 13-8. Brody Blades hit four free throws in the fourth quarter to help Republic seal the win.
CJ Uhl contributed 10 points for Republic.
Brown credited his team’s hustle plays as a key factor in the victory.
“We got stops. Some of the hustle plays we made—the athleticism from both teams in this game on the hustle plays was big-time,” he said. “Our guys stepped up and made a bunch of those. Bren obviously has impressed us with a lot of his baskets, but I think he had a couple blocks in transition that were really momentum swings that really helped us, and CJ had some, and Dav had some.”
Carlitos Sanchez led Parkview with 14 points, and Dassiah Green added 11.
With the win, Republic improved to 22-4 on the season and claimed the COC West division championship. Parkview fell to 15-11 (4-1).
“It was just a grinder,” Brown said. “We told our guys that was a REPMO Grind specialty and a fun way to do it for a COC West title.”
Republic’s next game is Wednesday night against Ozark in the district tournament at Nixa.
Score by Quarters
Parkview 13-14-10-8-45
Republic 14-9-13-13-49
Parkview Scoring
Carlitos Sanchez 14, Dassiah Green 11, Christian Cordova 6, Eason Nash 6, Ethan Fernandez 6, Eli Govan 2
Republic Scoring
Brenley Hagewood 25, CJ Uhl 10, Brody Blades 7, Davin Parks 6, Keiran Govan 1
