Bronaugh, NEVC stay alive in district tourney

Wednesday, March 3, 2004

By Larry Lewis

DREXEL, Mo. -- Two Vernon County Conference teams, Northeast Vernon County and Bronaugh, survived first-round play in the boys' bracket at the MSHSAA Class 1, District 12 Tournament on Tuesday.

Two others, Sheldon and Hume, saw their seasons come to an end.

In a battle of conference rivals, No. 4-seed NEVC won a third straight -- three in four meetings -- over defending district champion Hume, the fifth seed.

The Knights' Joe Coy exploded for 37 points in the 72-50 win.

The 6-4 senior Coy was unstoppable inside, scoring on a variety of post moves, rebound putbacks and short jumpers in the key. He had 24 of NEVC's 40 second-half points.

"We did a good job of crashing the boards and got a lot of easy baskets inside," said NEVC's first-year coach Chuck Wolfe.

Hume appeared disjointed throughout the game, never finding an offensive flow or an answer for Coy. The Hornets trailed 13-9 after the first period and 32-24 at the half.

A 27-point effort by senior sharpshooter Jeffrey Irwin, most from long range, was largely responsible for the Hornets staying as close as they did. Irwin buried five 3-pointers.

A 10-3 run to open the third quarter lifted the Knights to a 46-35 third-quarter advantage.

It was all NEVC in the fourth quarter. Coy's 16 points keyed a 26-point outburst as the Knights cruised into the semifinals.

NEVC senior guard Hank Layton handled the point position near flawlessly and provided an outside complement to Coy's inside dominance. Layton finished with 15 points.

James Brooks added 10 for Hume.

NEVC meets No. 1 Drexel on Thursday at 6 p.m.

Bronaugh vs. Miami

The No. 2-seed Wildcats struggled at times, but put together quick spurts when needed to stave off No. 7 Miami for a 64-49 win.

"We got off to a poor start tonight," said Bronaugh coach Tim Judd. "There may be a number of factors in that…maybe nerves, the long trip up here, the first time in this gym. We played pretty lethargic overall. I told our kids we're going to have to play better than that if we're going to advance out of the next round."

Bronaugh (18-7) fell behind by six early, then ran off 14 straight points to blow past Miami for a 22-14 lead.

A 6-0 run to open the third quarter propelled the Wildcats to a 35-21 advantage, but Miami pulled within five at 44-39 late in the period.

Another spurt shot the Wildcats to a more comfortable 54-39 lead early in the fourth quarter, a margin they maintained to the finish.

Versatile junior Tyler Judd paced Bronaugh with 24 points, ranging from a perimeter to inside scoring game. Judd also handed out several assists and blocked three shots.

Six-foot-three senior post John Whitworth provided scoring in the paint with 17. Junior guard Alex Gordon chipped in with 11.

Miami's Seth Black and Brad Tavener scored 22 and 18, respectively.

Bronaugh faces the winner of the late game, No. 3 Montrose vs. No. 6 Ballard, in Thursday's semifinal at 7:30 p.m.

Sheldon vs. Drexel

The Panthers ended a winless season with a 63-17 loss to Drexel.

Andrew Leavell led Sheldon with eight, while Justin Hancock added six.

Girls semifinals

The girls resume action tonight in the semifinal round.

In the opening game at 6 p.m., No. 4 Sheldon takes on top-seed Drexel. In the second contest, No. 2 Hume tackles No. 3 Montrose at 7:30.

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