Eighth-grade Tigers rock Clinton

There wasn't much suspense Thursday night at Nevada Middle School, as the eighth-grade Tigers made their home-debut on the hardwood against the visiting Clinton Cardinals.

Nevada's A-team improved to 3-0, courtesy of a 53-9 rout of Clinton, while the Tigers B-team (1-2 overall) similarly bulldozed the visitors, 51-14.

Tigers head coach Lance Sargent said he installed a new offense in the week leading up to the game, with exquisite results.

"I put in a new offense, similar to (Bill Self's) at the University of Kansas, so it's pretty good," Sargent said. "I call it 'circle-slip.'"

Sargent further explained that his new offense involves four guards rotating along the perimeter, while handing the ball off to each other.

The eighth-grade Tigers are stacked at the guard position, with Logan Applegate, Kaden Denney, and Logan and Lane McNeley.

"When you have four great guards, you would be silly not to use them," Sargent said. "They love running this offense. There's a lot of freelance, and they get to penetrate and dish."

For the Tigers in the A-game, Applegate poured in a game-high 16 points, and is now averaging 19 points per game through three contests. Nevada center Ben Hines added a dozen points; Logan McNeley, 10; and Denney, six. For the Tigers in the B-contest, Nevada's Trey Moore dropped in a game-high 13, while Lane Wilson chipped in seven points.

The seventh and eighth-grade teams host Fort Scott Middle School. Both games are set for Tuesday at 5:30, with the eighth-grade game at NMS, while the seventh grade contest is being held at the community center.