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It was a battle of the cats Monday night as the Millstadt Consolidated School Panthers 8th Grade boys basketball team defeated the Dupo Junior High Tigers 8th Grade basketball team 36-33 in the first round of the SS. Peter & Paul Catholic Grade School Holiday Tournament in Waterloo.
Both teams had trouble connecting early in the contest with the score only 4-2 in favor of the Panthers midway through the first quarter. But the Panthers started to get on track offensively and opened up a six-point lead only to see the Tigers claw their way back to within four points at 11-7 with the end of the first quarter.
Recognizing Dupo’s ball handling woes, MCS Coach Bryan Weaver started the second quarter by having the Panthers implement a man-to-man full court press. The defensive pressure worked for a time creating turnovers and helping the Panthers extend their lead. But the athleticism of the pesky Tigers came to the fore as they drew to within one point of the Panthers at 17-16 with about 1:40 left in the second quarter. Dupo kept it close for the remainder of the half outscoring the Panthers 11-10 in the second quarter making the score 21-18 at the half.
The Panthers came out with full court pressure to start the third quarter and while it paid off initially it was not nearly as effective as it was in the first half. The Tigers were breaking the press, sometimes very easily. The Tigers came roaring back to take their first lead of the game 25-24 with 2:30 left in the third quarter. But just as quickly as the Tigers took the lead they gave it back again with poor ball handling and the Panthers had the lead again 29-25 with 1:19 left in the third quarter. The Tigers got another basket late and it was 29-27 going into the fourth quarter.
Dupo started the fourth quarter by tying the game at 29-29. Both defenses played well holding the other, as it remained tied at 29 with 4:40 left in the game. The Panthers and the Tigers also rebounded well defensively limiting the other to second chances on offense. But the Panthers were able to muster a 5-0 run in the middle of the fourth quarter that may have made the difference in winning and losing the game. The Tigers came back to within one point at 34-33 with less than a minute to go. But with the Tigers forced to foul in order to stop the clock, the Panthers converted two free throws late to make it 36-33 and then held on for the win.
After the game MCS Panthers Coach Bryan Weaver said, “Dupo is a much improved team. We didn’t take them lightly at all. When you’re in Christmas break you just never know what you’re going to get from the kids. I thought the effort was there for the most part. We were a little rusty in spots but you’ve got to give Dupo some credit. They wanted the ball, they rebounded well and made some easy shots. They played fast at times and used their speed to their advantage. But I was proud of how our kids bounced back and kept the lead for most of the game.”
Dupo Coach Kraig Roth said, “We went over three weeks without playing a game and we looked like it. We did not execute well at all tonight and that was the difference. They (MCS) didn’t throw the ball away very much and we threw it away quite a bit. We’ll come back tomorrow and hopefully get a win or it will be a short tournament for us.”
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