Sikeston, NMCC drop close games

POPLAR BLUFF -- The Sikeston Bulldogs opened the Poplar Bluff Showdown with a loss Monday evening as they fell to the Warren Central Dragons 66-62. For the Bulldogs it was a slow start in the first quarter that set the tone for the final result.

The Dragons quickly cashed in the first few baskets including several 3-pointers en route to a 25-18 first quarter lead. Sikeston bounced back in the second quarter as they outscored Warren Central 19-10 and at the half they trailed 38-34.

In the first half the Bulldogs shot 58 percent from the field and 50 percent from beyond the arc. The Dragons were 58 percent from field goal range and 33 percent on 5-of-15 3-point baskets.

In the second half Sikeston turned the corner as they jumped out to their first lead with 5:12 left to play in the third quarter on a field goal by Cal Lane. With the score set at 42-40 it appeared that the Bulldogs may be gaining momentum as the final quarter drew near, but as time expired the Dragons chipped in a last-second shot to even the score at 51-51 heading into the final eight minutes.

The buzzer beater seemed to set the tone for the fourth quarter, but to add to the cause Warren Central drained two quick 3-pointers that pushed an early lead to 59-52 with 5:55 remaining on the clock. The Bulldogs pulled back within four points but in the final seconds the Dragons connected at the free throw line to hold a lead and collect a victory.

"We didn't play well," said Sikeston head coach Gregg Holifield after the game. "I don't think we played well the whole night. I don't think we had the energy or the effort we need to have to beat a team like that. If we're going to be a championship team we've got to be tougher than we were tonight."

Michael Porter led the Bulldogs with 34 points and nine rebounds. Lane added 14 points and nine rebounds in the losing effort.

Warren Central provided 36 points off the bench while Sikeston only managed three from their substitutes. Leading the way for the Dragons was Jordan Shanklin and George Fant who each scored 16 in the win. Jacob King added 14 as he was 4-for-7 from the 3-point line.

The Bulldogs, now 6-2 on the season, will take on Forrest City today at 4 p.m.

Later in the evening the New Madrid County Central Eagles dropped their opening contest as well as the Raytown South Cardinals handed NMCC a 57-55 loss. The Eagles held strong in the first quarter but in the second quarter were outscored 20-14 as they trailed 33-24 at the break.

The second half was solid for NMCC as they put up 14 points in the third quarter and 17 in the fourth, but they fell shy by two points as the Cardinals were solid at the charity stripe in the waning minutes.

Raytown South was 9-for-24 at the free throw line while the Eagles were 13-for-33.

"Basically, free throws and layups, I'd like to see where we were at," said NMCC head coach Travis Day after the game. "We missed too many shots at point-blank range and free throws, you've got to have them. We just didn't take advantage of them. You can't have a pity party, we've got to get our heads up, come in tomorrow and be ready to play again."

Josh Minner led the Eagles in scoring with 20 points and added 10 rebounds in the loss. Kony Ealy added 15 points and 11 rebounds.

For the Cardinals, Rian Pearson led the way with 18 points and 11 rebounds while Corey Hilliard chipped in 15 points in the win.

NMCC, now 5-3 on the season, will face Poplar Bluff tonight at 7 p.m.