NMCC nips Kennett, 54-53

KENNETT -- New Madrid County Central posted a much-needed win over SEMO Conference rival Kennett on Tuesday night, squeaking past the Indians on the road, 54-53.

It was a see-saw matchup the entire way. With a minute left in regulation, Kennett held a one-point lead and had the ball. NMCC's defense forced a turnover with 35 seconds remaining, the Eagles bled the clock to 11 seconds, then called a timeout.

After the short break, NMCC got the ball to Edgar Givens who put up the game-winning shot with 3.5 seconds left.

"We didn't play really well, but you have to give Kennett credit for that," said NMCC head coach David Fields. "That's two wins in a row for us. We'll take them any way we can get them right now."

NMCC's starting post players, Givens and Vaughn Shepherd, both missed most of the first half due to foul trouble. Givens made up for lost time in the second half, scoring all 15 of his points.

"(Givens) isn't where he need to be yet," said Fields. "He's only been back about two weeks for us. Hopefully, this will be something he can build on. If he gets going inside, that's going to make our perimeter shooters a lot better."

Mack Kimble also scored 15 points in the win. For Kennett, Tyree Goolsby led the way with 19 points. Brian Mitchell added 13 in he loss.

"Anytime you can win a close game, especially late the season, you can build on it," said Fields. "We had chances where we could've folded in the tent, but we didn't. When we get down, we don't quit. I don't like coming from behind all the time, but we do fight back. I'm definitely pleased to get the win."

NMCC improves to 2-2 in the conference and 6-10 overall. The Eagles will hit the road again on Friday, traveling to Doniphan for another conference matchup.

"That's one thing that has been so tough for us this year," said Fields. "Our schedule is not very good because we've got so many road games. It's hard to win on the road, especially in the SEMO Conference. We're definitely battle tested."

NMCC won Tuesday's junior varsity game, 38-19.

ORAN -- The Oran Eagles improved to 14-4 on Tuesday with a 65-41 win over Oak Ridge.

Oran jumped out to a 17-7 lead and never looked back, outscoring Oak Ridge 18-7 in the second quarter and then 20-16 in the fourth.

Ryne Wood had a big night, hitting six 3-pointers and scoring 27 points overall. Matt Seyer scored 10 in the win, followed by Nathan Seyer and Tyler Cookson with eight points each. For Oak Ridge, Fadler led the charge with 17.

Oran will be back in action this Friday, hosting Leopold.