After Hurley (16-8) quietly hung around with the School of the Ozarks Patriots (20-3) for about 18 minutes on Saturday, things quickly took a turn for the worse for the Tigers as S of O constructed a daunting 17-0 run in the third quarter to break away for a 72-48 win in the title game of the Mark Twain Conference tournament.
The Patriots led by as much as 14 points in the first half of play, but Hurley's ability to swiftly get back into defensive position created problems for S of O's high-octane offense – allowing the Tigers to limit further damage on the scoreboard.
“It was a scrap in the first half,” School of the Ozarks head coach Jerry Martin said. “We had to kind of get adjusted to their defensive intensity.”
When both teams hit their respective locker rooms after the opening 16 minutes, Martin provided his club with some impactful words in hopes of jump-starting their traditional theme of running and gunning.
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“That's kind of our thing,” said Martin. “I felt like at halftime we had done OK at that, but we really pushed them at halftime about doing a better job on the glass so we could get out in transition.”
With the Patriots up 39-26 near the 6:00 mark of the third, a 3-pointer by junior standout Billy Evans sparked the spurt that S of O was waiting for.
During the run that turned a 13-point lead into a 56-26 advantage in the span of nearly four minutes, School of the Ozarks found itself with a bevy of open shots – thanks to a tempo that slowly wore Hurley down.
“We told the guys that our close-outs could be the difference in the game,” Tigers head coach Dylan Curtis said. “When they're wide open, they knock them down. Unfortunately, they hit a lot of wide open shots tonight.”
Evans, standing at 6-foot-2, nailed three shots from behind the arc in the contest, including two in the Patriots' loud third quarter en route to a 21-point performance.
“He was huge,” Martin added of Evans. “He was a big pick-up for us tonight.”
The victory gives School of the Ozarks its 12th straight win as it next hosts conference-rival Everton on Monday. Hurley will look to regain momentum Thursday at Greenwood.
Box Score
Hurley – 7 15 9 17 – 48
School of the Ozarks – 13 20 23 16 – 72
Hurley – Dyllon Jackson 14, Isaac Carlson 12, Chase Simpson 10, William Pope 8, Kyle Medlin 2, Justin Wilson 2
School of the Ozarks – Billy Evans 21, Keaton Tillack 17, Cade Martin 11, Nate Brown 6, Zach Martin 6, Jhonny Widner 5, Teddy Lingner 5, Coby Dolloff 1
