It wasn’t easy, or pretty, but Nixa continues to win with defense.
The Lady Eagles held Ozark to just 35 points and forced 26 turnovers, pulling out a 39-35 win on Senior Night, extending the streak against their Christian County rivals to four.
“I knew it was going to be a defensive battle because both teams have struggled to score lately,” said Nixa coach Jennifer Perryman. “No matter who is on each roster, when Nixa and Ozark get together it’s a rivalry and you’re going to get each other’s best game. It’s going to be a dogfight and it’s going to be a close game. It’s important for our kids because it was senior night and our last home game. I’m not sure when the last time each other has won four in a row in the series, so it’s exciting to extend the streak. We cherish this tradition.”
After losing Toshua Leavitt to graduation, Nixa has revamped its game and become a team that prides itself on stringing together stops. The Lady Eagles did that with continued success on Monday, holding Ozark to ten points or less in each quarter.
Nixa is 11-1 this season when holding opponents to 45 points or less.
“We know their post-game is pretty strong so we wanted to pressure their guards and make it hard for them to see in,” said Perryman. “We were able to play off the high post too. I put it on our guards to create some turnovers on the perimeter and they did a great job. We were able to mix up defenses and force a lot of turnovers.”
Ozark grabbed an 8-4 lead after the first quarter, and maintained that advantage for much of the second quarter as well, but an 8-2 spurt just before half gave Nixa a 19-18 lead at the break.
The Lady Tigers started the second half with a 5-0 spurt, getting back-to-back buckets from Mikayla and Macey Putt on an inside-out attack, but Nixa’s 9-2 to finish the quarter gave the Lady Eagles a 28-25 leader after three.
Turnovers and missed opportunities marred were a repeated theme for Ozark on Monday.
“We felt like we would be able to take advantage inside and we did it at times, but not nearly as much as we needed to,” said Ozark coach David Brewer. “They did a good job with their ball pressure to make things more difficult. We turn the ball over too much and we have all year. I think at times we get nervous about making the pass when it’s there.”
Ozark made a late run at Nixa, cutting the deficit to just one, 32-31, on a layup by Ally Lollis with 1:30 remaining in the game. But, on the ensuing possession, Nixa senior Kayla Goss’ conventional three-point play extended the lead back to four.
Fellow senior Shelby Ewing went 4-for-4 from the free throw line down the stretch to put the game on ice.
Goss finished with a game-high 18 points, Ewing added 10. Ozark was paced by Bre Johnson’s 11 points, including three 3s.
The loss is Ozark’s sixth of the season by five points or less, the sign of a roster that features just two seniors. Youth or a lack of talent hasn’t been a problem for the Lady Tigers, but taking care of the ball has.
For Ozark to turn the tide in close games Brewer knows his team has to value the basketball.
“We turn the ball over about 32% of our possessions,” said Brewer. “It hurts us, especially against good teams and you just can’t do that. We’ve talked about it without kids and they know it, they’re not trying to do it on purpose, but it’s just something we have to correct.”
No stranger to inexperience, Nixa has battled consistency issues throughout this season. But, as wins over St. James, Rock Bridge, Hickman and Jefferson City suggests, the Lady Eagles are capable of hanging with anyone; a scary sign for a rotation that is dominated by underclassmen.
“Everything is a step forward and everything is confidence with these kids,” said Perryman. “We try to build them up but sometimes you don’t get that confidence until you get those experiences. Big games like this and some big games we had earlier in the season are just building our momentum for the end of the year.”
Nixa 39, Ozark 35
Ozark 8-10-7-10 – 35
Nixa 4-15-11-9 – 39
Ozark: Johnson 11, Easley 7, Mi. Putt 6, Ma. Putt 5, Lollis 4, Smith 2, Taylor 1.
Nixa: Goss 18, Ewing 10, Wiggins 4, Wools 4, Arnold 3.
