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It has been four years since Parkview has been in the Blue and Gold Tournament after sitting out their last turn to be in the Tournament because of the Bass Pro Tournament of Champions.
That meant the Parkview seniors would have just one shot in their careers to play in Southwest Missouri’s most storied tournament.
“This is a unique experience for us. Our guys have never played in the Blue & Gold before. It has been four years since we have been in it. For these guys it is what I explained was a once in a lifetime experience,” Cornish said. “This morning we looked at the trophy cases and (talked about) it is a chance to leave your legacy.”
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Parkview senior J.T. Brown took those words to heart and had a once in a lifetime game that will leave a lasting legacy on the Blue & Gold and Parkview record books in an 86-50 win over Willow Springs.
Brown scored a Parkview school record 47 points breaking Autrey Acord’s record of 46 points. He also tied the Blue Division record for points in a game that ended in regulation. The Parkview senior now shares the record with Branson’s Thom Field who set his record in 1955.
Tim Williams from Niangua holds the Blue Bracket and overall tournament record of 48 points. He accomplished that feat in 1981 in an overtime game.
Brown also knocked down nine 3-point shots to tie the Blue Division and overall tournament record for a single game. Kickapoo’s Matt Ridder previously held the record alone when he accomplished the feat in 2013.
In warm-ups, Brown had struggled to adjust to the deeper shooting background of Hammons Student Center.
“In warm ups I couldn’t hit anything, but I just kept shooting and thought ‘it’s going to come to me’ and it did,” Brown said.
By the time the game tipped, those issues were long gone as he put up 17 points in the first quarter and 30 in the first half.
It was after that stellar first half that Cornish realized what his senior had a chance to do and allowed him to chase it into the fourth quarter.
“Our guys know that we preach team every day, but when your captain has a chance to do something special like that it was important for us to let him do that,” Cornish said.
Not to be lost in the Blue & Gold records is that Brown now sits alone atop Parkview’s record book.
“It is very exciting. Erik (Durham) and Autrey (Acord) are great players,” Brown said. “I just had to push myself to get to their level, so I just had to keep pushing and pushing.”
Parkview will now shift its focus to a deep run in the Blue Bracket as Clever awaits in Tuesday’s quarterfinal.
The Vikings face Clever at 11 a.m. on Tuesday at JQH Arena.
