By Matt Turer — mturer@ky3.com
@MattTurer
Cabool, Mo. — Both higher seeds advanced in the top half of the Cabool Holiday Tournament bracket, setting up a Wednesday afternoon semifinal between 1-seed Licking and 4-seed Winona.
Recaps and photos of both games below.
Licking moves closer to Cabool tourney three-peat in win over Plato – CLICK FOR PHOTOS
Licking has been here. They’ve done that. Two years in a row, the Wildcats have left the Cabool Holiday Tournament as champions, and after the first two days of this year’s edition, it’s time to start thinking about a three-peat.
The top-seeded Wildcats (10-0) had no trouble disposing of 9-seed Plato (6-4), winning Tuesday’s quarterfinal 66-34.
Plato’s slow-paced half-court offense didn’t phase Licking, which runs a similar style despite gaining fame of late for its fast-paced and high-flying transition game. The same style that resulted in two highlight-reel dunks on Tuesday night.
“We’re not against playing slow,” Licking head coach Ben Glasgow said. “It’s kind of their style, but it’s kind of our style too in a way. We push it, but we don’t mind playing that way either.”
Convenient for Licking. Not so much for its opponents. Only once all season has Licking won a game by single-digits—67-58 over 3-seed MV-BT/Liberty—and the Wildcats average a 26.8-point margin of victory.
Brady Smith led Licking with 26 points, with 17 of those coming in the second half. Smith was a perfect 5-5 from the free-throw line and Licking was nearly perfect from the stripe as a team, finishing 15-16.
Licking leading scorer Nathan Wilson (24.8 PPG) finished with 17 points.
But while Licking looks primed to keep winning, Glasgow knows that a four-day tournament title does not come easily.
“It’s just a matter of maintaining,” Glasgow said. “The third and fourth day [of tournaments] can get kind of sloppy sometimes, and we have to maintain the intensity. Make sure we continue to rebound and take care of the basketball, which we’ve done, but sometimes in days three and four you can break down mentally and get a little tired.”
Grady Todd led Plato with 15 points and the Eagles were held to single-digits as a team in each of the game’s first three quarters.
Licking increased its single-quarter point total in each of the game’s first three quarters, scoring 13 in the first, 18 in the second and 24 in the third, building a 55-22 lead heading into the fourth.
Licking currently has four players standing between 6’3” and 6’6”, a luxury for a Class 3 team. While the height alone makes them a tough out for any opponent, it’s the versatility that comes with that height that is making for difference for the Wildcats.
“They can all play anywhere on the floor, and we kind of coach that way,” Glasgow said. “They haven’t always been tall. We try to teach everyone to handle the ball and shoot and if you do grow to be tall, then you can play a little bit of anywhere on the floor. It really shrinks the window of opportunity for the other team.”
Licking faces 4-seed Winona (6-2) at 3 p.m. in Wednesday’s semifinals.
FINAL: Licking 66, Plato 34
Plato 6 9 7 12 – 34
Licking 13 18 24 11 – 66
Plato- Grady Todd 15, Clay Atterberry 8, Ty Humphrey 4, Wesley Wilson 4, Jack Morrison 3
Licking- Brady Smith 26, Nathan Wilson 17, G.T. Nicholson 9, Clabe Sullins 6, Terance Hale 2, Sean Loughridge 2, Tristen Morelan 2, Dillon Smith 2
Winona fends off late Seymour push – CLICK FOR PHOTOS
Four Winona starters finished in double-digits as the Wildcats held off a late Seymour rally in a 68-61 quarterfinal win.
The 4-seed Wildcats (6-2) built a 33-26 halftime lead and pushed that lead to 14 points over 5-seed Seymour (7-3) through three quarters.
Brendon Simpson and Aaron Walker led Winona with 16 points apiece.
Brian Pearce put up a game-high 20 points for Seymour. Cy Yates finished with 18.
Winona faces 1-seed Licking (10-0) at 3 p.m. in Wednesday’s semifinals.
FINAL: Winona 68, Seymour 61
Seymour 14 12 13 22 – 61
Winona 18 15 20 15 – 68
Seymour- Brian Pearce 20, Cy Yates 18, Eric Helms 7, Brady Brooke 6, Justin Herion 6, Brock Scott 4
Winona- Brendon Simpson 16, Aaron Walker 16, Stoney Redman 13, Zach Neal 11, Dylan Teague 7, Chris Sandoval 4, Nick McBride 1
