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By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Ozark, Mo. — Run-and-gun, ground-and-pound; Walnut Grove can play a number of different styles.
Monday night’s 54-39 road victory over Class 5 Ozark could be considered a masterclass in tempo variation and patience.
Senior Bayley Harman poured in 23 points to lead all scorers in the contest. She was joined in double figures by a pair of freshmen — Faith Gilkey (15) and Makayla McVay (12).
From the opening tip, Walnut Grove came out firing on all cylinders in a determined effort to swing the early momentum.
Harman, in particular, was effective. The reigning Class 1 Player of the Year scored 11-straight points for Walnut Grove to end the first quarter.
“Whether you play a slow or fast game, you want to speed them up,” Harman said. “You come out, and you hit them right in the face, because they’re not expecting that.”
While scoring difficulties plagued Ozark throughout the evening, the Lady Tigers were able to keep pace in the first half largely due to a considerable size advantage on the boards (15-4 in the first half).
Ozark carried a slim, 22-20 lead in the break; however, back-to-back baskets from McVay seized the lead and momentum for the black and orange Lady Tigers … this time for good.
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
In the span of seven minutes, Walnut Grove ripped off a 15-2 run, relying on defensive pressure and a faster, up-tempo pace that Ozark was unable to match.
The change of pace gave Walnut Grove an 11-point cushion and put Ozark on its heels.
Walnut Grove head coach Rory Henry talked about the need for different tempos during the game, especially against Ozark’s inside-out combo of 6-foot-2 senior Macey Putt and 5-foot-8 sophomore Madi Braden.
“Typically, we want to get up and pressure full-court, and our tempo is fast,” Henry said. “We knew as good a guard as they have, we would have trouble, so we just tried to mix it up a little tonight. I’m really proud of my kids; we showed we could win a game playing with our tempo not as fast as we wanted.”
Ozark railied in the fourth quarter behind Braden and junior Annie Scheer, whose basket cut the Walnut Grove lead to a mere 5 points at 42-37, but the red Lady Tigers could get no closer.
Freshman Faith Gilkey connected on 9 of 10 free throws down the stretch, as Walnut Grove sealed the win.
With Gilkey, McVay and Lauren Johnson all freshman starters, Henry talked about the positive changes in Harman’s game as a result.
“Faith’s done an excellent job as a point guard,” Henry said. “She so much more mature beyond her years. She’s played so much, sees the floor well and doesn’t get rattled much. That’s really been a great thing for Bayley to open up her game.”
For Ozark and head coach David Brewer, the contest boiled down to a lack of execution.
“We gave up 50 points — that’s not bad — but we only scored 39,” Brewer said. “When you don’t execute offensively, it makes it difficult to score. We’ve got to execute. We’ve got to run our plays when they’re called, we’ve got to run our plays as they need to be run, time-wise, and we’ve got to get the ball where it’s supposed to be … none of that’s happening.”
Putt and Braden led Ozark in scoring with 15 and 13 points, respectively.
Both teams are set for holiday tournament play. Ozark (4-3) tips in the Pink & White Lady Classic first round on Tuesday, Dec. 26 against Aurora. The Lady Tigers are the No. 6 seed in the White Bracket.
Walnut Grove (7-1) opens play in its own tournament as the No. 1 seed against Hurley on Friday, Dec. 22.
Varsity final: Walnut Grove – 54, Ozark – 39
Ozark 12 10 04 13 — 39
Walnut Grove 15 05 17 17 — 54
Walnut Grove scoring: Bayley Harman – 23, Faith Gilkey – 15, Makayla McVay – 12, Lauren Johnson – 2, Grace Miller – 2
Ozark scoring: Macey Putt – 15, Madi Braden – 13, Katie Mayes – 6, Anna Scheer – 3, Anna Hitt – 2
JV Final: Ozark – 30, Walnut Grove – 6 (2Q)
(Brocklyn Barber – 9 points)
