By Don Abernathy (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
From the opening tip of the Gold Division quarterfinals on Friday, Greenwood was on fire.
Strafford, however, was just as cold.
The Blue Jays’ hot shooting staked them to an early lead as Strafford was unable to extinguish the flames and Greenwood ran away with a convincing 69-49 win at Great Southern Bank Arena on Friday.
Greenwood built a 20-9 lead behind multiple 3s each from senior Logan Sanders and sophomore Caden Frederick in the first period.
But the second quarter wasn’t much different, as Greenwood continued to knock down shots while Strafford tried to erase the deficit.
Sophomore Tyler Harrell drained a pair of 3s of his own and scored eight points in the second quarter as the Blue Jays built a commanding 39-20 lead at the break.
“Early, we were fortunate to shoot it really well and we were getting it from several different people,” Greenwood head coach Darren Taylor said.
“That was how we were able to get a little space. Unfortunately for them, I didn’t think they shot it as well as I have seen them shoot in the past.”
In the second half, Greenwood senior Collin Clark kept the torch burning, lighting up the scoreboard from all areas of the floor and wowing the crowd.
Clark scored 12 points by burying a pair of deep 3s, a couple 2-point mid-range jumpers, and then mixed in a fade away off one leg from the left baseline for fun as Greenwood stretched its lead to 57-28 late in the third period.
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“He’s a great all-around player,” Taylor said of Clark. “He can score inside or out or off the dribble.
“He’s got a nice touch around the basket and he’s done that for a few years now.”
As Greenwood pulled away, Strafford senior Cody Voysey sparked the Indians’ scoring with 12 points in the first half.
“I believe they have the best guard in the area in senior Cody Voysey,” Clark said. “We knew we would have to focus on stopping him.
Senior Connor Rogers picked up where Voysey left off and made three 3s in the third period, but it wasn’t enough to keep the red-hot Blue Jays within reach.
“They’re good shooters, we had to close out on them,” Clark said. “We played well together tonight and I’m super glad to get this win.”
Clark finished with a game-high 33 points, Harrell had 14 points, while Sanders and Frederick finished with nine and eight points, respectively.
“Tyler is an outstanding sophomore,” Taylor said. “He has a high basketball IQ and I think he has a really high ceiling.”
Greenwood spent most of the second half ahead by more than 20 points, but Taylor found areas his squad can improve going forward.
“In the second half, we made some bad decisions with the basketball,” Taylor said. “When we had an opportunity to run a little more offense, we took some ill-advised shots. I’m looking for more quality possessions.”
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Voysey led Strafford with 17 points, Rogers finished with 12 points, and senior Brady Ripp added eight points and seven rebounds in the loss.
Greenwood will play Bolivar in the Gold Division semifinals at Great Southern Bank Arena on Saturday, Dec. 28 at 4 p.m.
Strafford will face Nixa at Hammons Student Center on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.
Greenwood 69, Strafford 49 – FINAL
Strafford – 9-11-15-14 — 49
Greenwood – 20-19-18-12 — 69
S: Cody Voysey 17, Conner Rogers 12, Brady Ripp 8, Colton Willis 3, Ryder Ross 2, Bradlee Mullins 2, Tyler Hunt 2, Cotlon Dampier 2, JT Mullings 1
G: Collin Clark 33, Tyler Harrell 14, Logan Sanders 9, Caden Frederick 8, Kalen Hetzler 5
