Scouting and predicting C5 D12 tournament
District preview: Class 5 District 12 at Joplin High School Four COC-Large schools will square off here and this district features a pair of heavy weights in Nixa and Republic. The winner will have the daunting task of likely facing…
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Continue ReadingDistrict preview: Class 5 District 12
at Joplin High School
Four COC-Large schools will square off here and this district features a pair of heavy weights in Nixa and Republic. The winner will have the daunting task of likely facing Kickapoo in a sectional game.
Scouting the teams
(5) Joplin Eagles (3-21)
Ouch. Has been another rough year for the Eagles. They have two individually good players, but from they need help around them. Injuries to senior Darrian Guillory has made a difficult season even worse as Joplin counts on him for a lot of its production all over the floor. Joplin will, however, get to show off its new facilities, which might be as nice as it gets in southwest Missouri.
(4) Neosho Wildcats (8-18)
Team has really had a rough stretch run, losing 13 straight to end the season. To top it off, the Wildcats finish things up on Thursday against the Nixa Eagles. They do have some nice size and individual pieces. Connor Johnson, a 6-foot junior, has quietly emerged as a standout 3-point shooter Through the first 23 games, he has knocked down 54 3-pointers and shot 40 percent from behind the arc.
(2) Nixa Eagles (21-5)
They haven’t quite been the unstoppable force they have been over the past couple of years, losing games to Bolivar, Kickapoo, Hazelwood Central, Republic and Webb City. However, look for Nixa to put it together for a run in the postseason. There aren’t many better big-game coaches in the business than Jay Osborne, and we look for the Eagles to return to the physical, mix-it-up in the paint style of play they used to dominate much of the season.
(1) Republic Tigers (20-6)
These guys have had a tremendous season and have spent much of it flying under the radar. We look for Republic to be the team to watch for in the Springfield area in 2016-17 as they return nearly its entire varsity roster and mix in a handful of sophomores that are getting valuable varsity experience this season. The one thing that stands out about this Republic squad is how fundamentally sound they are. They play terrific man-to-man defense and run its offense like a machine. Look for head coach Trevyor Fisher to have Republic ready for postseason once again.
(3) Willard Tigers (8-17)
We actually thought Willard appeared to be one of southwest Missouri’s most improved teams over the course of the summer, and, had they stayed healthy, the Tigers might have been able to put together a great season. But they opened the season without Houston Johnson and Ethan Burson, and things have taken a toll. They still play tough-as-nails defense and make every game a grind, and we look for them to give Republic a battle.
Players to watch
Chase Allen, 6-7, F, 2016, Nixa (Iowa State football)
Christian Bundy, 6-5, F, 2017, Nixa
Kenny Chambers, 6-1, G, 2018, Willard
Kobe Holloman, 5-8, G, 2018, Willard
Connor Johnson, 6-0, G, 2017, Neosho
Tristan Ollar, 6-3, F, 2016, Republic
Treydon Rackley, 6-1, G, 2017, Republic
Our picks
Play-in game
(4) Neosho vs. (5) Joplin
We’re not sure about the status of Joplin senior Darrian Guillory as he has sat out a handful of games down the stretch. Neosho is probably a little better than their past 13 games or so would indicate, and without Guillory, Joplin doesn’t have much of a chance. Our pick Neosho
Semifinals
(1) Republic vs. (4) Neosho
These two teams were in a battle in its regular season match-up before Neosho head coach Jason Horn got a technical and things went south in a hurry for Neosho in a 63-45 loss. Republic is a big favorite in the rematch. Our pick Republic
(2) Nixa vs. (3) Willard
Nixa won the first match-up by 41 points, and while Willard might be a little better than that score, we seem more of the same in the rematch. Our pick Nixa
(1) Republic vs. (2) Nixa
Republic pulled the upset the first go-round with a 56-50 win over Nixa at Republic. But Nixa has a lot of height and can really do a lot of damage in the paint with a bruising style of play. We expect this to be a good match-up, but we’re going with Jay Osborne and the Eagles to make adjustments in the rematch. Our pick Nixa