Game Report: Keokuk vs. Knoxville (3A Substate Final)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>KNOXVILLE -- For the first time since 2000, Knoxville is headed to Des Moines. The Panthers punched their ticket to the Class 3A state tournament on Monday night, holding off Keokuk, 63-55, to keep their undefeated season going.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There were a few different moments in the first half where it looked like Knoxville may start to create some distance, pushing their lead out to nine points with 4:18 left in the half. But Keokuk closed the half on a 7-2 run to trim the deficit down to just 25-21 heading into the break. The second half played out largely the same, with Knoxville pushing the lead out to 8 or 9 points, Keokuk answering with 4-5 of their own, but the Chiefs could never get closer than two possessions, with the Panthers holding them at arms length throughout. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Knoxville offense went a bit stagnant midway through the fourth quarter, but sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='2231637' first='Lincoln' last='Norris'] knocked down a pair of big 3s in the final few minutes to keep some distance and ultimately help the Panthers come away with the win. Norris scored 13 of his 15 points in the second half, with eight coming in the fourth quarter. His older brother, [player_tooltip player_id='1668669' first='Landen' last='Norris'], was fantastic, finishing with a team-high 28 points in the win. [player_tooltip player_id='1978100' first='Jaxon' last='Clark'] had 31 points and 10 rebounds in the loss for Keokuk.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:table --> <figure class="wp-block-table"><table class="has-fixed-layout"><tbody><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center"><strong>Team</strong></td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center"><strong>1Q</strong></td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center"><strong>2Q</strong></td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center"><strong>3Q</strong></td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center"><strong>4Q</strong></td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center"><strong>Final</strong></td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center"><strong>Keokuk</strong></td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">12</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">9</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">18</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">16</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">55</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center"><strong>Knoxville</strong></td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">16</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">9</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">22</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">16</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">63</td></tr></tbody></table></figure> <!-- /wp:table --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Keokuk:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='1978100' first='Jaxon' last='Clark'] 31, Chevy Barnes 6, [player_tooltip player_id='1720208' first='Brenton' last='Hoard'] 6, Drake Anderson 6, [player_tooltip player_id='2398015' first='Tramell' last='Smith'] 4<br><strong>Knoxville: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1668669' first='Landen' last='Norris'] 28, [player_tooltip player_id='2231637' first='Lincoln' last='Norris'] 15, [player_tooltip player_id='2511505' first='Kaiden' last='Smith'] 8, [player_tooltip player_id='2811942' first='Koby' last='Higginbotham'] 6, [player_tooltip player_id='2731843' first='Drake' last='Larson'] 5, [player_tooltip player_id='2906421' first='TaShawn' last='Conner'] 1</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1668669"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-67c67cf0cd537"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Norris was great in this one, scoring a team-high 28 points and it was his constant movement without the ball in his hands that really stood out. He has really good awareness, sensing when his defender was sleeping and cutting to the rim for finishes. He attacks the rim HARD off the dribble and looks to finish at the cup with authority, including an impressive dunk plus the foul early in the game that really got the crowd going. It was Landen's game early on, and then his little brother delivered the daggers in the fourth.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2231637"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-67c67cf0cd598"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Speaking of little brother, Lincoln has been on quite the heater since the holiday break, routinely knocking down big shots and doing so in bunches. He got off to a really quiet start, scoring just 2 points in the first half, but he knocked down some huge shots in the second half, in particular the fourth quarter to keep Keokuk at arms length. He's a fantastic shooter off both the dribble and the catch, oozing with confidence, a pure stroke, and unlimited range. He plays so fast that sometimes he looks a little out of control, but he knows exactly where he's going and really makes his defender work hard to try and keep up with him. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='2811942' first='Koby' last='Higginbotham']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'2u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"77247","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Knoxville","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-67c67cf0cd638"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">An athletic, strong 6-2 forward, Higginbotham drew the primary defensive assignment on Keokuk star [player_tooltip player_id='1978100' first='Jaxon' last='Clark'], and he performed admirably, getting low and trying to push Clark off of his spots. He can elevate and finish above the rim in transition, is strong on the glass, and does a really nice job providing some versatility on the defensive end. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2511505"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-67c67cf0cd683"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Another Panther who provides some defensive versatility is Smith, a long, lanky, and athletic 6-8 forward who can guard one through five at this level. His length and bounce allow him to contest shots, rotating over and blocking shots out of nowhere, and he moves his feet well when defending on the perimeter. He showed some real confidence in his jumper, knocking down a pair of catch-and-shoot corner 3s in the win. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1978100"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-67c67cf0cd6c7"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Knoxville tried their hardest, but they still couldn't really come up with answers for Clark, the 6-10 junior who is garnering Big 10 interest. He scored by attacking off the dribble. He scored on post-ups. He scored after kicking it out and re-establishing with even better position. He stepped out and knocked down 3s. He has a unique blend of power and finesse with his big, physical frame, elite footwork, and soft touch around the rim. He was great, Keokuk just didn't have enough around him. He finished with 31 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1720208"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-67c67cf0cd70a"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Howard was really good on the defensive end in his final game in a Chiefs uniform, coming away with 5 steals and routinely using his length to get up into passing lanes and make life difficult for the Knoxville guards. He's a tough finisher around the rim with good size and length.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->