Final day of the Poplar Bluff Showdown

You can read about the the first day here and the second day here.

I'll post a game story on the front page at a later time.

FINAL

Liberty Tech 14 21 14 19 -- 68

Ballard 15 11 15 21 -- 62

TECH (12-3) -- Anthony 6-7 6-7 18. Johnson 6-13 3-4 15. Williams 1-2 (1-2) 5-7 10. Cain 0-1 (2-3) 0-0 6. Barnette 5-8 (2-3) 1-1 17. Yeates 0. Lindsey 0. Day 0-1 0-0 0. Blaylock 1-2 0-0 2. Totals: 19-34 (5-8) 15-19 68.

BALLARD (11-2) -- Means 6-8 4-5 16. Hardin 2-4 1-3 5. Chiles 8-14 (2-5) 6-8 28. Parker 0-2 (0-1) 0-0 0. Jones 1-1 (1-2) 5-5 10. Bake r0-1 0-0 0. Hardin 0-1 0-0 0. Johnson 0. Dickerson 0-2 (0-1) 0-0 0. Collier 0-0 (1-3) 0-0 3. Totals: 17-33 (4-12) 16-21 62.

Ballard scores the first 11, including highlight dunks by Tyrell Means and a triple by Keisten Jones.

Liberty Tech scores 14 of the next 16 to take a 14-13 lead. Jones hits two free throws with 28 seconds left to give Ballard the lead back, 15-14 heading into the second quarter.

Tech scores the 10 straight to open the second quarter, going up 24-15 with 5:46 to play on Tarius Johnson's steal and layin.

Make that 14 straight. Tech up 28-15 midway through the second.

Ballard's Logan Collier finally ends the drought with a 3 at the 3:13 mark, ending a 17-0 run by Tech.

Tech leads 35-26 at halftime.

The lead grew to 11 but Ballard got to within four. Heading into the fourth, Tech leads 49-41.

Ballard's Ian Chiles rattles home a 3 from straight away with 1:38 to go, cutting Tech's lead to 62-58.

Tech's Cordaro Williams hits two free throws with a minute to go. Two free throws by Means makes it a 4-point game and Tech is caught too long in the backcourt with 38 seconds left. Chiles drives and is fouled with 25.2 left. Misses first, hits second rebound Williams.

Intentional foul with 20 seconds left, Tech's Tarius Johnson hits two free throws to push the lead to 66-60.

Williams hits two more free throws with 16 seconds left to ice the game.

Final score, Liberty Tech defends its Showdown title, 68-62.

Ballard's fast start was followed by a drought of 7:42 without a field goal in the first half. That allowed Tech to go on a 26-5 run.

THIRD PLACE

Warren Central 15 10 9 18 -- 52

Poplar Bluff 14 14 12 15 -- 55

CENTRAL (5-5) -- Holcomb 2-5 (0-1) 8-12 12. Carpenter 2-3 (1-1) 0-0 7. Wells 4-10 0-2 8. King 1-1 (1-8) 0-1 5. Fant 7-8 (0-1) 1-3 15. Boards 0-1 0-2 0. Jackson 1-3 0-0 2. Barber 0. Sheldon 0-0 (1-2) 0-0 3. Halsel 0. Totals: 17-31 (3-13) 9-20 52.

POPLAR BLUFF (8-3) -- Coble 1-4 0-3 2. Abraham 1-2 (0-1) 0-0 2. Raulston 6-9 6-9 18. White 1-5 (1-2) 3-4 8. Johnson 5-8 0-4 10. Griggs 0. MmcCain 1-1 0-0 2. McAnulty 0. Marler 1-2 (3-7) 0-0 11. Shrum 0-0 2-2 2. Totals: 16-31 (4-10) 11-22 55.

Poplar Bluff and Warren Central have tipped off.

After one quarter, Warren Central leads 15-14. There were five lead changes and the Mules turned the ball over six times.

At halftime, the Mules lead 28-25.

Now for the answer to the question of the day:

The 2000s have been a big decade for Poplar Bluff basketball. Two state titles, three trips to the final four, six district titles, seven appearances in the district final. The Mules have won 182 games this decade and lost just 81, that's a .692 winning percentage.

The Lady Mules, meanwhile, were 184-75 (.710) over the same period, finishing second and third at state and winning six district titles.

(Note that I don't have the second half of the 1999-2000 season with me, so that sample is from the 2000-01 season until tonight.)

Eljie Johnson has six points, Jake White and Jordan Marler five each and Jay Raulston has four points on just three shots. The Mules shot 11 for 24 from the field (2 of 8 from 3) but has 10 turnovers. Oddly, the Mules have more points off turnovers 12-10.

George Fant leads Central with six points on 3-of-4 shooting (missed a 3), while Jacob King has five points and Troy Holcomb already has four assists.

Fant's bucket in the post cuts Poplar Bluff's lead to 32-30 midway through the quarter.

The Mules score eight straight with 3s by Jordan Marler and a bucket in the paint by Johnson, who came away with a steal on the other end when Greg Coble tipped a pass and saved it from going out of bounds.

After three quarters, Bluff is up 40-34.

Mules go up by 10 on Raulston's putback. ... With 5:15 to go Mules up 44-37.

It's a 45-44 Mules lead with 3:35 left following a layin by Shamarcus Wells off a inbound pass.

Free throws by White and later Raulston push Bluff's lead back to six with 2:13 left. Central misses a baseline drive but Coble misses free throw and on the rebound, McCain fouls out with 1:51 left. Wells misses both free throws. Timeout Bluff, 1:45 left, Mules up 52-46.

Raulston misses front end of one-and-one, Denzel Carpenter's fastbreak layin pulls Central within 52-48 with 1:37 to go.

Central fouls Coble, double bonus with 1:27 left, misses first and second, six missed free throws this quarter for Mules.

Troy Holcomb hits two free throws with 1:17 left for Central, then gets a steal at midcourt and scores to tie the game with a minute to go. Bluff calls timeout with 57 seconds left.

Mules break press, Raulston is fouled with 45 seconds left. Hits first, misses second. King misses a three and Central's tipin attempt misses, Johnson gets rebound and Raulston hits two free throws with 26.6 seconds left. Timeout Dragons with 16.3 seconds left.

Wells misses a drive to the basket, a long rebound to the corner is chased down by Lee Abraham. Mules get the ball upcourt to Johnson, who is fouled with 6.5 seconds left. But the senior misses two and the Dragons call time with 4.2 left and the length of the court to go.

Carpenter's 3 from the left wing over two Mules hits iron and the host finishes third with a 55-52 win.

TOURNAMENT NOTES

Just some thoughts as the night goes on

Congrats to the Lady Mules on winning the title at Dyersburg last night.

QUESTION of the day: Which teams has more wins this decade, the Mules or Lady Mules? (Answer at halftime of the Mules game).

TOP PLAYERS so far: I've got two names on my all-tournament team so far -- Ballard's Keisten Jones and Poplar Bluff's Jay Raulston. Who else?

FUN TIP Since I got about 2 hours sleep last night and a short nap today, feel free to enjoy all my mistakes. For the entire first game the heading read SEVEN PLACE.

KENNETT coach Jim Vaughan got a hand when he entered the hospitality room. The Indians, who host the Mules a week from Friday (Jan. 7), won the Bloomfield title last night. Vaughan is a former assistant coach at Poplar Bluff under former coach John David Pattillo.

FINAL PREVIEW Ballard faces defending champion Liberty Tech.

Tech had the later semifinal, rallying past the host Mules for a 1-point win. To defend their title, they'll have to slow down Ballard's Keisten Jones, who is averaging a tournament-high 29.0 points on 84-percent shooting (10 of 14 from 3-point range). Tyrell Means ranks sixth in scoring for the tournament for Ballard (11-1).

DeAndre Barnette leads Tech (11-3) during the tournament with 14.5 points a game while Cordaro Williams has averaged 13.0 so far.

From earlier:

FIFTH PLACE

Forrest City 13 10 16 18 -- 57

Tupelo 15 9 14 11 -- 49

FORREST CITY (5-6) -- Lee 2-6 (1-1) 4-4 11. Harris 2-5 4-4 8. Bean 6-8 (1-2) 4-5 19. Bailey 2-4 (1-3) 2-2 9. Rogers 1-4 (1-5) 0-0 5. Humphery 0-2 (0-1) 0-0 0. Moore 0-1 0-0 0. McKinney 1-3 (1-2) 5. Driver 0-0 (0-1) 0-0 0. Totals: 14-33 (5-15) 14-15 57.

TUPELO (11-5) -- Clayton 1-1 (0-3) 0-0 2. Marshall 0-2 (0-2) 0-0 0. Hadley 3-6 0-0 6. Ewing 1-5 (2-4) 0-0 8. Foster 4-8 1-2 9. Jones 0. Morris 4-6 (0-1) 1-2 9. Brooks 2-6 (2-4) 1-2 11. Butler 0-0 (0-2) 1-2 1. Harrelson 0-0 (1-2) 0-0 3. Totals: 15-34 (5-18) 4-8 49.

Forrest City finished the first quarter with a pair of steal and layins before Tupelo's Jeremy Foster hit a free throws with 6.7 seconds left to give the Golden Wave a 15-13 heading into the second.

The Wave score the first seven of the second quarter and lead 22-13 midway through, but Forrest City's Davyon McKinney splashes a 3.

At halftime, the Wave lead 24-23.

After three quarters, Forrest City is up 39-38.

Forrest City's Willie Bean breaks a 43-all tie with 2:10 left on a drive, then scores again following a timeout when Davyon McKinney tips an inbound pass to Bean for a layin.

Tupelo's Reed Clayton has a 3 rim out and Teraye Lee hits two free throws for a 49-43 lead with 1:13 left.

Another 3 for Clayton went in and out but the Mustangs missed a one-and-one before a free throw pulled the Wave within five. Mykial Harris hit two free throws for the Mustangs to push the margin to seven with 52 seconds left.

Final score, Forrest City 57-49.

There were seven lead changes and seven ties with the largest lead being at the end of the game. Foster had nine boards to lead the Wave, Clayton had five assists.

The Mustangs hit 14-of-15 free throws.

SEVENTH PLACE

North Pulaski 14 6 13 14 -- 47

Greene County Tech 11 9 16 10 -- 46

NORTH PULASKI (9-4) -- Cooper 5-7 (2-8) 3-8 19. Ware 3-6 (0-6) 4-4 10. Barron 5-8 (0-1) 0-2 10. Colson 1-6 3-8 5. Allen 0. Davis 0-1 1-4 1. Seward 0. Spicer 0-3 (0-1) 0-0 0. Knight 0-1 2-2 2. Bohannon 0. Totals: 14-32 (2-16) 13-28 47.

TECH (6-7) -- Goodman 2-5 (0-1) 0-0 4. Hartwig 3-9 2-2 8. George 2-2 (1-1) 5-5 12. Taylor 1-1 (0-2) 6-8 8. Slayton 0-0 (1-4) 2-4 5. Shelton 0. Williams 2-3 1-2 5. Forehand 0. McCreless 1-1 (0-1) 0-0 2. Batten 1-4 0-1 2. Totals: 12-25 (2-9) 16-22 46.

It's a rematch of last year's state championship game in Arkansas, which Greene County Tech won 39-34. Tech lost a ton of players off that team while North Pulaski brings back three all-staters.

Tech's coach has been T'd up here late in the first quarter and the Falcons will take a 14-11 lead into the second.

At halftime, we're tied 20-20. After three quarters, it's 36-33 Tech. (As a side note, both benches are upset with the refs, so that means they're doing a good job.)

The Falcons have surged into the lead, going up 44-43 with 2:25 left. The teams trade turnovers and Tech has the ball with 1:25 left.

Tech's Caleb Hartwig is fouled posting up in the paint, hits two free throws for a 45-44 lead with 1:10 left. ... North Pulaski takes a timeout with 35.1 seconds on the clock.

Falcons' Aaron Cooper hits a pull-up jumper from the left elbow with 20 seconds left for the 46-45 lead. Tech calls a timeout with 10.7 left, inbounding the ball infront of their own bench near midcourt.

Matt Taylor gets the ball back at the right wing, dribbles to the free-throw line, spins and puts up a shot but is fouled by Braylon Spicer, his fifth, with 3.7 seconds left. Taylor misses the first, hits the second to tie the game at 46.

Falcons inbound the ball to Cooper and he's fouled near midcourt by senior Caleb Hartwig, who picks up his first and sends Cooper to the line for two shots with 1.8 left. Cooper hits the first with a shooter's bounce, misses the second, and Tech calls time with 1.2 left. The inbound pass, however, misses the mark and Falcons come away with it and the win, 47-46.

Cooper scored 19 to go with three assists and five steals for North Pulaski (9-4). Kyron Ware and Shyheim Barron each scored 10 points while Bryan Colson added eight points and 14 rebounds.

Zach George led Tech (6-7) with 12 points. Hartwig and Taylor each scored eight and combined for 15 rebounds (eight by Hartwig).

There were 16 lead changes and 10 ties with the largest lead of six points.