Basketball

SIKESTON — Below is a list compiled of the Standard-Democrat area’s 12 best boys’ basketball players — outside of the player of the year. Eight schools make up the Standard-Democrat coverage area: Sikeston, Scott County Central, Oran, Portageville, East Prairie, Charleston, New Madrid County Central, and Kelly...

SIKESTON — After a season which saw four all-conference players graduate, a lot of questions surrounded the Sikeston boys’ basketball program on how senior guard Payton Howard was going to perform after a nagging injury toward the end of his junior year that lingered into the offseason...

Kennett native Fred Garmon is a lifelong student of the game of basketball. “Basketball has always been my sport,” said Garmon, who is a 2011 graduate of Kennett High School. “I call people at random times just to hear me out on things like a new practice drill I’ve come up with. I continue to learn more about the game and want to share my knowledge with people who are interested in listening to me.”...

SIKESTON — Below is a list compiled of the Standard-Democrat area’s 12 best girls’ basketball players: Height: 5’10” Coach: Alisha Wills ABOUT HER: An all-around player for the Lady Bulldogs this season, Allen did nearly everything that Sikeston asked her to do. ...

SIKESTON — In three years playing varsity basketball, Sikeston senior Taydrianna Barnett racked up over 1,500 points. One thousand seven hundred sixty-seven to be exact. That mark earned Barnett Class 4, District 1 All-District, and SEMO Conference All-Conference honors. She is also the 2020 Girls’ Standard-Democrat Player of the Year...

The 2019-20 SEMO Conference all-conference girls basketball awards have been released. Poplar Bluff senior Kiley Bess is the SEMO Conference Girls Basketball Player of the Year. Bess, who has signed to play basketball at St. Louis University, led the conference in scoring with 166 points in regular-season conference action. She averaged a team-high 24 points per conference game...

The 2019-2020 SEMO Conference all-conference boys basketball awards have been released. Sikeston senior Payton Howard is the SEMO Conference Boys Basketball Player of the Year. Howard, who has signed to play baseball at St. Louis University, led the conference in scoring with 175 points in regular-season conference action. He averaged 22 points per conference game...

By BRIAN ROSENER Staff Writer Kiley Bess knocked down a shot in the closing seconds of the state quarterfinal two weeks ago. It ended up being one of the very last baskets of a shortened postseason. Poplar Bluff’s season ended with a 44-33 loss to Kirkwood in the MSHSAA Class 5 playoffs, that were later canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic...

BENTON, Mo. — Finishing his third season as head coach at Kelly, Darrin Pruitt earned Coach of the Year honors from the Scott-Mississippi County Conference. After an 8-15 season in his first year, Pruitt has led the Lady Hawks to back-to-back winning seasons, culminating in a 16-11 mark in 2019-20...

Good Sports is a column appearing weekly in the Southeast Missourian and Semoball.com. The purpose is to get to know the people who impact the sporting life of our region in a more complete way. Responses have been edited for clarity and brevity...

Area players were honored Wednesday with the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association's All-State team. In Class 1, David Layton of Oak Ridge and Delta's Eric Berry were honored. In Class 2, Oran's Tyson Goodale, Jack Below of Advance, Campbell's Blake Fowler and Neelyville's Curtis Fowler were honored along with Oran's Kaylee Payne and Katie Webb, and Neelyville's Lexi Liau...

SIKESTON — Danny Farmer’s announcement to retire after the state championship game of the Class 3 Show-Me Showdown was one that he told his team at the beginning of the season. For nearly five months, his decision was a secret. On the sidelines with one team for over 20 years, Farmer now heads into a different direction — one without game plans and practices — while the Bluejays do the same...

In a world that is utterly on hold due to a global pandemic, with a future that is anybody’s guess, we mine the settled past for stories reminding us when people used to play sports. Few, in his era or any era, did it much better than Joe Aden. Aden is the four-decade mayor of East Cape Girardeau, the village of approximately 300 people encountered as soon as motorists cross over the Bill Emerson bridge...

No Summer Olympics. No NBA, no NHL. No March Madness. It’s surprising to discover how wearying it is to key the word “no” over and over into a Word document. Good heavens, even the national pastime, major league baseball, is indefinitely delayed. With apologies to Shakespeare, his words slightly altered here due to the exigencies of the moment: “Now is the spring of our discontent.”...

Six years ago, Deanay Watson wasn't playing basketball. Now she's committed to play for Southeast Missouri State University. The 5-foot, 10-inch, third-year sophomore from Bradenton, Fla., led Three Rivers this season with 13.6 points to go with 5.6 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.1 assists per game...

SIKESTON — It was a dream come true. Those were the words that former Charleston Bluejay Demarcus Sharp said after earning an offer from Dana Ford and the Missouri State University Bears. Sharp announced his commitment to the program on Wednesday via his Twitter account...

For the first time in my life, I’m going to quote someone associated with the New York Yankees. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. When words resonate, you pass them along. “The universe is in a holding pattern,” said Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, in speaking to the media Monday from the team’s spring training facility in West Palm Beach, Florida...

Advance senior Jack Below has been named basketball player of the year in the SCAA. Below averaged a conference-high 33 points per game, leading the Hornets to a 23-5 record and a second-place finish in the SCAA standings.

SIKESTON — Multiple Standard-Democrat area basketball players earned spots on their respective All-District teams recently. Sikeston seniors Payton Howard and Clark Steward both made the team for Class 4, District 1. Senior Taydrianna Barnett and sophomore Karris Allen both made it on the girls’ side as well...

Good Sports is a column featured weekly in the Southeast Missourian and on semoball.com. It is primarily designed to showcase people who have impacted the sporting life of Southeast Missouri, so that readers may get to know them more fully. Responses have been edited for clarity and brevity...

A slew of basketball players from the Missouri Bootheel have been named to all-district teams. Listed below are the boys and girls all-district basketball teams for Class 1, District 1; Class 2, District 1; and Class 3, District 1. Class 1, District 1 All-District Team...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Long-time Charleston head coach Danny Farmer announced after Saturday's state championship game that he was going to retire. Farmer said that he told his team at the beginning of the season. He finished his career with the Bluejays with a 485-178 record — good for a 69 percent winning percentage...

Cape Girardeau has long had a Roman Catholic high school. It has gone by various names through the years – St. Vincent(boys)/Loretta Academy(girls), St. Mary’s and Cape Girardeau Catholic High were the previous incarnations. In 1960, the name Notre Dame was established...

In the intimate confines of St. Vincent’s High School gym in Perryville, Notre Dame (25-4) punched its ticket to the Class 4 Final Four Saturday with a convincing quarterfinal win over Rockwood Summit (26-4), 55-35. Sophomore guard Lexi Rubel, who was held scoreless by the Falcons in the first half, came back roaring in the final 16 minutes to post 17 points, the most for either team...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — It wasn’t their time. Charleston’s quest for a 12th state championship was gone in a hurry on Saturday against Cardinal Ritter in the finals of the Show-Me Showdown at JQH Arena in Springfield. From the second-quarter-on, the No. 2 team in Class 3 never let up on the Bluejays, defeating them 88-32. The score marked the most lopsided win for a team in championship game history in any class...

SPRINGFIELD – Every coach competing in the MSHSAA Boy’s and Girl’s Basketball Semifinals Friday at Missouri State University was pleased to still be playing well enough that their season was continuing, and interim Oran coach Larry Boshell was no different.

SPRINGFIELD – On average, the Oran boy’s basketball team scores 17 points per quarter and generally has around 35 at halftime of its games.

SPRINGFIELD - In early January, no one within the Oran boy’s basketball program knew for sure if the Eagles would be playing at this stage of the season, and it certainly was questionable whether senior forward Todd Priggel would be.

This story will be updated. ST. CHARLES, Mo. — Kirkwood scored nine straight points to start the second half and Poplar Bluff never recovered Saturday in the MSHSAA Class 5 quarterfinal. The Mules went scoreless for 3 minutes and 45 seconds after taking a one-point lead into halftime as Kirkwood surged past Poplar Bluff 44-33 at Francis Howell Central High School...

The third annual Special Olympics Basketball Exhibition was held in the Kennett Middle School gymnasium on Saturday. Athletes were able to showcase their skills in front of the largest crowd ever to attend the exhibition. Kathy Rogers, a coach for the Kennett Special Olympics team, appreciated the community support and sponsors for the exhibition...

The 2020 Bootheel Conference Boys Basketball Awards have been released. Campbell junior Blake Fowler has been selected all-conference and Bootheel Conference Boys Basketball Player of the Year. Fowler averaged 27 points, three rebounds, four assists, and three steals per game. He shot 82 percent from the free-throw line, made 64 percent of his 2-point shots, and knocked down 39 percent of his 3-pointers...

Poplar Bluff and Notre Dame high school officials were working Thursday night to plan for the MSHSAA Class 5 quarterfinal on Saturday featuring the girls basketball team with spectator limits. MSHSAA announced it was making adjustments to the basketball playoffs in a conference call with schools as state and local health officials announced a second case of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, in Missouri...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — It wasn’t a typical Charleston Bluejays finish on Friday. The Bluejays trailed 22-20 at halftime, but still clawed their way to a 51-49 win against Monroe City, in the semifinals of the Class 3 Show-Me Showdown at JQH Arena in Springfield...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Guarding East Buchanan freshman Gracie Kelsey proved to be Oran’s downfall on Friday. At 6-1, the freshman put on a show for the limited crowd in attendance, finishing with a game-high 26 points on 10 of 14 shooting. She also neared a double-double, with eight rebounds, and was a pest on defense with five steals, in the Bulldogs’ 66-37 win in the semifinals of the Class 2 Show-Me Showdown, in Springfield...

For Notre Dame girls basketball coach Kirk Boeller, playing in front of a small crowd of spectators is not a big deal. “We’ve played in gyms with 150 people this season,” said Boeller, 32, who is leading his Bulldogs (24-4) into a Class 4 quarterfinal tilt against the Rockwood Summit Falcons (26-3) Saturday at 1 p.m...

Notre Dame boys basketball coach Paul Unterreiner realizes his team has had a charmed month of March. A 57-55 overtime win over Dexter in overtime March 3. A 38-37 double overtime victory to win the C4D1 title over Cape Central March 6. Those hard-fought, closely contested games in the Dawg Pound led to Tuesday’s 60-47 double-digit defeat of Central Park Hills – in a sectional contest played on a neutral court in Farmington...

There might be the same number of people in the stands as an early-season tournament game, but the Poplar Bluff girls basketball team will be playing in the MSHSAA Class 5 quarterfinal. The Mules will face Kirkwood at noon Saturday at Francis Howell Central in St. Charles County with each school only allowed to have 60 people in the gym...

Good Sports is a column appearing weekly in the Southeast Missourian and Semoball.com. The purpose is to get to know the people who impact the sporting life of our region in a more complete way. Responses have been edited for clarity and brevity. Today: Chris Hahn, 30, head coach, Delta Bobcats boys basketball. ...

HILLSBORO, Mo. — The Poplar Bluff Mules hit the snooze button to continue their dream season Wednesday night. Katie Pattillo, Hannah Corcimiglia and Abby Turner each scored as the Mules built a double-digit lead following a 10-minute delay in the second quarter...

FARMINGTON – The Central (Park Hills) girl’s basketball squad had to have felt pretty good Tuesday when just 1:00 into its Class 4 Sectional game with Notre Dame, Bulldog starters (and NCAA Division I athletes) Lexi Rubel and Riley Burger had already been called for fouls.

Back in the state playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade, the Poplar Bluff girls basketball team is having too much fun to stop now. “We’re not done yet,” Poplar Bluff senior Kiley Bess said after the Mules beat Jackson in the district final...

FARMINGTON, Mo. - Notre Dame overcame a barrage of early 3-point shooting by Park Hills Central to win, 60-47, in sectional action at Farmington Civic Center Tuesday. “We like to shoot the three,” admitted Rebels coach Allen Davis, in his first year with Park Hills Central...

SIKESTON — It all comes down to this. Three Standard-Democrat area basketball teams are vying for a shot at a state championship starting Friday, on the campus of Missouri State University, in Springfield. Both the Oran girls’ and boys’ basketball teams are making the trip, while the Charleston boys’ team joins them...

FARMINGTON — As the Ava boy’s basketball team discovered very early in its MSHSAA Class 3 Quarterfinal loss to Charleston Saturday, it’s difficult to scout – or prepare for – the Bluejays.

The 2020 Bootheel Conference Girls Basketball Awards have been released. Hayti sophomore Amiya Johnson has been selected all-conference and Bootheel Conference Girls Basketball Player of the Year. Johnson averaged 34 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, and six steals per game as a sophomore...

FARMINGTON, Mo – With a senior-heavy roster full of returning starters, the Charleston Bluejays entered the season with the same goal as every other year in recent memory: reach the final four and compete for a state title. Despite struggling most of Saturday afternoon offensively against Ava in the Class 3 quarterfinals, the Bluejays third-straight trip to Springfield never felt in doubt...

SIKESTON — Storming the floor is something that the Oran Eagles have done a lot in the past four years. Just as the Oran girls basketball team celebrated on Saturday, the boys followed suit, after defeating Thayer 45-39, in the quarterfinals of the Class 2 State Tournament, at the Sikeston Field House...

FARMINGTON — Midway through the fourth quarter of its Class 3 Quarterfinal girl’s basketball game against Licking Saturday at Farmington, the Saxony Lutheran girl’s basketball squad began to have small things – but in the scope of winning or losing they were big things – simply not go their way.

VAN BUREN — Michaela Ayers spoiled Naylor's Senior Season. The South Iron senior connected on a pair of 3-pointers in the final 23 seconds to force overtime and had the ball in her hands in the final seconds of the extra session trailing by a point...