The quarterfinals are set at the 74th Annual Greenwood Blue and Gold Basketball Tournament in Springfield, with all but one seeded team winning in the first round on Thursday.
( 3) Greenwood 76, Camdenton 48:
The Blue Jays’ 6-5 junior sensation Aminu Mohammed put on a show, scoring 36 points and pulling down 18 rebounds in a rout over the Lakers in the Gold Division at JQH Arena.
Mohammed, ranked as one of the top high school basketball talents in the country, did everything from slam dunks to three point shooting to dribbling the ball between opponents’ legs.
Greenwood jumped ahead 49-24 at the half and led 70-32 after three quarters, then used a turbo clock for much of the fourth quarter.
(3) Bolivar 65, Springfield Catholic 53:
The Liberators held a 17-13 lead over the Fightin’ Irish after one quarter, then pulled ahead by 15 points at halftime and cruised in the second half.
Freshman Kyle Pock led the Liberators with 17 points, and Zach Howell put in 16 for Catholic, who won the Blue Division in 2018.
(6) Rogersville 79, Ash Grove 28:
The Wildcats trounced the Pirates in a first round Blue Division contest at Hammons Center.
Rogersville led 27-8 after one quarter and 47-18 at the half.
Ash Grove, who finished the third quarter trailing 63-28, failed to score in the final eight minutes.
Josh Linehan scored 17 points to lead the Wildcats.
Sam Moreland’s 11 points led the Pirates.
(6) Mt. Vernon 48, Stockton 35:
The Mountaineers get 21 points from Mason Ballay to advance to the quarterfinals.
Mt. Vernon went ahead 11-2 after one quarter and had a six point lead at halftime before extending the margin to double digits in the second half.
Drew Wheeler’s 19 points paced the Tigers.
(2) Nixa 63, Willow Springs 31:
The Eagles give Head Coach Jay Osborne his 70th all time win in the Blue and Gold Tournament, beating the Bears in the Blue Division at Hammons Center.
The Eagles led 20-11 after one quarter and 37-17 at halftime on the way to a convincing victory.
Kaleb Wofford (12 points) and Collin Ruffin (11 points) led the way for the Eagles.
Osborne is the winning coach in tournament history, passing Steve Hunter in 2016.
(2) Ozark 65, West Plains 52:
The Tigers were led by senior A.J. Elliott’s 24 points and actually trailed 16-11 after one period and 28-27 at the half at JQH Arena.
But Ozark took control in the third frame, 41-35, and pulled away in the final eight minutes to advance to the quarterfinals in the Gold Division.
Chaney Martin scored 14 points to lead the Zizzers.
(7) Strafford 66, Spokane 40:
The Indians get 20 points from senior Zak Lutgen to overcome a 24-22 halftime deficit and cruise to a win in an opening round Gold Division game at JQH Arena.
Strafford scored 27 points in the third period to begin to pull away, leading 49-34 heading into the final eight minutes.
Zayne Gale’s 13 points were tops for the Owls.
(7) Crane 51, Houston 34:
The Pirates advance to the quarterfinals in the Blue Division, pulling away in the second half in a low scoring battle.
Crane held a 9-6 lead after one quarter before going ahead 24-16 at halftime, then outscoring the Tigers by ten in the third frame.
Isaiah Smith scored 20 points to lead Crane.
Dakota Burchett’s nine points led the way for Houston.
Here are the scores from Thursday’s opening round of the 74th Annual Greenwood Blue and Gold Tournament, with seeds in parenthesis:
Blue Division (First Round Games at Hammons Student Center):
Final: (8) Clever 57, Springfield Hillcrest 42
Final: (1) Willard 46, Ava 42
Final: Branson 50, (5) Lebanon 47 (OT)
Final: (4) Hartville 56, Marshfield 30
Final: (7) Crane 51, Houston 34
Final: (2) Nixa 63,Willow Springs 31
Final: (6) Rogersville 79, Ash Grove 28
Final: (3) Bolivar 65, Springfield Catholic 53
Gold Division (First Round Games at JQH Arena):
Final: (8) Skyline 58 Reeds Spring 40
Final: (1) Springfield Kickapoo 78, Aurora 32
Final: (5) Fair Grove 69, Buffalo 57
Final: (4) Republic 65, Mountain Grove 33
Final: (7) Strafford 66, Spokane 40
Final: (2) Ozark 65, West Plains 52
Final: (6) Mt. Vernon 48, Stockton 35
Final: (3) Greenwood 76, Camdenton 48
Day one Blue and Gold Tournament Day Session scores and recaps:
Here is the schedule for Friday’s quarterfinal round games, with winner’s bracket contests at JQH Arena and the consolation round at Hammons Student Center:
Blue Division Quarterfinals (JQH Arena):
(8) Clever vs. (1) Willard 9:30 a.m.
Branson vs. (4) Hartville 11:00 a.m.
(7) Crane vs. (2) Nixa 12:30 p.m.
(6) Rogersville vs. (3) Bolivar 2:00 p.m.
Gold Division Quarterfinals (JQH Arena):
(8) Skyline vs. (1) Springfield Kickapoo 5:00 p.m.
(5) Fair Grove vs. (4) Republic 6:30 p.m.
(7) Strafford vs. (2) Ozark 8:00 p.m.
(6) Mt. Vernon vs. (3) Greenwood 9:30 p.m.
Blue Division Consolation Round (Hammons Center):
Hillcrest vs. Ava 9:30 a.m.
(5) Lebanon vs. Marshfield 11:00 a.m.
Houston vs. Willow Springs 12:30 p.m.
Ash Grove vs. Springfield Catholic 2:00 p.m.
Gold Division Consolation Round (Hammons Center):
Reeds Spring vs. Aurora 5:00 p.m.
Buffalo vs. Mountain Grove 6:30 p.m.
Spokane vs. West Plains 8:00 p.m.
Stockton vs. Camdenton 9:30 p.m.
We’ll have scores and game recaps throughout the tournament at KTTS.com.
