Spoofhounds claim State Tournament berth
HENRY JANSSEN/DAILY FORUM
John Zimmerman thrusts the District Championship placard into the air after the Spoofhounds defeated Penney 67-60. Zimmerman finished with 18 points.
For the second consecutive season, the Spoofhounds’ boys basketball team is the most tournament-ready team in Class 3 District 16.
Maryville topped Penney 67-60 in Saturday’s District Tournament championship in Lathrop, but a seven-point lead was the largest the Spoofhounds created in the final five minutes of play after nailing five of their six free throws in the endgame.
The Spoofhounds trailed 12-4 after the first quarter.
“To start the game off, geez,” Maryville coach Matt Stoecklein laughed. “We’re down big, we’re not playing good, we can’t handle their pressure, nothing is going our way.
“After that first quarter, they buckled down, hit some buckets, and played better defense.”
Eli Dowis took over in the opening two minutes of the second quarter. After receiving an alley-oop layup from John Zimmerman 15 seconds into the period, Trey Oglesby threw the sophomore a pass that he could really handle. Dowis emphatically jammed it right-handed to bring the audience to its feet and the Spoofhounds back to a 14-8 deficit.
Dowis knocked down a shot from long range on the next possession, and his seven points in a span of 1:45 brought the Spoofhounds back within three.
“I’d take Dowis any day,” Penney coach Rick Ross said. “He and Zimmerman are two of the heartiest kids that I’ve seen. They’re lucky to have players like that.”
Maryville went off for 25 points in that second period. Two minutes after Dowis’ spurt, the Spoofhounds took their first lead at 18-17 – one that they never conceded.
The Spoofhounds entered the halftime break with a 29-22 lead, but their grittiest work was yet to come.
At the 4:10 second mark in the third quarter, Penney’s Jaran Richman – who finished with a game-high 28 points – hit his second consecutive 3-pointer to cut his team’s deficit to 42-38.
“He’s started literally every game of his high school career for me,” Ross said of Richman.
With five minutes left in the fourth, Richman converted a four-point play to bring his team within two at 54-52.
After a Maryville jump shot rimmed out, Penney sped out in transition for a Latroy Harper dunk, bringing Penney’s maximum-capacity student section to Shangri-la.
With 4:15 showing on the clock in a tie game, Stoecklein burned a timeout. He said that he knew his seniors would be ready following the second buzzer.
“They didn’t lay down, they didn’t get upset, they said ‘Hey, let’s go, let’s play smart,’” he said. “We’ve got great senior leadership out there. We feel comfortable, we can rotate in clutch moments to get defensive or offensive players out there. They’ve been waiting for so long to get back to where we are again, but it’s a pretty special class to just coach and have.”
Following Stoecklein’s timeout (his first of four in the final quarter), Eli Dowis got back to work, slipping around Harper and knocking down a 12-footer off of a Eurostep move.
Penney tied the game again at 56, but at the two-minute mark Maryville’s Jackson Golightly rose up to lay in a Dowis miss. The score of 58-56 was the closest Penney would force from there on.
Maryville knocked down seven of its eight free throw opportunities in the fourth quarter, including Zimmerman draining all four or his shots in one-and-one situations.
“We came out and did it, we weathered the storm and we just played,” Golightly said. “They caught fire there for a little bit, we had to adjust, and we settled in and started playing basketball. Johnny Z makes a lot of free throws, Trey knocked down a huge pair, and being able to stay clutch like that and not allowing second chances is all it takes in late game situations when we have a lead. We did a great job of that.”
Golightly finished with 14 points.
Dowis and Zimmerman both finished in double figures in scoring. Dowis finished with 21 points and Zimmerman had 18. Spencer Morrison and Jake Woods both scored five points, and Oglesby and Jalen Sundell contributed a bucket apiece.
Ross said that the loss to Maryville is one that neither he nor his kids will hang their heads about.
“Our boys don’t like to be bridled, that’s for sure, but I’ve admired Maryville’s team throughout the season. I knew coming into this game, it was going to be better than when we played earlier in the year, so I admire their discipline and their heart.
“We wanted to push the tempo, we got that done initially, but in the second, fatigue can make cowards of everybody. That was the telltale quarter.”
Richman and Harper had 20 of Penney’s 22 points in the first half. Harper finished with 21, and aside from the pair, no Hornets were in double figures.
Stoecklein said that his team’s offense was going to come regardless; the final result was a matter of his team shutting down Penney’s biggest threats.
“We try to get the ball stopped three times, that’s a goal of ours,” Stoecklein said. “Let’s see if we can get a fourth. The defensive pressure that we have on teams gives us a chance to score. Those guys hit some tough shots. We talked about getting the ball out of Richman’s hands as quick as we could.
“I think I sweated a pound out.”
Maryville will face the same opponent in the sectional round as it did in 2016. Lawson enters the game at 23-2 and has not lost since it fell to Penney in its own tournament’s championship on Jan. 14. Lawson defeated the Spoofhounds 41-38 on Jan. 28 in the championship of the Cameron Invitational.
The game will be played at Excelsior Springs High School on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
SCORING SUMMARY
MARYVILLE (20-4): Dowis 21, Zimmerman 18, Golightly 14, Morrison 5, Woods 5, Sundell 2, Oglesby 2. Totals 26 9-10 67. 3-point goals: 6 (Dowis 3, Golightly 2, Woods).
PENNEY (20-5): Richman 28, Harper 21, Dixon 7, Pratt 2, Whitt 2. Totals 21 10-14 60. 3-point goals: 6 (Richman 4, Harper 2).
HENRY JANSSEN/DAILY FORUM
Trey Oglesby launches a 3-pointer in Saturday’s District Championship victory over Penney. The Spoofhounds play in the Sectional game on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
HENRY JANSSEN/DAILY FORUM
Eli Dowis pokes the ball loose from Penney’s Latroy Harper and goes on to create a bucket in transition in the second quarter of Saturday’s victory. Maryville earns a berth in Wednesday night’s Sectional game.
HENRY JANSSEN/DAILY FORUM
Maryville’s John Zimmerman creates separation against Penney’s Latroy Harper. Zimmerman’s 18 points was second on the team behind Eli Dowis’ 21.
