After opening the season with eight straight wins, the McDonald County freshman boys' basketball team found the going much tougher last week, dropping all three of its games.
The young Mustangs' opened the week with a 33-23 loss at Bentonville on Dec. 17.
McDonald County took an 8-5 lead at the end of the first quarter, but Bentonville came back in the second to take a 16-13 advantage at halftime.
The Tigers' stretched their lead to 25-19 at the end of the third quarter.
Pierce Harmon score 12 points to lead McDonald County. Bo Leach and Teddy Reedybacon added four points each, while Garrett Gricks had three.
Carthage
Carthage broke from a 15-15 halftime tie to claim a 38-32 win on Dec. 20 at Carthage High School.
Harmon and Martin scored 10 points each to lead McDonald County, followed by Gricks with eight points and Reedybacon and Leach two each.
Joplin
The Joplin Eagles outscored McDonald County 18-4 in the second half for a 37-23 win on Dec. 21 at Joplin High School. The teams were tied 19-19 at halftime before the Eagles held McDonald County to just four points in the second half, all in the third quarter.
Gricks scored eight points and Harmon seven to lead McDonald County, while Leach and Reedybacon had four each.
McDonald County's next game is against Aurora on Friday, Jan. 4. Tip-off is at 5 p.m.
Sports on 12/27/2018