The McDonald County Mustangs now know how the Monett Cubs feel.
After staging a fourth-quarter comeback to beat Monett on Jan. 9 at MCHS, the Mustangs were on the receiving end of a similar scenario at the hands of the Seneca Indians on Jan. 12 at Seneca High School.
McDonald County took the lead late at the end of the first quarter and held it until Seneca tied the game with 12 seconds left in regulation before claiming a 61-55 win in overtime.
The Mustangs entered the fourth quarter with a 36-32 lead. Seneca's Brett Reeves cut the lead to one with a three-pointer to open the fourth quarter, but McDonald County scored the next six points to take a 42-35 lead with 5:41 left.
Seneca cut the margin to 42-39 on a three-pointer by Isaiah Grotjohn and a free throw by Gavin Dunnam, but the Mustangs answered with 9-5 run to stretch the margin to 51-44, capped by a pair of free throws by Peyton Barton with 48.8 seconds left.
Reeves then dribbled the length of the floor for a layup to cut the lead to 51-46 with 43.5 left. After a Seneca timeout, the Mustangs were called for an offensive foul on the inbounds pass, giving Seneca possession. Grotjohn took advantage of the break, hitting his second three of the quarter to cut the lead to 51-49 with 36.2 seconds remaining.
McDonald County turned the ball over on its next possession, allowing Dunnam to tie the game at 51-51 on a short jumper with 12 seconds left.
Barton had a good look in the final seconds of regulation, but the ball bounced off the back rim at the buzzer, sending the game into overtime.
After missing three free throws to open the overtime session, the Indians Gavin Clouse hit a three-pointer with 1:43 left to put Seneca in control.
McDonald County's Cade Smith hit a pair of free throws with 1:35 left to cut the lead to 54-53, but Seneca went on a 5-0 run to take a 59-53 lead with less than 20 seconds left.
Smith hit two more free throws with 8.5 seconds remaining, but Grotjohn sealed the win with a pair of charities with 5.7 seconds left.
Blake Gravette scored 17 points and Cooper Reece had 14 to lead McDonald County. Barton finished with eight points, while Tim Shields and Smith had seven each and Dowd two to round out the scoring for the Mustangs.
The loss drops McDonald County to 4-9 for the season. The Mustangs were at Webb City on Jan. 16 before beginning play in the Tri-State Classic in Jay on Jan. 18. McDonald County begins tournament play against the hosts on Jan. 18 at 8:20 p.m.
The McDonald County junior varsity rallied from 20 points down to beat Seneca 53-50. The Mustangs trailed 35-15 early in the third quarter before outscoring the Indians 38-15 over the final 12 minutes.
Koby McAlister scored all of his 15 points in the fourth quarter to lead McDonald County. Ben Mora had 11 points and Kirby Townsend added 10 points, followed by Colliar Gottfried with six, Dylan Allison four, John Howard three and Saul Garcia and Smith with two each.
The Mustang freshman added a 40-31 win. Logan Renner scored 14 points and Parker Harris had 12 to lead the Mustangs, followed by Trayce McCool with seven, Tyler Nelson, Damian Martinez and Wade Rickman two each and Jackson Clarkson one.
Monett
Monett saw a nine-point fourth quarter lead evaporate as McDonald County rallied for a 54-51 win on Jan. 9 at MCHS.
Monett opened the fourth quarter with a 38-32 lead before the Cubs' Jackson Spencer hit a three-pointer to open the fourth quarter and stretch the lead to nine.
Shields answered with a trey of his own on the Mustangs' next possession, but Spencer hit his second in a row on the Cubs' ensuing possession to stretch the lead to 44-35.
But Gravette's jumper started an 8-0 McDonald County run to cut the lead to 44-43 with 4:26 left. Gavin Carr scored for the Cubs before Cooper Reece made one of two free throws with 3:17 left.
On Monett's next possession, McDonald County's Saul Garcia knocked the ball loose near midcourt and, when Spencer last touched the ball before it went backcourt, McDonald County was awarded possession. Spencer then slapped the ball loose after the whistle had blown, resulting in a technical foul.
Gravette hit both free throws from the technical and Reece then hit a short jumper to give McDonald County a 48-46 lead with 2:35 remaining. After a Monett miss, Dowd hit two free throws with 29.7 and Barton did the same with 19.3 left and again at 7.7 to seal the win.
"We played better in the second half and much better in the fourth quarter," said coach Kyle fields. "We got some big stops and made some big shots. We made 11 out of 12 free throws in the fourth quarter and that is a lot better than we have been shooting free throws. We never got to the free throw line the first three quarters and then we shoot 12 in the fourth. Being ahead late helped, but we attacked the basket much better. I am just proud of the boys."
Gravette led three Mustangs in double figures with 14 points. Barton added 13 points and Reece 11, followed by Dowd and Shields with five each, Smith four and Cole DelosSantos two.
Carr scored 15 points and Spencer and Clayton Kaiser had 12 each to lead Monett.
McDonald County claimed a 39-26 win in the junior varsity game. The Mustangs were led by Townsend with 10 points, followed by Garcia with nine, Mora, McAlister, Allison and Gottfried four each and Smith and Cale Adamson two each.
Monett avoided a sweep with a 37-32 win in the freshman game. Harris scored 13 and Renner 11 to lead McDonald County, followed by Martinez with seven and Ricky Sanchez one.
Sports on 01/18/2018