SAVANNAH, Mo. — Platte County endured slow starts in all three games of the Savannah Invitational, finishing out with a 57-43 loss to Maryville in the consolation final Friday, Dec. 4 at Savannah High School.
The Pirates went 1-2 in the bracket, playing all three games against former Midland Empire Conference foes. They have five new starters and struggled to score despite the emergence of junior forward Grant Carver.
Against Maryville, Platte County trailed by as many as 19 in the second half before trimming the deficit to eight in the fourth quarter.
Jerod Thomas’ 3-pointer with 3 minutes, 54 seconds to go made it 47-39, but the Spoofhounds made 8 of 10 free throws to pull away. Carver scored 11 of his team-high 14 points in the second half to help the Pirates stay close enough to make a run.
Maryville hit four of its first five shots from the floor to take an 8-2 lead after two minutes, and the Pirates committed their third turnover at the 5:32 mark. Thomas and Carver combined to score eight of the Pirates’ 10 points in the opening frame, and they were down 15-10 to start the second quarter.
Jack Doole scored early in the second quarter for Platte County, but a 5-minute-plus scoring drought contributed to a 15-2 run for Maryville. Nick Kunels’ basket with 1:32 left before halftime was the only other points for the Pirates before halftime.
Maryville led 29-14 at the break and pushed the advantage to 19 in the third quarter.
A 3-pointer from Kodee Martin opened the third quarter for Platte County, and a three-point play from Carver closed them within 15 points. Isaiah Ewing, a senior guard, hit a pair of 3s in the second half, the first during a 7-1 run in the third quarter and the second prompting a timeout from the Spoofhounds with their lead down to 45-35 in the fourth quarter.
DeAndre Rollins could’ve drawn Platte County closer but went just 1-for-3 on free throws after drawing a foul on a 3-point shot from the left corner with 4:51 to go. Thomas’ 3 from the right wing on the next possession provided the last punch from the Pirates before the Spoofhounds held on for the win with free throws.
Platte County 47, Bishop LeBlond 38
Falling behind for the second straight game, the Pirates completed a comeback in a consolation semifinal win Wednesday, Dec. 2.
Carver led the way with 14 points, while sophomore guard Kobe Cummings made another big impact off the bench with eight more. Platte County hit 14-of-20 free throws, while LeBlond made just 9-of-19 tries. Platte County trailed 12-4 after the first quarter, but the teams went into halftime tied. The Golden Eagles scored just four in the third quarter to fall behind for good.
Other games
Park Hill 76, Oak Park 57
Four players in double figures helped the Trojans storm back from an early deficit in coach Chad Jones’ debut Tuesday, Dec. 1 at Park Hill High School in Kansas City, Mo.
Brandon Townsell led all scorers with 21 points, including one of Park Hill’s three 3-pointers. Oak Park hit five treys and bolted to a 19-9 lead in the first quarter. However, the Trojans closed the final 2:20 of the quarter on an 11-0 run to take the lead going into the second quarter.
Park Hill finally pulled away by outscoring the Oakies 22-6 in the fourth quarter.
Tanner Zeil added 15 points, while Kentrez Bell went for 13 and Peyton LaFerla 11 in the victory. Jones, a Park Hill graduate, coached his first game since coming over from Smithville in the offseason.
Raytown 55, Park Hill South 47
Coming off a second-place state finish in Class 5, the Panthers lost their opener despite 18 points Lamel Robinson.
Only five players scored for Park Hill South on Tuesday, Dec. 1 at Park Hill South High School in Riverside, Mo. The Panthers are replacing three of five starters, including two of their top three scorers from a team that upset Chaminade in the state finals before losing to Blue Springs South in the title game. Ryan Welty, a senior forward and the top returning scorer, put up 13 points.
Raytown led 18-11 after the first quarter and put up 21 points in the fourth quarter to pull away late.
Fort Osage 71, Platte County 55
The Pirates made another second half charge but lost a second straight Monday, Dec. 7 in Independence, Mo.
Kunels, now entrenched as a starter, led Platte County with 14 points. Martin and Carver added nine apiece, but Fort Osage hit seven 3-pointers and led 50-25 at halftime. The Pirates outscored the Indians in the final two quarters to draw closer, but Martin hit their lone 3-pointer.
Platte County finished 10-for-24 from the line.