Panthers Muscle Past Tigers in Opener

Republic scored the first eight points of the game in their season opener against Siloam Springs, Arkansas–but Siloam Springs scored 14 consecutive points of its own, and the physical Panthers fought off Republic 64-56 in the opening round of the Republic Invitational.

The Tigers struggled to get the ball inside and played from behind most of the night. They trailed 18-15 at the end of one quarter and 30-24 at halftime.  But the Tigers got hot early in the third quarter, briefly taking the lead 33-32. It would be the only time they led in the second half.

The Panthers answered with a 16-2 run to push their lead to 48-35 at the end of three quarters. Republic made one final run, fueled by full-court pressure defense, cutting the lead to 58-54 with less than a minute remaining. But Siloam Springs hit enough free throws and pulled down enough rebounds to hang on.

Coach Trevyor Fisher says he was looking for more patience on the offensive end of the floor by the Tigers.

“We’ve got to learn what’s a good shot and what’s a great shot. We talk about toughness all the time. Part of that is being mentally tough enough to get a good shot every time down the floor (and) not panic after 20 seconds and just fling something up,” he says. “I’m very disappointed with our shot selection (and) our ability to be tough enough to get open looks instead of just settling. We settled all night long. They converted in transition, and we were awful defensively on top of it.”

Ty Stevens led the Tigers with 15 points. Mitch Coiner added 14. Treydon Rackley scored nine, Tristan Ollar had eight, Cameron Doke had five, Caleb Singley scored three, and Tyler Phillips added two points for the Tigers.

Republic is now 0-1. They will play Rogers (Ark.) Heritage Friday at 5:30 pm.

REPMO DIGEST

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