Republic outscored Willard 43-24 during the middle two quarters and cruised to a 75-51 victory at home Thursday night.
Megan Branstetter led the Lady Tigers with 16 points. She had four three-pointers, three of them in the second quarter. Three other Lady Tigers scored in double figures: Taylor Fergen, Allyson Barrett, and Madi Beckham.
It was 13-8 after one quarter and 36-20 at halftime. The lead ballooned to almost 30 points in the second half before Willard closed the gap in the sloppy final minutes.
“I thought we played really well. We had a real good second quarter,” says coach Kris Flood. “We shot the ball well in the second quarter. We were getting open looks in the first quarter, but Branstetter caught fire in the second, and that helped. Then the third quarter, especially the first 5 1/2 to 6 minutes, that was pretty good. We were very unselfish with the ball. We were making the extra pass. We were getting easy baskets and just extending .”
The win improves Republic’s record to 14-9 overall. They’re 6-1 in the Central Ozark Conference, tied with Carl Junction. Their final COC game is Monday at Ozark.
“That sets us up for Monday, with an opportunity to, if not win outright, to at least share this thing. That would be a heck of an accomplishment for this group,” Flood says.
Scoring
Megan Branstetter 16, Taylor Fergen 12, Allyson Barrett 12, Madi Beckham 12, Brylee Manes 8, Avy Powell-Qualo 6, Madi Appleberry 3, Lacee Walcher 1
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Player of the Game
Megan Branstetter rained in three three-pointers in the second quarter to help Republic pull away from Willard. She ended the game with a team-high 16 points, and she’s our Coldwell Banker Player of the Game.
Our Lady Tiger Player of the Game honor is sponsored by the Tricia Phelps team at Coldwell Banker, eager to help you own your own home. Check out their website – TriciaPhelpsTeam.com – to find out more about how you can stop paying your landlord’s mortgage and become a homeowner yourself.
