With the end of the Bloomfield Christmas Tournament, the season has reached something of a midpoint for the Kennett Indians boys' basketball team. Having said that, it's a good time to take a look at the good and bad for the Tribe, and also take a look ahead.

First, the good. This team is a lot better team than last year's 4-20 squad. When the Indians' shots are falling, they have a legitimate shot of defeating any opponent.

The best example of that was Dec. 11, when the Tribe drained 12 3-pointers and upset Hayti 81-77 at Kennett High School. Hayti hasn't lost since and just won its first-ever Bloomfield Christmas Tournament title by downing Doniphan. But it's not all shooting -- Blake Parr and Cameron Conder have shown ability inside, while Donald Sims is a strong penetrator and Jarvis FInley is a great all-around scorer at 17 points per game.

Now for the bad. The Tribe is often only as good as it shoots behind the line. When the 3s haven't went down, Kennett hasn't won. A pair of losses at the BCT, plus an early season loss to Dexter, prove that. Head coach Jim Vaughan once said that when his team shoots poorly, it often does other things poorly as well.

Another major problem is third-quarter play. Kennett has been outscored 97-69 in the third in its six losses, and in four of those games, the third-quarter deficit proved to be the difference in the game.

So what do the Indians need to do to improve? First, establish an inside game. Parr and Conder are strong players inside and can provide an alternative when the 3-pointers aren't going down.

Also, the Tribe needs to avoid any psychological letdowns that may come on a cold shooting night. Just because the shots aren't falling doesn't mean that other aspects of the game -- such as rebounding and ballhandling -- have to go south, too.

One thing is for sure: Kennett will need to bring its A game the rest of the season as its schedule is very back-loaded. Charleston, Sikeston and Notre Dame are arguably the cream of the crop in southeast Missouri, and even Cape Central, Friday's opponent, is fresh off beating Class 1 power Bell City at the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament last week.

One thing is sure: it will be interesting. Six of the Indians' nine games have been decided by eight points or less this season, and the win against Hayti -- plus an eight-point loss to Class 5 power Jackson -- prove that the Indians can play with anyone.

Stay tuned!