Gideon outlasts Hornets in overtime

HOLCOMB, Mo. -- The Gideon Bulldogs traveled to Holcomb Tuesday night hoping to wash away the sour taste left in their mouth by a heartbreaking homecoming loss to rival Clarkton. After 32 minutes of regulation -- and an emotional overtime -- they managed to do just that by outlasting the Hornets 64-62.

The Hornets came out swinging thanks in large part to the strong inside play of Lucas Fuller whose seven first-quarter points helped them jump out to an early lead. On the other end, Holcomb used a 2-3 zone defense to slow down the Gideon attack.

However Gideon's Jordan Landers came off the bench to break the ice by knocking down a pair of 3-pointers in the closing minutes of the period. Gideon point guard Curtis Miller also tossed in a 3 to give Gideon a one-point lead at the end of the frame.

With starting guard Dylan Cornett sidelined with a hand injury, the 'Dogs got outside production from their bench as Landers and Joey Richmond five treys on the evening. Richmond led the way for Gideon in the second period as they were able to stretch their early one point lead to a seven point halftime edge.

Holcomb coach Seth McBroom found the right words to inspire his troops at halftime as senior Chad Adams tossed in 11 of his eventual 22 points in frame as the Hornets battled back to take a one point lead into the fourth quarter.

"We battled our tails off in the third quarter," said McBroom. "I was really proud of our guys then. It seems like it's just the little things. We are always a rebound here, a loose ball there and a free throw here away from winning. We just have to keep playing hard and keep competing."

The fourth quarter turned out to be a seesaw battle that included four lead changes and a nailbiting atmosphere. With Gideon holding a narrow 60-58 lead, McBroom called timeout with 3.4 seconds on the clock. After breaking the huddle, Zach Williams hit an open Shane McElwrath at the free throw line for the jumper at the buzzer that sent the game into overtime.

The game was the third overtime contest of the season for the Hornets and in the end, just like the first two, they came up just short. A Max Johnson layup with 12 seconds left gave Gideon a 64-62 lead.

McBroom called timeout once again, hoping for lightning to strike twice. But, this time the Hornets were unable to get a clean look at the basket as time ran out on the Bulldog victory, leaving Holcomb still in search of their first win of the year.

"We knew coming in that we were a little banged up and that this was a tough place to play," said Gideon head coach Daniel Sexton afterwards. "Tonight showed why. They are a very well coached team. Coach McBroom gets so much out of those kids. They have played everyone close all year long."

Adams paced the Hornet attack with 22 points while McElwrath had one of the bigger games of his varsity career, finishing with 19.

Senior Jacob Deprow's 18 points led Gideon.

Holcomb is back in action Friday night as they travel to Risco.

"We are going to try and get hold of some film on them," said McBroom. "They are a solid team that always plays hard and coming off of a tough past couple weeks, we know they'll be hungry."