Republic Lady Tigers squad complete turnaround to reach .500 mark but Republic Tigers can’t maintain early lead in loss to Springfield Central Bulldogs

Republic’s girls basketball team continued its turnaround last week, winning two of three games at the Nixa Invitational Tournament to even its record at 8–8. The Lady Tigers have won eight of their last 11 games since opening the season with five straight losses.
Republic showed its progress by nearly knocking off Class 6 No. 10 Troy in Thursday’s opener before falling 48–46. Troy’s defensive pressure caused problems early, as Republic managed just four field goals in the first half. The Lady Tigers adjusted to a five-out offense in the second half to rally from a 10-point third quarter deficit. Lanney Strong led Republic with 13 points and Paelyn Gilmore added 10.
“They have a lot of (defensive) pressure. They get after it, and I knew that was my number one concern,” said coach Tori Mooneyham. “I don’t think we handled it well the first half. I think we adjusted a little bit second half and handled it better, and that got us back in the game.”
In Friday’s consolation semifinals, Gilmore scored a career-high 17 points, including the game-winning layup with 3.9 seconds remaining, to lift Republic past Columbia Battle 57–56.
“The play was supposed to… go the other way, and she couldn’t get the ball swung,” Mooneyham said. “She did what I said. If the play gets broken, you’ve just got to go and… attack. And she’s really good at that.”
Addie Brown added 14 points, including four three-pointers, for Republic.
The Lady Tigers capped their tournament run with a 56–41 win over Francis Howell Central in Saturday’s fifth-place game. Strong scored 15 points and Cora Cutbirth added 13 as Republic used a 19–0 run after halftime to break the game open.
“They’re just figuring it out,” Mooneyham said. “We came in with very little experience, little to none really. The games that we’ve played, the level of competition that we’ve played, along with the number of close games that we’ve had, it’s provided these girls with a lot of experience in a short amount of time.”
The Lady Tigers will begin divisional conference play with momentum after reaching the .500 mark.
“Moving forward, it’s almost like a new chapter now. We get to get into conference play,” Mooneyham said. “I think, considering what we’ve been through, I think that we’re OK with that.”
 
Tigers
A strong start fizzled into Republic’s second loss of the season at home on Tuesday, as Springfield Central overcame an early deficit to hand the Tigers a 67–55 defeat. Republic had jumped ahead 14–5 in the first quarter before the Bulldogs turned the tables.
The Tigers’ defensive lapses and rebounding struggles helped Central gain control after the opening minutes. The Bulldogs knocked down 10 three-pointers, including five by Devin Sanford, who led all scorers with 17 points.
“We told our guys it was probably the first game we felt like we didn’t deserve to win,” said coach Tim Brown. “From the four-minute mark on, we didn’t deserve to win the game. We had assignment errors on our scouting report with closeouts and … not getting matched up, and then maybe trying to do a little too much and some possessions offensively.”
Central grabbed its first lead at 22–21 on a Sanford three-pointer with four minutes left in the second quarter. From there, the Bulldogs outpaced Republic 62–41 after the Tigers’ early nine-point advantage.
Brenley Hagewood paced Republic with 19 points and Keiran Govan added 18, but the Tigers struggled to convert close-range shots. Central controlled the offensive glass, earning multiple second and third chances.
The Bulldogs pulled away with a 20-point third quarter while holding Republic to 11. Though Republic mounted a late rally to close within six points at 61–55, Central held on for the win.
Keion Epps and Bryce Walker each tallied 13 points for Central, with Tryton Jackson chipping in 12. The victory avenged Central’s one-point loss to Republic in December’s Republic Invitational.
The Tigers (13–2) are idle until Thursday, when they open the Liberator Tournament at Bolivar.