In spite of a pesky performance from the Blue Eye Bulldogs, the Southwest Trojans' experience coupled with Robbie Randall's inside presence and Devon Resz steady outside shooting lifted the Trojans to a 55-49 victory on Tuesday night.
"I think overall it was a pretty good game, but better for us as far as scoring-wise," said Southwest head coach Rusty Roe. "We have struggled and getting some guys back from injuries helps us out. We did a good job of getting the ball inside as well as our shooters taking good shots from the outside."
Early on, the Bulldogs jumped out to an 8-6 lead after the first four minutes of play. However, the Trojans had an answer and concluded the first quarter with a 10-4 run, 16-12 overall lead. Blue Eye opened the second frame on a 7-2 route, reclaiming the lead at 19-18 as Southwest was forced to call their first timeout of the game.
That's when out of the timeout, the charging Trojans retook the lead capped by a Devon Resz triple. With two minutes to go in the half, Southwest stretched their advantage to a convincing 30-21 lead, the biggest distance between the Bulldogs. The Trojans finished the first half ahead 32-24 over Blue Eye.
With a 5-0 run to start the second half, the Bulldogs shrunk Southwest's lead down to five, 34-29 in the first couple minutes. Blue Eye's pesky onslaught continued, but Robby Randall held them at bay with an offensive outburst in the third quarter. The Trojans were clinging to a 42-38 lead as the all-decisive fourth quarter loomed.
In the final frame, the Bulldogs were able to get to within one of a tie before Southwest's Paton Clay hit a three to regain a four-point edge at the 6:30 mark. Both sides continued trading punches as the Trojans showed signs of pulling away, but Blue Eye kept it to within five as the play clock expired. With 12.6 seconds left, Randall sealed it for Southwest by draining one-of-two free throw attempts after Resz followed by sinking his two attempts — handing the Trojans a 55-49 win.
"Not really (as far as adjusting as the game went on)," said Roe. "We are looking at the big overall picture of everything. Right now, we just need to continue to being aggressive and not panic. We have been in several games now that are getting close; we are getting close to wins. We haven't been able to finish yet.
"That was our big talk — just keep pushing, going and don't be afraid to make a mistake."
Combining for 40 of the Trojans 55 cumulative points on the night, Randall and Resz had 22 and 18, respectively. When asked who stood out on the floor, Roe mentioned Resz at point guard and his ability to expand Randall's game as well.
"Devon Resz was one tonight that was nice, having him at point guard," said Roe. "He’s able to handle the basketball, his will shooting-wise, and he gives us a whole different look as far as what we can run. Then he also opens up inside for Robbie Randall. Our big guy did a better job of asking for it down low.
"Overall, I thought our defensive effort was really good. Blue Eye made some good shots even down late in the stretch, but I thought our defense held pretty well."
On the Blue Eye side, the Bulldogs head coach Kyle Turner liked the way his team came out of the gates. Though, they struggled with fouls and lost momentum with the subtraction of two of their key players. He added it took them until halftime to recover from Southwest's physicality and admitted Randall was a load inside — stopping him from "getting position and attacking the rim."
"The foul trouble hurt us," said Turner as to what changed after the hot start to the second quarter. "(Andrew) Mitchell is our leading scorer; that hurt us. Had some lineups that we got out of sync for a little bit. We got going in the third quarter better as we calmed down. I thought that was probably the biggest issue.
"They were a little more aggressive than we were. Once they went on their run, we weren't as aggressive."
As the less experienced team, Blue Eye competed throughout the game, and Turner was proud of that fact.
"I felt like we had our chances and we didn't execute," said Turner. "In the time down the stretch, we had some turnovers that weren't good. You always want to compete, but you don't like to lose."
On Friday, Southwest hosts Monett while Blue Eye returns to their stomping grounds and welcomes School of the Ozarks at home.
Southwest 55, Blue Eye 49
Southwest – 16 – 16 – 10 – 13
Blue Eye – 12 – 12 – 14 – 11
Southwest (8-20 in FT's) – Robbie Randall 22, Devon Resz 18, Paton Clay 9, Jacob Durossette 6
Blue Eye (5-6 in FT's) – Sebastiano Frandino 14, Andrew Mitchell 13, Ryan Reagan 12, Tanner Snowden 12, Luke Dawson 1
