By Dana Harding (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Springfield, Mo. — Ozark head coach Mark Schweitzer wasn’t happy with his team’s effort.
With the Tigers trailing 10-9 midway through the first quarter against Strafford, Schweitzer went to his bench to try and generate some energy.
The plan worked.
Reserve Ethan Whatley helped spark an 8-0 run to help Ozark recapture the lead for good en route to a 59-39 victory in the Blue & Gold quarterfinal round.
“I’ve got a bunch of kids that want to play, and we preach to them about being ready when your number is called,” Schweitzer said. “I thought our bench gave us a spark there in the first half, and that’s when we started playing a lot better — we got more energy from it.”
Another Ozark run helped stretch the lead to 38-19 at the break.
Cannon Cox, Whatley and Kyle Flavin combined to hit four-straight 3-pointers and cap a 12-3 Tigers run.
Whatley doesn’t worry about starting or coming off the bench, because he knows he’ll get opportunities to play and help the team.
“I just want the team to do good, so if my number gets called to go out there, I want to be reliable,” Whatley said. “When I get after it, everything just opens up, and I know that’s the same way for my teammates.”
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Whatley finished the game with 11 points, and teammate Kyle Flavin added 12 to lead the Tigers.
While Strafford was able to hold the deficit from getting any larger in the second half, the Indians weren’t able to close the gap, either, due to Ozark’s defense and effort on the boards.
“I thought our kids did a good job with just constant pressure,” Schweitzer said. “They just stayed with it and didn’t get too overly aggressive on defense. They just kind of kept pressure on them to where we kind of wore them down a little bit, I think.”
As is the case with the Tigers’ offense, there are plenty of capable bodies to play defensive roles. With a luxury of both depth and talent throughout the roster, Schweitzer has plenty of options with respect to foul trouble, injuries and riding a hot hand on any given night.
“I could probably start a hundred different lineups if I wanted to,” Schweitzer said. “We try to focus on getting guys in the same kind of roles in spots, so that they feel comfortable coming in each night, but we truly don’t have starters and bench guys. We have a bunch of guys and then whoever plays well finishes the game in a close game.”
Gabe Mahan led the Indians with 10 points. Teammates Cade Rear and Zak Lutgen each added 9.
Ozark (6-2) now moves on to Saturday’s Gold Division semifinal against No. 3 Greenwood, while Strafford (6-4) heads to the fifth-place bracket to face Mt. Vernon.
Gold Division Quarterfinal: Ozark – 59, Strafford – 39
Ozark 17 21 09 12 — 59
Strafford 13 06 11 09 — 39
Ozark scoring: Kyle Flavin – 12, Ethan Whatley – 11, Tyler Harmon – 9, AJ Elliott – 9, Blaine Cline – 7, Jaylen Weston – 4, Cannon Cox – 3, Alonzo Riwa – 2, Jake Skaggs – 2
Strafford scoring: Gabe Mahon – 10, Cade Rear – 9, Zak Lutgen – 9, Seth Soden – 5, AK Rael – 4, Vance Mullins – 2
