By Jeff Kessinger (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Nixa’s Jaret Nelson wasn’t expecting to have the ball in his hands in the closing seconds Wednesday afternoon. But when Colin Ruffin passed it to the 6-foot-4 junior, he knew just what to do with it.
Nelson’s bucket in the lane with less than a second to go gave No. 2 Nixa a 48-46 win over No. 3 Parkview in the Blue Division semifinals of the 75th Annual Blue & Gold Tournament at JQH Arena.
“I was trying to get open, but I really thought Colin was going to take it all the way,” Nelson said. “I was about to clear, then he threw it up so I just went with it. I couldn’t pass it, so I just went up with it. It feels good. I was a little on edge, I’m not going to lie, with this not being my main sport. If this were baseball I’d be a lot more comfortable.”
Parkview had a chance to hold for a winner of its own, but Ruffin poked the ball loose and hit the deck to cover it up. Nixa called timeout with 22.8 seconds remaining and drew up the winning play.
“We set up some two-man action with a down screen for Jones,” Nixa coach Jay Osborne said. “If he’s not open, the screener’s always open if you can get it to him at the right time. Nelson set a down screen and asked for the ball, and it was a good pass from Colin.”
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The game was a slugfest between a couple of solid shooting teams. Nixa hit 14 3-pointers in its first round game. Parkview knocked down 14 of its own in a quarterfinal win over Willard.
The Vikings were on their way to another big night, with six long-range bombs in the first half. That included four in the first-quarter, as the Vikings erased a 6-0 deficit to build an early 18-9 lead.
“We got off to a great start, then (Parkview) got after us. They got us out of our comfort zone, out of any rhythm,” Osborne said. “We didn’t handle that very well.”
The Eagles got back into the game with two quick flurries, a 7-0 run to open the second quarter and a 6-0 surge late in the period. Nelson scored a bucket in the lane to briefly give Nixa the lead, but Parkview’s Elijah Whitley scored to level things at 28 at the half.
“We needed to get the ball inside,” Nelson said. “When we get the ball inside it opens up 3s for our guards. We have an excellent 3-point shooting team.”
Nixa and Parkview were even at 40 heading into the fourth quarter. The Vikings opened up a slight edge thanks to back-to-back 3-pointers from senior post Damien Harris, both of them right in front of the Vikings’ bench.
But the Eagles, once again, had the answers. Kaleb Wofford’s knocked down a triple from the left corner and Ruffin found the range from the left wing to tie the score at 46 and set up Nelson’s heroics.
“You can talk about the game winner, but you can also talk about a lot of things,” Nelson said. “We had a lot of good things happen. I hit a game winner, but Colin hit some big shots, Jason had a dunk in the third. We just had good momentum as a team.”
Nelson finished with 14 to lead all scorers. He was the only Eagle in double figures, though Wofford finished with 9 and Jason Jones added 8.
Parkview got 11 each from Whitley and Shane Glass Jr. Kevin Parker Jr. finished his day with 8.
Nixa will face top seed Hartville at 2 p.m. New Year’s Eve in the Blue Division final. Hartville, one of the smallest schools in the tournament, is looking for its second straight Blue & Gold title. Nixa is chasing its first win since 2014 and 11th title in program history.
“They’ve got an outstanding team,” Osborne said. “They’ve got shooters all over the place, they play hard and get on the floor and draw charges. They do the little things in basketball that make you successful. I’m looking forward to it. It will be a good matchup.”
Box Score
Parkview – 21 7 12 6 – 46
Nixa – 13 15 12 8 – 48
Parkview – Elijah Whitley 11, Shane Glass Jr. 11, Kevin Parker Jr. 8, Damien Harris 6, Amarre Clark 5, Anthony Green 3, Brandon Allen 2
Nixa – Jaret Nelson 14, Kaleb Wofford 9, Jason Jones 8, Colin Ruffin 5, Jordyn Turner 5, Colten Berry 4, T.J. Sorgenfrei 3
