By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
Zach Howell never misses a chance to get up more shots or work on his game.
After Springfield Catholic’s quarterfinal win over Marshfield on Tuesday, Howell returned to the court later that night and made 500 shots on his own. He only needed 45 minutes to do so.
“It’s all about visualization,” Howell said. “Last night, I saw it.”
It’s a common scene: Howell in the gym, making shot after shot.
“Our janitor always tells us, ‘Hey, you’re going to see Zach Howell in here on Friday nights in the fall during football season when there’s a home game and he’s here shooting in the gym,” said Catholic coach Jack Simpson. “It’s no secret why he can make shots. He puts in the work. He’s one of the elite players in the area.”
Howell continued to drain shots on Wednesday – this time against one of the area’s premier teams.
Howell led 4-seed Catholic to a thrilling 49-48 victory over top seed Nixa in the Blue Division semifinals on Wednesday night at JQH Arena.
Howell scored a game-high 33 and Catholic (12-0 overall) survived a late Nixa rally to prevail, 49-48.
“As a group we said, ‘This is not an upset for us,’” Howell said. “We might be the 4-seed and Nixa’s the No. 1 seed, and everyone’s saying Nixa’s the best team in the area. I think we came out and proved that wrong.”
Nixa missed a potential go-ahead shot in the final seconds.
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The Eagles also left several points at the free throw line, making just 12 of 25 attempts. Perimeter shots weren’t falling, either – Nixa made only two 3-pointers.
The Irish go for their third Blue and Gold championship in five years when they face Kickapoo in the Blue Division finals at 7 p.m. on Thursday at JQH Arena.
Catholic’s thrived on an underdog mentality this week since receiving the No. 4 seed.
“Honestly, it was a good thing for us,” Simpson said .“Our practices have gotten better. We’re more engaged. Our players took that 4-seed personally. I like that. I like that underdog mentality.”
Team huddles even have a new twist.
“Whenever we call a huddle, instead of saying ‘Irish’, ever since that 4-seed came out, now we say, ‘1-2-3 4-seed!’” Howell said. “That’s the motivation for us.”
Howell scored 26 of his 33 in the second half. He caught fire early in the fourth quarter, making three straight 3-pointers during one stretch to give the Irish a 46-37 lead.
Howell, a 6’2” guard, currently has Division I offers from Texas Tech and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville.
He has 86 points in this year’s tournament and 233 for his career (tied for 8th all-time).
“He’s underappreciated,” Simpson said of Howell. “He may not be getting the looks and notices that guys like Kyle Pock, Colin Ruffin and Kael Combs are getting. Those guys are legit, and Zack belongs in that same conversation.
“The reason why it’s so cool and so great is how great of a kid he is. You see him smiling all the time and clapping up his teammates.”
Nixa’s rally began soon after Howell’s 3-point surge. Catholic’s primary ballhandler – Liam O’Reilly – fouled out with 3:26 remaining.
Catholic never relinquished the lead, although Nixa drew within three points multiple times in the final two minutes. Catholic also struggled at the free throw line, going 10-for-18.
“We gutted it out,” Simpson said. “I think I yelled ‘One stop!’ maybe 800 times. We have guys who can score, but I’ve been telling them all year: We have to sit down in a stance and guard. When you hold Nixa to 48, and 18 in the first half, hats off to our guys and their defensive effort because that’s a really good Nixa team.”
Colin Ruffin led Nixa (7-1 overall with 23 points. The Eagles face Hartville in the Blue Division 3rd place game at 4 p.m. Thursday at JQH Arena.
Catholic 49, Nixa 48
Catholic 9 9 15 16 — 49
Nixa 6 10 14 18 — 48
Catholic (12-0 overall) – Howell 33, Lyon 8, Mayse 4, O’Reilly 3, Riley 1
Nixa (7-1 overall) – Ruffin 23, Combs 11, Nelson 8, Engelmann 4, Bell 2
