By Kai Raymer (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
As they prepared for the Strafford Invitational Tournament, the Seymour Tigers wanted early December to mimic late February.
“We have goals which include winning a district title,” said Seymour coach Chris Hastings. “We really treated this week as a district prep. We wanted to prepare to win three games in one week and end with the championship.”
Behind a game-high 26 points from senior Wyatt Henry, Seymour defeated Strafford 65-51 in the championship game of the Strafford Invitational on Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers plan to collect a few more championships along the way this season.
“The expectations are high. We’re not shying away from them,” Hastings said. “We set high expectations at the start of the season. We’re trying to reach those goals. Today was the start.”
Seymour is coming off its best season (20-7 overall) in 15 years. With a large nucleus of that team back this winter, Tiger basketball is becoming the talk of the town.
“We’ve never really had pep clubs or stuff like that,” Henry said. “We have a good cheerleading group. Shoutout to my mom (the cheerleading coach).”
Seymour plays its home games in a gorgeous, $6.4-million gym that opened in 2023.
“The support is crazy. They come out and we pack that gym,” said Seymour junior Reece Hepko.
The Tigers are also a member of the rugged Summit Conference, which includes perennial power Hartville and recent ascender Norwood.
“They’re motivated by the schools around them.” Hastings said. “We have an extremely tough conference. Probably the toughest small-school conference in the state, at least we think.
“We have teams that win state, teams that go to state. They want to be part of that tradition.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME
On Saturday, Seymour broke the game open by scoring the first 10 points of the second half.
“We were doing it by ourselves in the first half and got away with it, then Strafford came back,” Hepko said. “We just went in (the locker room) and declared that we were going to do it together.”
Henry, a 6’6” forward, displayed his two-way impact in the third quarter by knocking down a pair of treys and providing effective rim protection on the other end. During one stretch, he blocked a shot on three straight Strafford possessions.
Henry said he felt extra motivated after being heckled by the Strafford student section.
“The (Strafford) pep club got me going,” Henry said. “Whenever you talk crazy to me, I’m going to be ready to turn up. I live for it.”
Point guard Braylon Johnson added 16 points and sophomore Nolan Henry scored 13 for Seymour (3-1 overall). The Tigers shot 15-for-19 at the free throw line.
The third quarter was déjà vu for Strafford. The Indians encountered similar struggles in close wins over Ava and Sparta earlier this week.
“That’s kind of been the story of the season so far,” said Strafford coach Tyler Ryerson. “Whatever it is, we have a block in the third quarter right now. We will get that figured out.”
Sophomore JT Mullings led Strafford with 16 points. The new-look Indians graduated nearly everyone from last season’s district championship team
“A lot of (our players) are jumping from JV to big-time minutes on varsity,” Ryerson said. “To have your third game of the season be a championship game, it’s heightened and more pressure.
“Overall, you look back at our three games this week, I was happy with them. I was happy with our effort. There’s just some stuff we need to adjust.”
CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO OF THE GAME
The tournament featured a noticeable wrinkle.
For the second year in a row, Strafford used a 35-second shot clock for all tournament games.
“It’s a fun thing for our kids. They love it,” Ryerson said. “The pace of the games are a lot better. Overall, I think it’s really good for our game. Overall, I would love to see it in every game moving forward. And I think a lot of coaches would, too.”
While Seymour won’t play in any more shot clock games this season, the Tigers enjoyed the change of pace this week provided.
“It does affect the end of quarters, then end of halves. You can go two-for-one. Or in the last two minutes, you can’t just hold it,” Hastings said. “We had to shoot the ball. It affects late-game situations, but in the middle of the game, it doesn’t affect a whole lot.”
Said Henry, who plays in shot clock environments regularly on the AAU circuit: “I like playing at a faster pace. It gives us all a chance to show what we can do.”
Seymour returns to action Tuesday night, Dec. 9 at home versus Houston. Strafford plays at Skyline on Friday night, Dec. 12.
CHAMPIONSHIP: Seymour 65, Strafford 51
Seymour 13 16 20 16 — 65
Strafford 14 9 12 16 — 51
Seymour (3-1 overall) – Wyatt Henry 26, Braylon Johnson 16, Nolan Henry 13, Reece Hepko 7, Truman Helms 3
Strafford (2-1 overall) – JT Mullings 16, Ty Hunt 10, Colton Dampier 8, Kolby Austin 7, Hudson Turner 5, Easton Willard 3, Marcus Williams 2
THIRD PLACE: Mountain Grove 69, Sparta 50 – PHOTOS
Sparta – 8-16-13-13 — 50
Mountain Grove – 10-18-28-13 — 69
S: Abel Hume 21, Ansen Gardner 8, Trey Robinson 8, Ben Miller 7, Jase Applegate 4, Luken Leyland 2
M: Kale Gardner 20, Aden Estep 10, Brett Gardner 9, Brody Emery 9, Eli Golden 7, Carson Gibson 4, Brady Anderson 2, Brady Harris 2, Dalton Shannon 2, Heath Bressie 2, Peyton Metty 2
CONSOLATION: Willow Springs 69, Cassville 46 – PHOTOS
Cassville – 12-6-14-14 — 46
Willow Springs – 20-17-14-18 — 69
C: Aiden Whittington 17, Masin Bryan 12, Tyson Bohmke 7, Spencer Drollinger 4, Easton Hughes 4, Cheney Kelley 1, Elijah Keeney 1
W: Kolby James 35, Caden Lee 9, James Dean 8, Brady James 5, Kayden Adams 5, Grady Friga 3, Brody Thompson 2, Holt McGinnis 2
SEVENTH PLACE: Ava 59, Buffalo 43 – PHOTOS
Buffalo – 9-7-13-14 — 43
Ava – 12-14-19-14 — 59
B: Braden McGregor 24, Brenden McGregor 7, Matthew Skinner 6, Isaiah Young 3, Tray Aven 2, Jace Rinehart 1
A: Brock Swatosh 23, Jacob Laub 10, Reez Kutz 8, Triston Denney 8, Kennon Pitts 7, Fisher Melton 2, Cash Collins 1
