Chaffee's sophomore stars shine bright: Red Devils secure third place in Scott-Miss Tournament

Chaffee’s sophomore duo continues to dazzle in the Scott-Miss Tournament.

Nolan Fowler scored 24 points and Dane McMullin added 16 points to lead the Red Devils past the Oran Eagles 68-62 to win third place on Friday, Feb. 7, in Scott City, Mo.

Rolan Reischman added 10 points for the Devils, who went 18-of-22 from the free-throw line.

Four Eagles scored in double figures in the losing effort. Carson Kern led Oran with 19 points, Kole Berger scored 15 points, Cole Diebold added 11 points and Reid Hobbs added 10 points. The Eagles used the three-pointer to their advantage with six shots from behind the arc.

Oran took a 19-10 first-quarter lead, led by Kern’s nine points. His game started with a steal and a layup in transition.

Chaffee couldn’t make much of a dent in Oran’s lead in the second quarter, but outscoring the Eagles 17-16 to close out the first half down 35-27 set the Devils up for second-half success.

Berger led the way for the Eagles in the third quarter with eight of their 10 points in the period. Chaffee outscored Oran 20-10 to start the second half and took a 47-45 lead on a pair of free throws by Fowler in the final minute of the third quarter.

Fowler tied the game 54-54 on a jump shot close to the basket with four minutes left in the game. The Devils then took a 56-54 lead on a pair of free throws by Easton Fowler.

Chaffee was challenged on the charity stripe in the fourth quarter, having the Devils on the line for 16 free throws. Fowler was there more than anyone but didn’t buckle under the pressure and calmly made 7-of-8 free throws in the final period.

The win has given the Devils (13-7) their eighth in 10 games. Chaffee has matched its win total from 2019 and is on pace for its best season since finishing 2018 with an 18-7 record. A 20-1 Puxico looms large over the rest of Class 2 District 3, but Chaffee continues to play the dark horse role.

A busy week awaits Chaffee, as the Devils will host Zalma on Tuesday, Feb. 11, then travel to Scott City on Wednesday, Saxony Lutheran on Thursday and Bunker on Saturday.

Oran (8-12) has lost five of its last seven games, but many of its opponents had to earn those wins. The Eagles are in the same district as Chaffee and will take on C2D3 competition in three of their final five games, starting with a road trip to Bloomfield on Tuesday.