Portageville opens Clarkton Christmas Tournament with 106-11 victory

Portageville's Layden Kellum (11) runs in transition during a 66-54 win over Covington in the RiverBend Shootout at New Madrid County Central High School on Saturday, Nov. 25, 2023.

Dennis Marshall ~ Standard-Democrat

CLARKTON, Mo. — Portageville left North Pemiscot dazed and confused, unsure of what had just transpired.

In what can only be described as an unequivocal demolition, the second-seeded Bulldogs (2-1) opened its Clarkton Christmas Tournament campaign with a resounding 106-11 victory over the seventh-seeded Mustangs (0-6) on Monday, Dec. 11.

“We played hard and that was something I wanted to see,” said Portageville coach TJ Smith. “North Pemiscot is struggling this year playing a varsity schedule with pretty much a full JV team. Coach [Matt] Babb is doing a great job over there. If they keep working they will be okay. The effort was there for us, and we’re still trying to learn how to play with each other. That was my goal for today. Get as many different lineups in the game for a few minutes at a time. We’ve been playing 10 kids consistently, which is a blessing and a curse. It’s hard for the boys to mesh well together because I keep switching them up so much. As the season goes on I’ll do a better job with that, as will they get better playing as a team.”

The Bulldogs' offense was spread out, with five players reaching double digits, including Xayvion Bogan's game-high 18 points.

The scoring barrage continued with AJ Larry and Jamarion Smith each scoring 14 and 13, respectively. Layden Kellum added 12 points, and Tim Hamilton rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10 points.

AJ Larry netted 14 points, Jamarion Smith chipped in 13, Layden Kellum added 12 to the tally and Tim Hamilton rounded out the double-digit scorers with 10.

Portageville will take on third-seeded East Carter in a semifinal on Thursday, Dec. 14, at 7:30 p.m.

PORTAGEVILLE 106, NORTH PEMISCOT 11

North Pemiscot (11) — Miles Brown III 8, Timothy Lahman Jr. 3. FG: 4. FT: 3-5. F: 6. (3-pointers: none. Fouled out: none).

Portageville (106) — Xayvion Bogan 18, AJ Larry 14, Jamarion Smith 13, Layden Kellum 12, Tim Hamilton 10, Mason Adams 9, Aaron Dunlap 8, Justus Sullivan 8, Connor Jefferies 6, Antonio Hickenbottom 4, Brandon West 4. FG: 49. FT: 2-4. F: 5. (3-pointers: Sullivan 2, Adams 1, Bogan 1, Smith 1, Larry 1. Fouled out: none).