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Mules power past NMCC for fifth at SEMO Conference Tournament
SIKESTON — The Poplar Bluff boys basketball team turned it on in the second half of the consolation final at the SEMO Conference Tournament.
The Mules did so by powering past New Madrid County Central 58-35 on Friday at the Sikeston Field House. Poplar Bluff ended up going 2-1 in the tournament after dropping the opening round to Notre Dame, then winning consolation contests over Dexter and NMCC.
“We’ve talked about playing the first four minutes of each quarter,” Poplar Bluff coach William Durden said. “The past few games and the first quarter of this game we haven’t had a good third quarter. I told the guys that if you can play Friday in this tournament then we did something good.”
Sammy Durden led the Mules on Friday with a double-double, 17 points and 11 rebounds. Brendan Durden and Jay Edmundson were also in double figures with 11 points each.
“The more balanced we are the better we’re going to be,” coach Durden said.
It was a close game to start as NMCC took a 15-13 lead to end the first quarter, as the Mules struggled with turnovers and the Eagles took advantage of possessions.
However, in the second frame, the Mules were able to claw back to take a 21-20 lead halfway through the second quarter and went into the locker room up 28-20.
From there, the Mules went on a 16-4 run to go up by 20 points (44-24) with some solid defense turning into points on the other end of the floor.
“The past four games we’ve been relying too much on the early shot,” coach Durden said. “We did a lot better blocking out in the third quarter and closing down defensive possessions.”
With the Mules holding NMCC to only six points in the third, they were able to cruise through the fourth quarter and take the consolation title.
Poplar Bluff will play in the Route 66 Shootout in Waynesville Dec. 20-21, before hosting the Poplar Bluff ShowDown Dec. 26-28.