Basketball Roundup: Dragons handle rival Warriors; Knights escape 16-point deficit
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Ste. Genevieve guard Dominic Johnson (10) passes as Valle Catholic forwards Phillip Naeger, left, and Evan Viox (12) defend during fourth quarter boys basketball action on Friday night in Ste. Genevieve. (Michael Boyd Jr., Ste. Genevieve Herald)
STE. GENEVIEVE – Jeffrey Hunter highlighted a balanced attack with 15 points, and Ste. Genevieve topped Valle Catholic 65-48 in the annual cross-town rivalry game on Friday night.
Eli Bennett added 13 points while connecting three times from long range, and Broden Kreitler scored 12 as the Dragons earned their fifth consecutive victory in the head-to-head series.
Ste. Genevieve (4-1) steadily built a 16-10 lead through one quarter, and maintained a 32-25 advantage heading into halftime.
Parker Stomberg provided nine points while Dominic Johnson had seven and Alex Basler tallied six.
Valle Catholic (1-1) utilized 12 points each from Evan Viox and Brody Bertrand. Alex Staab dropped in eight points while Phillip Naeger and Oliver Griffard contributed seven apiece.
North County 61, Northwest 60
HILLSBORO, Mo. – Will Weible drained a couple of timely 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, and North County edged Northwest 61-60 on Saturday for seventh place in the Gene Steighorst Tournament.
Noah McMahan broke a 51-51 tie after a steal by Kyle Straughan, and Weible added a subsequent go-ahead putback before connecting from an open wing for a 58-53 lead.
Weible netted 10 of his 20 points during the final period, and Straughan scored 16 for the Raiders, who squandered a 36-22 halftime lead before prevailing.
Janson Heljek cut the margin to one on a 3-pointer with 1:06 left, and Northwest forced an errant pass with pressure to earn the final possession of the game.
The Lions called a timeout and inbounded after a missed shot created a jump ball with 4 seconds to play, but hesitated before McMahan blocked a perimeter hoist as time expired.
McMahan tallied 11 points, and was selected to the all-tournament team. Owen Hawkins chipped in seven for North County (1-3).
Northwest (1-4) pulled to within 47-46 when a 3-pointer by Noah Thompson beat the third-quarter buzzer. Heljak briefly put his team ahead with a mid-range turnaround off the glass.
Potosi 77, St. Clair 69
ST. CLAIR, Mo. – Potosi remained unbeaten on the young season with two emphatic surges on Friday night, and gave Jackson Conaway his 100th victory as head coach.
Kanaan Wilson and Payton Rowe thrived during a strong fourth quarter, and the Trojans overtook St. Clair 77-69 on the road after squandering an early 14-point lead.
Both teams landed four players in double figures. Potosi (6-0) controlled the bookend periods while St. Clair dominated stretches in between.
The Bulldogs drained 11 3-pointers and rallied for a 57-54 lead after three quarters, but were outscored 23-12 over the last eight minutes.
Wilson finished with a game-high 30 points after sinking his fourth and fifth triples of the game to flip the lead back to the Trojans. Rowe netted 21 points and provided four field goals in the final stanza.
Potosi made 16-of-20 free throws collectively, and bolted to a 26-12 advantage with early momentum. Thomas Lambing tallied 11 points, and Alex Hogan tossed in 10.
St. Clair (2-2) was paced by Carson Roemer with 24 points. Landon Rulo hit five 3-pointers to score 17 overall, and Guage McCuskey added 12 on four threes.
Nathan Short chipped in 11 for the Bulldogs.
Potosi has another road game Thursday at West County before looking ahead to the Central Christmas Tournament.
St. Paul 82, Eagle Ridge 67
FARMINGTON – St. Paul defeated visiting Eagle Ridge 82-67 during its first Mississippi Valley Conference game on Friday night.
Caiden Canania erupted for 28 points to pace four Giants in double digits.
Aiden Morris poured in 20 points for St. Paul (2-3, 1-0) while Shawn Luba and Porter Urling each netted 16.
Jefferson 53, Arcadia Valley 51
IRONTON – Colton Broadwater made a tiebreaking layup with 14 seconds left, and Jefferson rallied for a 53-51 triumph at Arcadia Valley on Friday night.
Blayne Wilson equaled Broadwater with 19 points and six rebounds, and also collected four steals for the Blue Jays, who shot 44 percent and finished with 11 turnovers.
Kaiden Keith netted a game-high 28 points for the host Tigers, and drew contact on a drive before completing a tying 3-point play with 1:07 remaining.
Jefferson (4-2) was patient with the ensuing possession. Cooper Frisk eluded a steal attempt by Keith, and Jack Klump passed to Broadwater in the paint for the winning basket.
Jarel Jackson, who posted a game-high eight assists for AV, missed short on a 25-footer in the closing seconds. The Blue Jays then rebounded their own missed free throw.
Arcadia Valley trailed 22-14 through one quarter, but allowed only five points in the second. A couple of 3-pointers by Evan Inman and an inbound lob to Keith helped forge a 27-27 halftime tie.
Keith was fouled on a made layup to open the third quarter, and connected from long range off a pass from Jackson to establish a 39-31 edge for the Tigers.
But consecutive triples by Wilson and Frisk propelled Jefferson to a 49-48 lead. Wilson caught an entry feed inside to extend an 8-0 surge.
Brayton Jarvis knocked down two 3-pointers for Arcadia Valley (3-2).
Perryville 75, Fredericktown 74
FREDERICKTOWN – Josiah Friesz sank a tiebreaking 3-pointer in overtime, and Perryvillle held off Fredericktown 75-74 after wasting a 12-point lead on Friday night.
Josiah Paisley scored eight of his 19 points in the second quarter, and Cole Rodewald added 15 as the Pirates landed five players in double digits.
Perryville (1-2) got 14 points from Waylon Huber plus 11 each from Aiden Wendel and Friesz, and carried a 36-24 advantage into the break.
Fredericktown (2-3) fired back in the third quarter, drawing to within 50-48 on a putback by Blake Terry-Breakfield and a 3-pointer by Dariyon Catchings.
A 6-0 run restored a 59-53 edge for the visitors, but the Blackcats closed regulation with six straight points to induce an extra seession.
Terry-Breakfield nailed the tying 12-footer left of lane at 65-65 with 1 second on the clock after Tucker Reutzel and David Slinkard saved the possession with offensive rebounds.
Huber made the margin 74-71 from the line after an empty trip for Reutzel, who debuted in limited time after missing the previous four games to heal a broken ankle.
Andrew Robbins made 7-of-9 free throws and netted a game-high 21 points for Fredericktown. Terry-Breakfield finished with 18.
Catchings provided nine points while Mason Cureton and Slinkard added eight apiece.
West County 50, Steelville 47
PARK HILLS – Levi Lashley shared game-high honors with 15 points, and West County outlasted Steelville 50-47 during the Rotary Classic on Saturay.
Brody Simily added 12 points, and the Bulldogs posted a 12-9 scoring edge in the fourth quarter. They were 15-of-27 from the free-throw line.
West County (4-4) also received nine points from Wyatt Simily plus six more from Parker Therrell, and brought a 27-24 lead into halftime.

Farmington guard Jaxon Tinsley (1) reaches to catch a pass during second quarter boys basketball action against Rockwood Summit on Thursday, Dec. 4, 2025, in Farmington. (Matt KIng, Daily Journal)
Jackson Woods finished with 15 points, and Malakai Bruno added 10 for Steelville (2-3), which rallied to draw even at 38-38 just before the third quarter ended.
Farmington 66, Scott City 58
PARK HILLS – For the second time already this season, the Farmington boys basketball team turned a 16-point deficit into a resilient victory.
Ryder Gollaher scored 21 points and Tatem Tinsley added 15 on Saturday as the Knights rallied past Scott City 66-58 during the Rotary Shootout at Mineral Area College.
An 11-2 run over the final 4:45 shifted the contest toward Farmington (3-2). Cooper Tripp tossed in 10 points, and Jacob Barnes finished with nine.
Scott City (2-1) received a game-high 24 points from Braeden Walton, and stormed out to a 26-12 lead before opening the second quarter with another basket.
Farmington reduced the margin to 40-31 when Tinsley rattled in a 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer. The momentum continued through a dominant stretch of the third quarter.
Two straight driving layups by Gollaher and a mid-range shot from Barnes preceded a cutting layup by Tinsley. Tripp nailed a 3-pointer after a turnover to give the Knights a 46-42 edge.
Max Snider connected amid a crown in the lane to regain a 50-49 lead for the Rams, who utilized 10 points apiece from Kaden Lowery and Carter Berger.
Farmington capitalized on another key turnover on a layup through contact by Tinsley. Consecutive 3-pointers by Gollaher and Baylor Bowling helped establish a 63-56 cushion with 2:18 remaining.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Bunker 39, Central 36
PARK HILLS – Recently returned from injury, Kinsey Barton netted 20 points and propelled Bunker to a 39-36 overtime triumph over Central on Saturday night.
Kara Barton added 14, and put the Lady Eagles ahead to stay on a 3-point play that also created the fifth foul against opposing forward Katelynn Clark.
The Lady Rebels mustered only a made free throw during the extra period, and missed two shots on a potential go-ahead possession. A costly over-and-back turnover followed.
Both offenses struggled throughout much of the contest. The first quarter ended with Central leading 4-2 after producing a shutout through the first 7 ½ minutes.
Mia Monges scored 12 points while Reese Hulsey tallied nine and Clark chipped in six for the Lady Rebels, who grabbed a 24-18 lead on a Hulsey jumper after Morgan Populis sank a 3-pointer.
Kinsey Barton countered early in the fourth quarter with a jumper, and drove the length of the court to draw contact on a tying 3-point play at 27-27 with 3:04 left.
An entertaining stretch and multiple lead changes closed out regulation. Hulsey scored for Central in a collision, but a basket by Kara Barton and free throws by Kinsey Barton put Bunker in front 31-30.
Mallory Blankenship countered for Central with a 3-pointer before an entry pass from Kinsey Barton to Kara Barton squared the contest.
Monges promptly gave the Lady Rebels their final edge on an assist from Populis, but Kinsey Barton converted twice from the line for a 35-35 deadlock with 29 seconds to play.
The game was tied 13-13 at halftime.
