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Keytesville Tournament

Higbee sweeps Keytesville Basketball Tournament

Justin Addison, Editor/Publisher
Posted 2/4/25

The Higbee High School basketball teams deftly swept the Keytesville Tournament last week, culminating with lopsided championship games on Saturday. The girls defeated Wellsville-Middletown 60-30, …

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Keytesville Tournament

Higbee sweeps Keytesville Basketball Tournament

Posted

The Higbee High School basketball teams deftly swept the Keytesville Tournament last week, culminating with lopsided championship games on Saturday. The girls defeated Wellsville-Middletown 60-30, avenging a seven-point loss in overtime from a year ago, to claim the tournament crown. The boys followed up with a 75-39 blowout of CLAA rival Northwestern-Mendon for the Tigers’ third straight Keytesville Tournament title.

Girls

Higbee (1) 60

Wellsville-Middletown (2) 30

Despite only dressing six girls due to the flu virus that has been infecting schools across Mid-Missouri, the Lady Tigers displayed their trademark intensity from baseline to baseline to pick up the 30-point championship on Saturday morning.

Higbee coach Tanner Burton said his team had been battling illness all week. The Tigers were without two starters and their sixth-man for Thursday’s 63-35 semifinal win over Bevier. On Saturday, they were still down a starter and a sixth man, dressing only six of their 11 varsity players.

“All the girls really stepped up,” Burton said. “For them to go out and execute and play at a high level was really impressive.”

Higbee jumped out to a double-digit lead early and held a crushing 27-6 advantage after eight minutes, sparked by the sharpshooting of junior Lauren Spilman, who sank four 3-point baskets in the opening frame. Senior Reagan Derboven also sank a triple as five of Higbee’s six players scored in the first eight minutes.

The Tigers deployed their unrelenting defense to cause turnovers and create general havoc for the WM offense on every inch of the hardwood.

“We’re a defensive team, and defense turns into offense,” Burton said. “These kids kind of exude the fact that the defense is why we’re so successful. That’s why we get teams down early and hold them to low scoring. Our girls are one of the top defensive teams in the state. That says a lot about these kids.”

Higbee held Wellsville-Middletown to single-digit scoring in each of the first three quarters of the game before winning by 30 points amid a fourth-quarter running clock.

Spilman tied her own school record from the arc with nine triples to lead all scorers with 29 points. Sophomore Kiersten Rockett added 13, senior Ronnie Welch had eight, Derboven posted six, and sophomore Natalie Ritter rounded out the scoring with four points.

The Higbee girls are ranked eighth statewide among Class 1 teams, with a top-five ranked defense. While the tournament trophy is a nice accolade, Burton calls it a feather in the team’s cap because the overall expectation is higher. “It’s great that we’re winning [titles]. Hopefully, it sustains success so that we win a championship and then we move on. We’re getting to the time when [all of our opponents] matter.”

With the final stretch looming, Higbee is preparing for one of the toughest districts in girls Class 1 basketball. To make it to the state sectionals, The Tigers will likely be forced to contend with Cairo, the top-ranked girls’ team in Class 1.

Now 14-4 overall, the Lady Tigers were to return to CLAA action on Tuesday at Brunswick after the Advertiser went to press. Higbee defeated the Lady Wildcats by 20 points early in the season for the Northwestern Tournament championship on December 7. On Saturday, Higbee faces another Class 1 top-10 team with a game in Jefferson City against third-ranked Delta at the 10th annual Central Bank Shootout at Helias High School. Tipoff is scheduled for 11:15 a.m.

Boys 

Higbee (1) 75

Northwestern-Mendon (2) 39

For the second game in three weeks, the Higbee boys have scored a lopsided win over Northwestern-Mendon. The first was in the Tigers’ gym on Homecoming. On Saturday, Higbee defeated the second-seeded Eagles 75-39 for the Keytesville Tournament title.

Once again, Higbee jumped ahead early, opening the game with 13 straight points. Junior Danny Janssen scored 11 of the team’s first 16 points and netted four triples and 16 points in the first quarter as the Tigers raced out to a 29-9 lead after eight minutes.

Higbee coach Tanner Burton said he challenged his players to make the same statement they did three weeks prior. “They went down and put their foot on the gas and showed them why we are as successful as we are.”

Higbee let up a bit in the second quarter, allowing Northwestern to win the period 12-11. The Eagles outscored Higbee 10-4 over the final 3:22 of the half to snip the deficit slightly to 19 points.

“We were up, and we kind of knew it was over at that point,” Burton said. “It’s hard to keep kids focused. You miss some shots, and you get a little sloppy. Even when you have a lead, you have to find a way to be crisp.”

Higbee iced the game with an eight-point run to open the second half and pull ahead 56-28 after three quarters. The Tigers cruised to victory with a turbo clock in the fourth to claim their first tournament title of the season.

“It’s nice to be in the game, to begin with,” Burton said about the Tigers’ making the tournament final. “We’ve been fortunate enough to be in a lot of them. Winning them means a lot because it’s not an easy week when you’re playing for a championship. I thought the kids did well.”

Janssen led Higbee with a game-high 29 points with six 3-point buckets. Sophomore Cale Nelson posted 18 points, and sophomore Aaron Welch added 12 points with 10 points and two triples in the fourth quarter.

“Danny had a decent night. He’s really come out on his own,” Burton said. “I’m really proud of his growth this season. All of our boys have really stepped up and started to get acclimated in their new roles.

“Cale Nelson has just come on the map as a point guard with a little to no experience because he was behind [Higbee phenom Derek] Rockett,” Burton explained. “He’s just gradually come up. He and Hunter [Dougherty] owned the glass. When you have two guys doing what they need to do to help the team win, that is very important. I’m really proud of the effort they gave.”

The Tigers have now won 14 straight games, with the final stretch before districts coming up. On Tuesday, after the Advertiser went to press, Higbee was to face a tough conference test at Brunswick. The Wildcats are 18-1 and won a lopsided game over Higbee in the semifinals of the Northwestern Invitation on December 4. A win would elevate Higbee’s potential seed in the CLAA Tournament next week.

The Tigers close out the final week of the regular season against Prairie Home (13-2) and La Plata (5-13), both at home on February 18 and 20, respectively. Higbee’s regular-season finale will be at South Shelby on February 21. All games are scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m.

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