Nevada downs Webb City for first district title in 23 years

Mar. 6—WEBB CITY, Mo. — The seed was planted in the head of Nevada senior Logan Applegate early in Friday night's Class 5 District 12 boys basketball championship game.

And that led to the play that all but defined the contest late.

With 2:18 remaining and Nevada and Webb City knotted at 44-44, Applegate jumped a Webb City pass for a takeaway near the top of the key and darted toward the other end of the floor to throw down a two-handed dunk as the Nevada faithful erupted inside a packed Cardinal Dome at Webb City High School.

"It started at the beginning of the game, honestly," Applegate said of the steal. "I noticed they were getting a little lazy (with passes) up top. So I knew. I read it, and he just threw it without even looking. I knew it was coming. It was only a matter of time."

Applegate's steal and transition slam was followed by a pair of Nevada free throws — one by Applegate and another by Case Sanderson — that put the Tigers up four points with under a minute to go. and despite a 3-point basket by Webb City's Mekhi Garrard that made it a one-point game with eight seconds remaining, Nevada managed to stave off Webb City for a 52-49 win.

The triumph marked Nevada's first district title since 1998. The Tigers (21-5) had fallen in the district championship round in each of their previous four seasons.

"It means everything," Applegate said. "I'm so happy. Everyone is so happy. I love this team so much. We've had a good team the last four years, and we've just been stuck in the hardest districts in our opinion. It finally feels good to win one for sure."

Nevada's veteran-laden group — comprising four starting seniors in Applegate, Logan McNeley, Lane McNeley and Ben Hines — will get its first taste of the state tournament on Tuesday at 6 p.m. when the Tigers play Rogersville in a Class 5 sectional game at Nevada High School.

"It makes it that much sweeter," Nevada coach Shaun Gray said. "These (seniors) have been a part of some really good teams. We have some players playing collegiately that were on really good teams and we weren't able to break through. So this is a program win.

"In our gym, there's obviously the banners on the wall, and 1998 was the last time Nevada won a district championship. So 23 years. There's been a lot of good basketball teams come through in those 23 years. So our entire community is excited about this one."

Webb City (18-9) refused to make things easy on Nevada throughout the night however. The Cardinals led by as many as seven points in the first half and threatened to take a lead on multiple occasions in the fourth quarter despite having multiple players in foul trouble. Two players, Cohl Vaden and Garrard, fouled out in the final minute.

"I think the big difference is they were able to get to the free throw line and make their free throws," Webb City coach Jason Horn said. "You know, we got to the line there late and had chances to take the lead but just didn't follow through and make shots."

Webb City had an opportunity to force overtime on its final possession after it came out of a timeout trailing by three points with about five ticks remaining. But a stepback 3-point attempt by Nickhai Howard drew back iron and fell into the hands of Luke Brumit, who couldn't get another shot off before the buzzer sounded.

Webb City had five players partake in their final prep basketball game in seniors Howard, Brumit, Garrard, Trenton Hayes and Shane Noel.

"We're proud of them," Horn said of his seniors. "We've seen them grow. I've been here five years and I've had them from eighth grade until now. I'm proud of the work they put in. A couple of those guys are classic examples of sticking it out, working hard for your turn.

"Hayes and Brumit, they really brought it and were big. and then I think Nickhai proved this year he was one of the better players in the area. Garrard is a tremendous athlete and great defender. They were a good class, and they've been in this game four straight years. That says a lot about them.

Hayes made four triples and finished with a team-high 16 points, while Cohl Vaden added nine points and Garrard eight points.

The Cardinals held their largest lead, 17-10, in the early stages of the second quarter after Hayes swished home a 2-point runner in traffic. Nevada then answered with a 17-4 run to close the period and take a 27-21 lead into halftime.

Applegate finished with a game-high 29 points. Hines also finished in double figures for the Tigers with 14 points.

"Logan Applegate, you can't say enough about him and the type of player he is," Gray said. "To come up with that steal when the game's tied. I mean, that was the absolute tipping point of the game. ... Overall I thought our guys showed heart, grit, and stayed together. That's what it takes to win a championship."

Contact Jared Porter on Twitter at @JaredRyanPorter.