PITT 8 BOYS: Warriors seal opening-round win over Kiowa
Jan. 18—The Warriors hit the gas immediately out of the gate.
Indianola and Kiowa opened up the second day of the Pitt 8 Conference Tournament on Tuesday at Savanna, with the Warriors exploding on offense for the 59-31 win.
Although the Cowboys struck first, the Warriors punched right back as Ben Santine rattled off four quick points to jump into the lead.
Kiowa's Cooper McClendon sank a triple of his own, but Terran Pitts went on a solo scoring run. He scored eight straight points to fuel a 16-1 run to end the quarter — leading to a 20-6 Warrior lead.
In the second quarter, Twine Palmer hit back-to-back shots for the Cowboys to cut into the deficit. But Indianola's Josh O'Dell responded with back-to-back threes to continue the Warriors' offensive momentum.
The pair of teams battled throughout the remainder of the half, and a shot off the glass at the buzzer by O'Dell put the Warriors up 34-16 at the half.
In the second half, Chance Lott and Pitts each drilled arcing threes to extend the Indianola lead. Palmer and Jaxon Wills had an answer, each making a bucket to keep pace.
The back and forth continued for much of the remainder of the game, but the Warriors rode the wave of momentum they had built to the win.
Lott, Pitts, and Santine led the way for Indianola with 14 points each, followed by O'Dell with 13 points.
Palmer led the Cowboys with 18 points, followed by Wills and Judd McAlester with four points each.
Next up for the Warriors, they'll face off against the winner between Stuart and Haileyville in Thursday's semifinal round at Canadian, with tipoff set for 5:20 p.m.
Meanwhile, the Cowboys will battle the loser between Stuart and Haileyville in the consolation bracket on Friday in Savanna, with tipoff set for 5:20 p.m.
This post will be updated throughout the day of competition.
Contact Derek Hatridge at dhatridge@mcalesternews.com.
