The Fulton Lady Hornets couldn't get their defense sorted out, allowing state-ranked Mexico to score at will in the first half.
Rival Mexico - ranked No. 4 in Class 4 - bolted to a commanding 42-17 halftime lead Friday night and eventually eased to a 64-31 North Central Missouri Conference runaway over Fulton at Roger D. Davis Gymnasium.
The loss was the third in a row for the Lady Hornets, who ended the regular season at 8-15 overall and 5-7 in the NCMC.
"It was just a matter of our defense coming out sluggish," Fulton assistant coach Ashley Windmiller said. "We acted like we couldn't find our man (to defend), and we couldn't box out.
"We seemed to have trouble communicating and helping out."
Sophomore guard Bailey Mitchell tallied 15 points as the only player to reach double figures for the Lady Hornets.
Danielle Ingrum put up a game-high 18 points for Mexico, which improved to 21-3 on the season and captured the NCMC title with an 11-1 mark. The Lady Bulldogs also rolled past Fulton 59-29 on Jan. 24 at Mexico.
The Lady Hornets now look ahead to their matchup against NCMC foe Boonville at 6 p.m. Monday in the first round of the District 10 Tournament at Eldon. Fulton won two of its three meetings against Boonville during the regular season.
The Lady Hornets downed the Lady Pirates 50-38 on Dec. 6 in Fulton, and 59-47 on Jan. 14 in the seventh-place game of the California Tournament. Fulton then lost at Boonville 53-38 on Jan. 27.
Monday night's winner will then turn around and play School of the Osage in the district semifinals at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
"We don't have a lot of prep time," Windmiller said. "The girls know what's expected of them; it's a matter of going out and getting the job done."
New Bloomfield basketball (VG)...56
Tuscumbia......................................13
NEW BLOOMFIELD - The Lady Wildcats punished the Lady Lions with their dogged defensive pressure in Friday night's Show-Me Conference blowout victory.
New Bloomfield led 11-6 after one quarter, but then shut out Tuscumbia 13-0 in the second quarter to expand its lead to 24-6 at the break. The Lady Wildcats put the game out of reach by outscoring the Lady Lions 22-5 in the third quarter.
"We were pretty strong on defense," New Bloomfield head coach Brett Craighead said. "We missed a lot of shots (in the first half), but we put a lot of pressure on them.
"In the second half, we were even better (on defense) and we started hitting some shots. Our full-court pressure defense seemed like it was everywhere."
Senior guard Elizabeth Clark topped the Lady Wildcats (10-13, 2-5 Show-Me) with a game-high 17 points. Junior forward Chelsea Wiler added 16 points.
Two players scored five points apiece for Tuscumbia.
New Bloomfield was able to recover from a 61-29 Show-Me loss at Russellville on Thursday night. The Lady Wildcats trailed 35-19 at halftime and 54-27 entering the fourth quarter.
"They are big and quick, and we did not match up very well with them," Craighead said. "(Russellville) really exposed our weaknesses. Once we got down, it was a domino effect."
Clark finished with a team-high 10 points for New Bloomfield.
Amber Duncan countered with a game-high 22 points for the Lady Indians.
The Lady Wildcats (6-3) bowed in the junior varsity game 52-39. Freshman center Abby Haas logged a team-high 14 points, followed by freshman guard Mykayla Steele with 10.
New Bloomfield has added a game to its schedule and will host Silex at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
Hallsville......................................46
North Callaway basketball (VB)...40
HALLSVILLE - The Thunderbirds shot just 37 percent (17-of-46) for the game and managed a meager four points in the fourth quarter of Friday night's MMC loss to the Indians.
North Callaway was only down 39-36 after three quarters, but the Thunderbirds watched their shooting touch continue to stray over the last 8 minutes.
Senior forward Andrew Attebery scored 11 points to pace North Callaway (5-15, 1-5 Mid-Missouri Conference), which defeated Hallsville 75-60 on Jan. 18 at Kingdom City. Senior forward Jacob Stafford and junior guard Zack Lavy contributed eight points apiece Friday night, while junior forward Jared Graves grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
"Our defense was right there, but we just couldn't put the ball in the hole," Thunderbirds head coach Tim Turlington said.
Brenden Beatty and Jacob Wooten provided 12 points apiece to direct Hallsville (5-14, 2-4). Daniel Mahurin contributed 10 points.
North Callaway (8-7) held on for a 49-46 triumph in the junior varsity contest. Sophomore guard Justin Murphy posted a team-high 12 points and sophomore forward Vance Allen chipped in with 10.
North Callaway hosts MMC opponent Southern Boone at 6 p.m. Tuesday. The Thunderbirds lost to the Eagles 57-45 on Jan. 26 at Ashland.
Hallsville......................................55
North Callaway basketball (VG)...37
HALLSVILLE - The Ladybirds were unable to overcome a 26-11 halftime deficit in Thursday night's Mid-Missouri Conference loss to the Lady Indians.
Hallsville then outscored North Callaway 17-8 in the third quarter to widen its advantage to 43-19. The Ladybirds also fell to the Lady Indians 70-47 on Jan. 17 at Kingdom City.
Senior forward Morgan Brown Emmons came up with 13 points and five rebounds to guide North Callaway (7-12, 3-4 MMC) on Thursday night. Junior guard Jordan Gray also supplied 10 points.
Rachel Gall led Hallsville (18-2, 5-1) with a game-high 14 points.
Sparked by freshman forward Tara Oberlag's 23 points, the Ladybirds (4-9) prevailed in the junior varsity game 37-27. Freshman forward Kelsey Coil tallied 10 points.
North Callaway returns home for an MMC contest against Southern Boone at 6 p.m. Monday. The Ladybirds turned back the Lady Eagles 49-45 on Jan. 26 at Ashland.
William Woods basketball (W)....70
Park University............................59
PARKVILLE - Senior forward Rachel Baker delivered a game-high 17 points to lead four players in double figures as the No. 22 Lady Owls collected their fifth straight AMC victory Thursday night.
With the victory, William Woods University improved to 25-2 overall and 12-1 in the American Midwest Conference. The Lady Owls also defeated Park 64-54 on Jan. 24 in Fulton.
Junior center Mirando Loesch added 15 points Thursday night for William Woods, which took a 31-26 lead into halftime. Senior guard Jill Sutton and junior guard Sharron Andrews contributed 13 points apiece for the Lady Owls, who shot 43 percent (23-of-53) as a team and committed 12 turnovers.
Baker pulled down a team-high 13 rebounds and Loesch collected 12 to help William Woods to a slight 40-39 advantage on the boards.
Dominique Hayes and Halima Ramsey finished with 12 points each to pace Park (14-10, 6-7), which shot just 33 percent (22-of-66) from the field and ended up with 13 turnovers. Vivian Holcomb had 11 points.
The Lady Owls hosted AMC foe Stephens College on Saturday at Anderson Arena. Results were not available at press time. William Woods demolished Stephens 75-41 on Jan. 22 in Columbia.
Park University............................74
William Woods basketball (M)....73
PARKVILLE - The Owls' upset bid fell short and their two-game AMC winning streak came to an end as they were outscored by the No. 24 Pirates 14-13 in overtime Thursday night.
William Woods University was down 34-32 at halftime, but outscored Park 28-26 in the second half to tie the game 60-60 at the end of regulation and force the extra period.
Sophomore forward Elliott Black put up a game-high 18 points to direct four players in double figures for the Owls, who slipped to 11-16 overall and 5-7 in the American Midwest Conference. William Woods bowed to Park 74-60 on Jan. 20 in Fulton.
Black also grabbed a game-high seven rebounds Thursday night to power the Owls to an emphatic 37-23 edge on the boards.
Sophomore guard Logan Decker - who hit three 3-pointers - was next with 17 points for William Woods, which shot 52 percent (28-of-54) as a team but was burdened by 27 turnovers. Junior forward Andrew Miller supplied 15 points, while freshman guard Jonathon Nutt - who also had three 3-pointers - provided 13 points.
Goldeng Deng scored 17 points to guide Park (18-6, 10-2), while Kyle Rausch had 11 and Wardell Satterwhite contributed 10. The Pirates shot 53 percent (31-of-59) from the field and finished with 19 turnovers.
The Owls will be back home at Anderson Arena for an AMC game against Missouri Baptist University at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. William Woods toppled Missouri Baptist 85-74 on Jan. 27 in St. Louis.