South Callaway first-year head coach Tony Brandt believes his Bulldogs are beginning to show a better understanding of his system.
South Callaway broke a 34-34 tie by outscoring Southern Boone 20-16 in the fourth quarter late Tuesday night to pull out a 54-50 Mid-Missouri Conference victory.
"This was a really exciting game, with several lead changes throughout the fourth quarter," Brandt said. "Both teams were able to hit clutch shots down the stretch."
The win was the third straight for the Bulldogs, who evened their season record at 7-7 while improving to 2-1 in the MMC. Southern Boone was coming off a 57-38 loss to Mexico - ranked No. 4 in Class 4 - in the championship of the California Tournament last Saturday night.
"After getting off to a slow start, we are now starting to figure some things out," Brandt said. "A lot of small things are starting to come into place and we have been much better lately about playing through mistakes."
Senior guard Will Brandt connected for a game-high 23 points to guide South Callaway, while senior guard Bryan Lechner tallied 17. The Bulldogs finished 18-of-26 (69 percent) from the free-throw line.
"I felt like our guys gave a consistent effort for all four quarters defensively, and really played together as a team on the offensive end," Tony Brandt said. "We are starting to get better ball movement and more guys involved offensively, and our defense is really starting to come together."
Nick Carlos and Trey Lacy logged 16 points apiece to pace Southern Boone. The Eagles made 12-of-18 free throws (67 percent).
South Callaway is now off until Tuesday, Jan. 25, when it opens play in the Sturgeon Tournament. The Bulldogs - drawing the sixth seed - square off against No. 3 Westran in the first round at 4:30 p.m.