Much like the previous night against Wright City, the South Callaway boys’ Friday night showdown in Fayette played out a similar way.
For much of the game, the Bulldogs and Falcons were separated by one possession in the fourth quarter until Fayette pulled away to give South Callaway a 49-39 loss.
Senior Trynnen Gray led the Bulldogs (9-6) with 17 points for the second straight night while senior Trace Helsel added eight points and eight rebounds.
Fayette’s Dalton Collins had a game-high 24 points while 6-foot-6 Theo Owings added a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds and Ben Wells pulled down 10 rebounds.
Head coach Seth Thomas said Collins was a challenge to defend, but Helsel was up to the challenge early. South Callaway lost Collins more as Helsel got into foul trouble and several players were asked to defend him.
“We kind of had a hard time containing him,” Thomas said. “He’s 6-foot-2 and athletic and was a tough matchup. (Trace) got into a little foul trouble, and we had to throw some other bodies on him. I thought they did a good job, but they were just a little bit undersized and a had a hard time stopping him.”
Collins had two 3-pointers but finished 10-of-12 at the free-throw line as Fayette’s 17-of-30 performance from the foul line allowed the Falcons (5-10) to pull away late after South Callaway didn’t make its open shots, Thomas said.
He said the Falcons sat back in a 2-3 zone, giving the Bulldogs a chance to find open spots in the coverage for some shots.
“We just didn’t hit shots,” Thomas said. “They were leaving us open for some really good looks, and they just weren’t falling.”
Fayette had a 13-7 lead after the first quarter and then a 29-20 lead at halftime until South Callaway outscored the Falcons 11-5 in the third quarter to make it 34-31 Fayette. Thomas said the Bulldogs even took the lead late in the game until Collins made a 3-point play to give momentum back the Falcons.
South Callaway goes into the Sturgeon Tournament as the No. 4 seed to face No. 5 Sturgeon (6-10) at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at the high school.
The junior varsity team won 26-12 against Fayette on Friday in two quarters, with freshman Colten Crocker leading with 8 points, after defeating Wright City 23-19 in two quarters Thursday at home and will play on Monday at Fulton after the C team goes at 5 p.m.