While it may not have been games that mattered, North Callaway boys basketball's performance in the Fulton Jamboree will have Thunderbird fans excited for the season ahead.
North Callaway beat South Callaway 26-22, Fulton 26-24 and New Bloomfield 18-9 Tuesday night in Fulton. The jamboree games consisted of two six-minute halves.
The Thunderbirds kicked off the jamboree with a Callaway Cup matchup. North Callaway trailed for the first 19:30, then took the lead after No. 12 made two free throws.
South Callaway didn't go down without a fight; the Bulldogs regained the advantage just a couple of minutes later after converting a 3-pointer.
But with 1:34 left, No. 13 on the Thunderbirds sunk a free-throw attempt that gave North Callaway a 1-point lead. Then, No. 13 extended the lead to four by scoring a 3-pointer from the left of the arc on the Thunderbirds' next offensive possession.
That 3-point shot was the nail in the coffin, as North Callaway outscored South Callaway 6-2 in the final two minutes.
The Thunderbirds played another tight match versus the Hornets. Unlike the Callaway Cup game, North Callaway led most of the time but had to earn the upper hand.
Both teams tied twice, with Fulton taking the lead once and North Callaway doing so twice. In the final minute of the contest, the Hornets tied the game at 24-24 on a Walker Gohring layup with 38 seconds, before the Thunderbirds' No. 12 hit the game-winning shot 15 seconds later.
Unlike the first two games, North Callaway used its defense to beat New Bloomfield. The Thunderbirds held the Wildcats scoreless until the first half's final minute.
After taking a 10-2 lead at halftime, the second half was closer. The Thunderbirds outscored the Wildcats 8-7 in the final six minutes.
No. 22 on New Bloomfield made it challenging for North Callaway in the second half, scoring five points and stealing the ball once as well. However, the Thunderbirds' defense did its best to contain the Wildcats and sealed a jamboree sweep.
North Callaway will begin the season when it takes on Centralia at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 29 in Centralia. The two teams also met in the season opener last season; in that meeting, the Thunderbirds beat the Panthers 67-40.