The Van-Far boys wished they had some possessions back last week in Bowling Green.
The Indians lost 57-49 on Saturday in the third-place game of the Bowling Green Tournament in a rematch that …
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The Van-Far boys wished they had some possessions back last week in Bowling Green.
The Indians lost 57-49 on Saturday in the third-place game of the Bowling Green Tournament in a rematch that was the championship game a year ago, which the Indians won. Van-Far last week defeated Louisiana 67-37 and lost 61-58 in overtime to host and champion Bowling Green before Pacey Reading scored his 1,000th career point in the loss to Clopton.
“We need to figure out how to close out quarters without turning the ball over and we also need to learn how to defend for 32 minutes,” head coach Pat Connaway said. “In 2025, we are averaging giving up 60 points a game and we can't win allowing that many points, plus teams are shooting over 50 percent from the floor against us.”
Connaway said Clopton (13-6) shot 61 percent and made 11 3-pointers against Van-Far (14-7) on Saturday, including 23 points and five 3-pointers in the first quarter. Van-Far trailed 50-47 with 3:44 left in the game, but Connaway said some unforced turnovers put the game away for Clopton, which was a story for Van-Far throughout the week.
Reading led with 14 points, Gaven Gaston followed with 11 points and Carson Huff had nine points.
The loss against Bowling Green (13-3) in the semifinals was set up by turnovers, Connaway said, as the Bobcats erased Van-Far’s six-point lead with 1:40 left on back-to-back 3-pointers. An unforced turnover prevented the Indians from taking the last shot in regulation and then some more mistakes put them behind by three in overtime until Reading tied the game with a 3-pointer. A 3-pointer at the buzzer ended Van-Far’s quest to repeat as champions.
Huff led Van-Far with 16 points, Gaston had 14 points and 10 rebounds, Evan Utterback had 14 points and Reading finished with 12 points and nine rebounds.
Reading led the Indians against Louisiana (7-9) with 19 points and seven rebounds in a game that saw a 40-19 halftime lead for Van-Far. Huff followed with 11 points, and Gibson Condie had nine points before being fouled and rolling his ankle. Connaway expects Condie will “some significant time” and hopes the damage isn’t too bad.
Van-Far (4-1 EMO) plays at Eastern Missouri Conference foe Mark Twain (3-12, 0-4 EMO) at 7 p.m. Friday.