Neosho picks up first victory, tops Wooddale

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NEOSHO, Mo. — Neosho scored more points by halftime of Tuesday's consolation semifinal matchup with Wooddale than it had in the entire game Monday in the first round of the girls bracket in the Neosho Holiday Classic.

That was thanks in large part to 3-point shooting by Jolie Bond as she sparked the offense to a 28-12 halftime lead. Bond and the Wildcats went on to seal a 55-38 win — their first win of the year.

"We're all super excited. We really wanted to come out today and win in our home tournament," Bond said.

Neosho head coach Kelsea Whitten talked about her sophomore guard.

"We've been begging Jo to shoot all season. Anytime she has daylight, we've been asking her to shoot," Whitten said.

Whitten and the rest of the coaching staff got their wish Tuesday.

Leading 9-7, Bond was left wide open on the right wing and she dribbled up and stepped into a 3-point attempt. The shot banked off the backboard and into the net.

The next opportunity she had was another wide-open look from the same spot. She hesitated, but then coach Whitten yelled from the bench on the other end of the court, "Shoot it."

Bond launched, and it was nothing but net. Neosho went up 15-11.

Shortly after that second trey went through, Bond found herself bringing the ball up the court in transition, and she stepped into another open triple but this time from the left wing. It was nothing but net as well.

"Once one goes in, normally I get more confident," Bond said.

She earned a trip to the free throw line after drawing a foul and cashed in on 1 of 2 charities and shortly after drilled another 3-pointer to make it 25-11.

Bond scored 13 of her team-high 18 points in the second stanza and was 13 of the team's 19 points in the stanza.

"She's getting way more confident every single day. She's in the gym in a lot. Her and Emma Ward both are in the gym shooting constantly," Whitten said. "Those are the things we need. ... Jo is a sophomore, and she's going to have a great career at Neosho basketball."

The Wildcats extended their lead from 16 points at the half to 22 points as the scoreboard showed 43-21 entering the final period. The lead got to as many as 25 before Whitten started to bring her subs in.

"I would say there was a lot of leadership from the upperclassmen, and that's something we've been working on all season," Whitten said about her team's first win. "Jazmyn (Washington) has stepped up into a leadership role. ... We played hard buzzer to buzzer and that's what we've been preaching all season."

Neosho's defense was able to hold Wooddale (2-7) to just 3 for 31 shooting in the first half and limited its top scorer, London Carson, to just 6 points.

Carson did get things rolling in the second half and the fourth quarter especially as she finished with 30 points in the game. Carson also registered a double-double with 14 rebounds.

Neosho (1-8) had a player tally a double-double as well with freshman Hannah White. White pulled down a game-high 23 rebounds and scored 11 points on 5 of 17 shooting and going 1 for 10 on free throws.

"Hannah should have had 100 points. We have to work on free throws. ... She's really good, and she's a very special player," Whitten said.

White also recorded six blocks in the game.

The freshman post player stands more than 6 feet tall and was the early offense for the Wildcats. She helped the team get out to an early advantage scoring 6 points in the first quarter as Neosho grabbed a 9-2 lead.

Wooddale's Kearie Khalife got a layup and Carson followed with two free throws to make it 9-6 after the opening quarter.

Neosho plays Joplin for fifth place at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday in the junior high.

Superstitious?

Bond wore the No. 13 Tuesday because she had only brought her white No. 2 jersey with her so she had to wear an extra black jersey so she could match the rest of her teammates.

She's going to wear that jersey in the 3-point contest Tuesday night as well and depending on how she performs, No. 13 may become her new number.

"I think I'll wear it tonight in the 3-point contest, and if it helps me, I might keep it," Bond said.

Wildcats roar

The loudest part of the gym throughout the whole game was undoubtedly the area occupied by the Neosho Wildcats along the sideline. The bench roared with cheer when most of the baskets were going through

Even when the defense got a steal and appeared to have a breakaway layup, the first and most noise you heard came from the Neosho players on the bench.

"Our freshman (bench players) are learning to contribute in all sorts of ways. You can contribute just by being on the bench and getting some energy in the gym," Whitten said.

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