Kelly hits 20 wins with decisive victory over Kennett

The Kelly boys basketball team rolled into Kennett for a varsity-only contest and beat the Indians 66-33 to reach the 20-win threshold in the Hawks' penultimate game of the regular season Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024.

Kelly tacked on the team's second win in a row and now stands at 20-5 on the season, next traveling to Ste. Genevieve before heading into the C3D2 tournament as the third seed. Kennett, now 5-17, is on a six-game losing streak and has a tough Friday matchup playing Cape Central on the Tigers' senior night.

Kelly wasted no time and pulled away to a game-opening 9-2 run leading into a timeout, and then Reece Eftink tacked on four more for good measure. Kennett's Ty Jones ended the quarter with a three-pointer but the Hawks still led 15-7.

Nine Kelly players eventually got in the scoring column and three put up double digits. Ross Peters led with a grand total of 25, while Dalton Forck and Reece Eftink each scored 12. Outscoring the Indians by double was good offensively, but Kelly coach Noel Trimmer said he was most impressed with the team's defensive showing.

“I thought we played defense really well,” Trimmer said after the game. “There were times, offensively, where I thought we got in a hurry. We get comfortable, feel like we're getting up big, and all of a sudden we force things we don't have to do. But defensively, we played a solid game all night long.

Kelly's Dalton Forck powers in for a layup against Kennett Tuesday, Feb. 13.Photo by Christian Johnson

“It doesn't matter who you're playing,” he continued, “if you hold a team into the 30's, that's a good night of defense.”

Kennett's Antonio Flakes and Ashton Dismukes both shot for two opening the second quarter but it didn't take long for Kelly's defense to stop any kind of a comeback short. With play starting to slow and Hawks swooping in for every rebound opportunity, Kelly put up 15 unanswered points before Dismukes ended the half with a final layup.

Leading 30-13 at the break, Kelly again held the Indians to single digit scoring in the third quarter. Meanwhile, Peters tossed in a trio of three-pointers and Michael Dollins added another to keep rolling.

“Ross Peters came back and played well,” Trimmer said. “He led us in scoring and did what he was supposed to do after sitting out for disciplinary reasons. He was tremendously positive the entire game and excelled. He was back to being what he should be for us – our team leader.”

Kelly scored 18 points in the third and fourth quarters to Kennett's nine and 11, respectively. Peters sank his last of five total in the fourth quarter but added a pair of two-point field goals before the end.

For Kennett, Dismukes led the way again with a pair of layups and a field goal. Dismukes was Kennett's top scorer with 19 points in all. Cash Franklin came into the game and managed one three-point shot, but Kennett's first double digit-scoring quarter didn't put a dent in the deficit.

Kennett's Ashton Dismukes attempts a shot for two during a game against Kelly Tuesday, Feb. 13.Photo by Christian Johnson

“All year long we've just struggled to score,” Kennett head coach Fred Garmon said. “When you struggle to put the ball in the hole, your defense takes a massive hit and once that happens, you look up and they've ran off on you. I am still proud of the guys for continuing to show up and fight. That's really all we can ask for right now is to keep fighting.”

Kennett's last game of the regular season comes after a trip to Cape in hosting Doniphan next Thursday. Kelly takes on sixth-seeded Saxony Lutheran in the first round of the “brutal” C3D2 tourney next Tuesday at 6:30.

“We're just going to try and show up to fight,” Garmon said. “Next week we'll have another big game against Doniphan, who is a district opponent. We keep trying things and finding ways to score, but we just have to keep fighting and get ready for district play.”