Bulldogs post 36-point win against Tigers

Alex Bader made sure his last chance to play in the Show Me Center was a game to remember.

The senior guard knocked down five 3-pointers in a 17-point effort to lead Notre Dame past city rival Central 70-34 on Monday night.

Bader knocked down three 3-pointers in a row in an 83-second span in the third period, when the Bulldogs turned a comfortable margin into a rout.

"It's fun to go out like this," Bader said. "I always love to play in the Show Me Center, and this is my last time. We've had a lot of success in here."

In addition to being the Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament runner-up the last two years, Notre Dame now has won the last four games against Central in the Show Me Center series, an event that attracts boisterous student sections from both schools.

FRED LYNCH ~ flynch@semissourian.comNotre Dame's Austin Greer pauses before shooting as Central's Andrew Williams and Rick Russell defend in the third quarter Monday at the Show Me Center.

"The crowds are always fun when they go back and forth," Bader said. "Sometimes it's hard to pay attention to the game — you're watching the crowds and it's just a fun all-around atmosphere."

It was more fun for Notre Dame (12-7), which had four players in double figures. In addition to Bader, John Unterreiner and Austin Greer each scored 12, and Jacob Tolbert added 11.

Central (6-10) was led by Rick Russell's 13 points.

The Tigers were done in mainly by turnovers against Notre Dame's pressure defense.

"The pressure got to us," Central coach Drew Church. "That's kind of been our problem all year — dealing with pressure, and it got to us tonight. Our guards, as young as they are and as inexperienced as they are, we've got to get better at dealing with that."

FRED LYNCH ~ flynch@semissourian.comNotre Dame's Austin Greer pauses before shooting as Central's Andrew Williams and Rick Russell defend during the third quarter of their game Monday at the Show Me Center. Additional game photos can be viewed at semissourian.com.

The Tigers have lost three straight and four of five since beating Kelly in the fifth-place bracket semifinals at the Christmas tournament.

They were determined to keep Greer from beating them, clamping down on the 6-foot-2 senior forward with a zone-and-one defensive wrinkle. It worked, as Greer was limited to two baskets off rebounds, one off Notre Dame's press and six free throws.

"They were trying to keep it out of Austin's hands," Notre Dame point guard Nick Koeppel said. "They were playing good defense on him, but we had other guys who could score."

And they did. The Bulldogs never trailed after Bader's 3-pointer midway through the first half, and they sprinted away from an 8-8 tie with a nine-point run from late in the first period through early in the second.

Central had six turnovers in the opening period alone.

And it was about to get worse for the Tigers.

After Central closed within 20-16 on two free throws by Andrew Williams and a steal and layin by Kevin Casasola, the Bulldogs ended the half with a decisive 17-3 run.

Greer's three-point play opened the run, Tolbert also had a three-point play, Matt Helle scored off a rebound, Bader hit a 3-pointer and Unterreiner scored two baskets — one on an athletic drive into the lane and another off a steal.

"They have four, five, six guys who can dribble, pass and shoot," Church said, "and when you have that, you can do a lot of things. I thought defensively the first 14 minutes of the half we did well."

But Notre Dame needed just 2 minutes, 8 seconds to stretch the four-point lead to 18.

And after Bader's flurry of 3-pointers in the third period, the lead was up to 23 at 48-25.

"When you leave Alex open that much, he's bound to hit a few," Notre Dame coach Kevin Roberts said. "We had a whole bunch of open shots. Alex sparked us, and John did a good job of getting him the ball."

Said Unterreiner: "He's going to be a key to the end of our season."

The Bulldogs, defending state champions in Class 4, will use every opportunity they can to get sharper before the district tournament, which is being hosted by state-ranked Sikeston. Notre Dame already has lost twice this season to that rival, but it has won five of its last seven games, including a sweep of Cape County schools Jackson, Saxony Lutheran and Central.

Monday's effort left Bader feeling good about the Bulldogs.

"We have the best guards," he said. "It's just awesome to play with all these guards, and you've got your big men. ... It's fun to play with all of them."

Central fell behind 62-29 after three quarters with Notre Dame scoring the final seven points, bringing a running clock and plenty of reserves in the final period.

Casasola and Zach Boerboom each scored seven points for Central, which was just 9 of 18 on free throws, with 5-for-14 shooting by players other than Williams.

Central811105—34

Notre Dame1522258—70

CENTRAL (34) — Blake Ozbun 2, Andrew Williams 4, James Lane 1, Kevin Casasola 7, Rick Russell 13, Zach Boerboom 7. FG 12, FT 9-18, F 16 (3-pointers: Casasola 1. Fouled out: None)

NOTRE DAME (70) — Nick Koeppel 4, Liam Maher 4, Alex Carroll 2, Chris McCoy 2, Alex Bader 17, John Unterreiner 12, Austin Greer 12, Jacob Tolbert 11, Joseph Tolbert 2, Matt Helle 4. FG 25, FT 13-17, F 19 (3-pointers: Bader 5, Ja. Tolbert 1, John Unterreiner 1. Fouled out: None)