Gallery • 13 Photos

Gabe Swartz

The Blue Valley Northwest bench celebrates after a made 3-pointer by senior guard Sam Ward during the fourth quarter.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The Braun brothers, senior forward Parker Braun and junior guard Christian Braun played a crucial role in giving the Huskies an early lead against the Ozark Tigers in the Huskies first game of the Ozark Mountain Shootout on Friday Dec. 8.

In the opening minutes of the game, Christian used his 6-foot-5 frame along with his quickness to attack the basket against an undersized Ozark High team. Christian also was able to find his brother Parker, something he said was important to the success of the team.

“It felt really good because I got him the ball more this game,” Christian said. “He was open this game, and he was playing well.”

Parker was able to create opportunities around the basket and capped off his dominance on offense in the first half by hitting a three from the corner with 3:05 left in the second quarter which gave the Huskies a 34-23 lead. Head coach Ed Fritz said Parker showed a lot of growth this game, especially in the first half.

“I was just tickled pink for Parker. He just really grew up tonight,” Fritz said. “When he goes inside and outside, he’s unstoppable.”

Led by 13 points from Parker, the Huskies found themselves with a 37-25 lead going into the half. Although the Huskies never gave up the lead, the scrappiness and shooting ability of the Tigers tested BVNW in the second half. Throughout the night, Ozark High ran a 2-2-1 press, something that sped up the Huskies according to Parker.

The Huskies retained a 46-34 lead as the Tigers called a timeout with 2:51 left in the third quarter, however OHS showed their range coming out of the timeout. After a couple of open shots and back-to-back 3-pointers by the Tigers, the Huskies found themselves with a small lead of 48-45. Although the Huskies found themselves in a close game, Parker said he had confidence in the team’s ability.

“I just think we all came back to kind of our old roots,” Parker said. “We know how to handle it.”

With all the momentum on Ozark’s side, senior guard Sam Ward and freshman guard Jack Chapman delivered in a big way. Towards the end of the third quarter, Ward was able to drain a 3, and after Ward converted on a free throw, Chapman also contributed by getting a steal and layup for the Huskies. With the help of Ward and Chapman, BVNW ended the third quarter with 8 unanswered points which extended their lead to 56-45. Fritz said Ward’s performance in the second half was huge for the Huskies.

“I thought in the second half Sam was just phenomenal,” Fritz said.

After being tested in the third quarter, BVNW rolled through the fourth quarter powered by Ward’s second consecutive 21 point game, tying his career-high. Ultimately, the Huskies reigned victorious as they defeated Ozark, 73-56.

Blue Valley Northwest will face Kansas State commit, senior guard Shaun Williams and Hazelwood Central team at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 9 in the Huskies final game of the Ozark Mountain Shootout. With another challenging game, Fritz said the trip has already benefited the team and he would like to continue to see more success from the team.

“Tomorrow we play a really really good team so this has been great for us,” Fritz said. “We just need to keep that going.”