Even with point guard Colin Ruffin on the bench for the first half Wednesday, Nixa's offense produced 24 post-entry passes in its 24-point pasting, 66-42, of Parkview.

The repeated passes to the post paved the way for center Jaret Nelson to score 13 points and forward Jason Jones 12.

"We hit them where they are weak, which is their interior defense," Eagles coach Jay Osborne said. "We moved the ball and shared the ball. When we have an inside game, we have a nice team."

Nelson figures Nixa also has a happy team when the ball is fed to the post on a consistent basis. He and Jones do a good job balancing the touches that they look to score and look to pass.

With Kaleb Wofford making a trio of 3-pointers, the Eagles burned Parkview for eight treys, or 24 points.

"Just because the guards throw it to me doesn't mean I have to shoot it every time," Nelson said. "We can have good ball movement and still throw it to the post. When they get me the ball, I want to show them love and get it back to them. We had one play tonight where Colin gave the ball to me, he cut and I gave it back to him and he threw it to Wofford for a wide open 3. It feels like our 3-point shooting is better and we get in more of a rhythm when we get the ball inside. They get more open shots then, too."

In addition to Ruffin, forward Kael Combs was benched for the first half for reasons Osborne didn't want to disclose. With Ruffin and Combs out, Jones felt more ownership offensively.

"I felt me and Jaret did have to step up, with Kael and Colin having to sit out the first half," Jones said. 

Jones broke from a scoring slump to put up 10 points in the first half, as Nixa led 26-22 at intermission. Recently, Jones' scoring had dipped dramatically from the torrid pace he set early on. He had five points against Kickapoo, six versus Rogersville, four opposite Hartville and eight in the Eagles' first matchup with Parkview.

"I'm glad I performed better against them," Jones said of the Vikings. "(Scoring) has slowed down for me. But that's fine, we're still winning. That's the main goal."

Like Nelson, Jones feels Nixa's passes to the post lead to scoring all over the court.

"Those post-entries always help. Coach has been on (the guards) a little bit about that, but for the most part they've been good," Jones said. "The guards trust us and we trust them. If they get the ball to us, we'll find them. It goes both ways. All our guards are good passers. They're looking for the post a lot, which is good. The outside game starts with our inside game. Once we get our inside game going, the outside shots will fall."

"Like the coaches say, when we get it inside, we score and when they double-team us inside, we get a lot of 3s," Ruffin said.

Nixa (12-2) broke away from Parkview (5-6), thanks to a 25-6 run in the third quarter. After their entry to the game, Combs scored nine points and Ruffin eight.

"I stayed locked in on the bench. I didn't feel like I was cold when I came in," Combs said "I got a little sweat even when I was on the bench."

Ruffin and Combs accepted their punishment.

"Coach Osborne is a great coach. He definitely puts us in our place," Ruffin said. "There was a good reason why we weren't (playing). We definitely learned our lesson and it for sure won't happen again." 

"Coach said it wasn't so much a punishment for us as it was a reward for the other guys who have been working hard and coming to school," Combs said.

Speaking of the subs turned starters, Jackson Bray made a 3-pointer and more importantly, didn't commit a turnover and Jordyn Turner swished a pair of 3-pointers.

"We coach all our kids, 1-21. We always tell them that they're a flu bug or a sprained ankle away from playing," Osborne said. "We try to prepare them all to play. We started a couple kids tonight who hadn't started all year and they played well."

The blowout helped the Eagles ease their pain from their overtime loss to Kickapoo on Tuesday. Nixa squandered a four-point lead in the final minutes of the extra period.

"I'm still a little numb after last night. But we'll get over it and get better," Osborne said. "I thought we made some improvements tonight."

For one thing, Nixa went from 9-of-18 free-throw shooting against Kickapoo to 8-of-9 free-throw shooting versus Parkview. Nelson, who was 2-of-7 from the foul line against the Chiefs bounced back to make 3-of-4 charity tosses against the Vikings.

"I shot a lot of free throws before the game tonight," Nelson said. "Coach Osborne was telling me it's all about rhythm. Before, I had just one dribble and then I would shoot (a free throw). I didn't have any rhythm. So, I put in some extra dribbles to help me get in a groove before I shoot. Also, coach Osborne's dad has told me if I envision my shot going in before I shoot, I'm more likely to make it. I started doing that and it helped." 

"(Nelson) made a conscious effort tonight," Osborne said of Nelson's focus to improve on free throws. "Free-throw shooting is about concentration, repetition and feeling good about yourself. He's got a nice shot, good rotation and good release. It's just a matter of him getting more shots up."

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Nixa 66, Parkview 42

PARKVIEW (42) — Clark 3 2-2 9, Whitley 4 1-2 11, Jackson 1 0-0 3, Allen 1 0-0 2, Parker 3 1-2 10, Beal 1 0-0 2, Harris 2 0-0 5. Totals 15 4-6 42. 

NIXA (66) — Ruffin 3 2-2 8, Turner 2 0-0 6, Bray 1 0-0 3, Combs 3 3-3 9, Wofford 3 0-0 9, Nelson 5 3-4 13, Jones 6 0-0 12, Berry 2 0-0 4. Totals 25 8-9 66.

Parkview 13  9   6  14 - 42

Nixa         16 10 25 15 - 66

3-point goals - Wofford 3, Parker 3, Whitley 2, Ruffin 2, Turner 2, Bray, Clark, Jackson, Harris.