Part basketball game, part wrestling match, part circus. That’s how Harrisburg coach Kyle Fisher described Friday night’s raucous and combative basketball game between his Bulldogs and rival Moberly, which was beset with five technical fouls and a player ejection. Harrisburg won the physical matchup 70-56 in front of a boisterous home crowd on Courtwarming night.

Harrisburg and Moberly are always quite a rivalry,” Fisher said after the game. “I’m not sure we’ve had one quite like that one. Both teams played really hard. Both teams played physical. I think both teams crossed the line a few too many times tonight.”

Harrisburg trailed Class 4 Moberly 17-11 at the end of the first quarter and 31-27 after a first half that saw technical fouls for both teams and a play that nearly came to blows.

But it was the third quarter where Harrisburg was able to create some separation. Down four entering the second half, the Bulldogs turned things around quickly, taking the lead in the first 25 seconds during an 11-0 run that lasted nearly three and a half minutes.

Fisher said the key to his team’s victory was his players’ ability to regain composure in the second half.

“We came out and got a couple of turnovers. We forced them into some tough shots. And they weren’t able to rebound those tough shots,” said the Harrisburg coach. “That allowed us to get out into transition and not have to go against their half-court defense.”

 Eight of those 11 points came from the dominant play of Harrisburg’ Braden Wyatt. The senior would post 10 of his game-high 33 points in the third quarter.

Moberly inched back with five quick points to cut the lead to two. That’s when the game entered another period of tumult as Bulldogs’ senior Austin Darwent was ejected from the game with his second technical foul of the night. The Spartans seized the momentum with five more points to regain the lead 41-40 with 1:52 on the clock.

Harrisburg once again surged, scoring the final 10 points of the third period to go up 50-41 with one quarter remaining.

The break between quarters didn’t slow down the Bullodgs, who made it 18 consecutive points with another eight straight to start the fourth quarter and put the Harrisburg squarely in control. With 5:42 left to play, the Bulldogs held a 58-41 advantage.

While down by double digits, the Spartans refused to roll over. They scored 15 points in the last five minutes of the fourth quarter, led by senior Derieus Wallace, who posted five of his team-high 21 points in the final period.

Coach Fisher said that trying to contain Wallace was a part of his team’s game plan. “He’s very athletic and very good. We just wanted to make things as tough as possible for him. He’s a kid that you’re not going to shut down completely. We knew he was going to take some tough shots and probably make some tough shots. He made a couple in the first half where I thought we had a hand in his face. He made one in front of their bench in the second half that I’m not sure how he even got it off. In the second half, I thought we made him more of a jump shooter, and that was big for us.”

Harrisburg kept its foot on the gas in the fourth quarter, outscoring Moberly 20-15 to claim the 14-point Courtwarming victory.

“Anytime you get a win on courtwarming, it’s big. And anytime you beat Moberly, it’s a good win,” Fisher said. “They’ve got athletes, they’ve got scorers, they’ve got shooting. It is a good win to propel us into our tournament next week.”

Highlighting Harrisburg’s high-flying offense was Wyatt's dominant play under the basket on both ends of the court. The senior’s game-high 33 points were just one part of his feisty inside game.

“He’s the centerpiece of the game plan every time out,” explained Fisher. “Credit to the rest of the guys for getting him the basketball. He did a great job of finishing. He’s a tough matchup, and he’s long and athletic and really quick.

“We say he’s kind of wiry strong. We’ve got a lot of long, wiry athletes who can run, jump and play fast. He plays stronger than he looks. When we can get him the ball as much as we were able to tonight, we’re going to have some success offensively.”

Another long, wiry player is Trace Combs, who posted 17 points on the night. The sophomore finished perfectly from the line, converting all seven free-throw attempts. Ten of his points came in the second half.

“In the second half, I thought he was much more aggressive. And did a tremendous job of rebounding the basketball on the defensive end,” Fisher said. “The other thing I thought was that he handled the basketball really well. He was able to throw over their press a little bit and lead to some easy buckets for us.”

Brayden Ott finished with nine points with a 3-pointer and a 4-for-4 performance from the line. The senior was recognized before the game, having surpassed 1,000 career points in the Bulldogs’ win over Marceline three days prior.

Junior Hayven Samuels chipped in with six points all from the floor, followed by junior Carter Bremmer and freshman Bender Wardrip with two each, and Darwent with one.

Moberly drops to 2-12 on the season. Wallace’s 21 points led two players in double figures for the Spartans. Senior Tremayne Watts posted 10 points and made five of six free-throw tries. Freshman Cameron Doubrava finished with eight points.

The Spartans converted nine of 17 free-throw attempts. Harrisburg finished 23-for-29 from the line.

Friday’s win was the second over the Spartans for Harrisburg this season. The Bulldogs defeated Moberly 70-53 a week prior, on January 13, in the Centralia Tournament.

Harrisburg, now 12-4 overall, has now won the last three meetings between the two teams, dating back to December 22, 2021.

Fisher contends that despite the aggression Friday night, there is no bad blood between the two teams, but suggested it has become more of a spirited rivalry.

“It’s a little bit of a rivalry. They’ve got kids who played really hard, and we’ve got kids who played really hard. Nobody wants to give an inch. We have a bunch of kids who don’t want to back down and don’t want to give anything. Sometimes you do some things that aren’t very smart. We did some things, early on, especially, that weren’t very smart. That’s what allowed them to get up and get that double-digit lead. I thought in the second half, the tables turned a little bit. We were able to be the smarter team.”

Harrisburg now heads into its own tournament on a three-game win streak. Seeded fourth, the Bulldogs will face fifth-seeded Centralia for a round-one matchup at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday in the middle school gym. The game will be the latest in a continued rivalry between Fisher and Panthers coach Scott Humphrey. The two dominated Class 2 mid-Missouri basketball in the early 2000s. Humphrey was a star player for the outstanding Salisbury Panthers, while Fisher led his Bulldogs to a state championship.

The two have continued to compete for the better part of the last decade, now as head coaches of their respective teams.

Tuesday’s game will be the first meeting between the teams this year. Harrisburg defeated Centralia by double digits in all three matchups last season.

“They’re a typical Centralia team. They’re big and physical,” Fisher said. “They’re going to grind you down. We’re going to have to make sure that we rebound the basketball. That’s the big thing. Coach Humphrey does a great job with those guys.”

Tuesday’s winner will move on to the semifinals to face the winner between top-seeded Fulton and eighth-seeded Fayette.