The Bulldogs in Tuesday's first half didn't resemble the Bulldogs until they outscored Kirksville 34-17 in the second half to win 55-38 at home.
The Mexico boys (4-3, 2-0 NCMC) defeated their North Central Missouri Conference and district foe Kirksville (4-1, 0-1 NCMC) after the Tigers were ranked seventh in the first Class 4 state polls released a day before. Mexico received votes but didn't crack the top 10. Kirksville tied Mexico at halftime on a Cole Kelly 3-pointer but then PJ Perkins had a bigger 14-point second half for the Bulldogs to finish with 19 points, eight rebounds and three dunks.
"At halftime, in the locker room with coach Pap (head coach Darren Pappas) and coach Bosco (coach Dion Nunnelly), we all talked about how this is not how we usually play," Perkins said. "In the second half, we were going to turn it up and show them how Mexico basketball really does play."
Perkins said Mexico usually thrives by pushing the ball in transition and were too slow in pushing in the first half. The 6-foot-3 senior used his greater speed to blow past the 6-foot-2 Kelly and 6-foot-1 Kyle White, dunking the ball three times in transition and setting a new career-high for slams, according to Perkins.
Head coach Darren Pappas said Mexico had been working on a "continuity-type" offense for about two days before the game but understandably hadn't put it effectively into practice yet. Still, Pappas liked how Mexico "attacked the paint" with the Bulldogs drawing three 3-point plays in the first half and four more in the second half.
"We put pressure on the glass and on the rim by attacking the paint," Pappas said. "I thought that was the difference. We were doing a better job of attacking the glass and not just settling for threes."
Pappas said Mexico did better closing out on Kirksville shooters, allowing four by the Tigers in the game. Kelly led Kirksville with nine points and nine rebounds, and White followed with eight points. Charlie Fisher had 11 points for Mexico, and Jaydon Eldridge finished with nine points.
Mexico still has conference foe Hannibal (1-5, 0-2 NCMC) before a break, and Pappas wants to continue conference success after winning the team's first two conference games. Hannibal defeated Quincy Notre Dame 58-55 on Saturday so Pappas said the Bulldogs must be aware the Pirates are playing better recently.
"I don't feel like we're totally there yet, but I like the way we're headed," Pappas said. "It was a big one tonight with a conference and district foe as well so we needed to make sure we definitely got this one. "
Look for the full story and results from Thursday's next conference game at Hannibal in the Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024, edition of the Mexico Ledger.
