Semifinal coverage
More:2023 Blue and Gold Tournament: Takeaways, scores from Blue Division semifinals
More:2023 Blue and Gold Tournament: Takeaways, scores from Gold Division semifinals
More:2023 Blue and Gold Tournament: The top performers from Thursday's semifinal matchups
Blue Division semifinal results
- No. 1 Nixa 45, No. 5 Fair Grove 39
- No. 2 Republic 54, No. 6 Willard 37
Gold Division semifinal results
- No. 1 Central 80, No. 4 Sparta 42
- No. 3 Glendale 68, No. 7 Branson 52
Blue Division championship game
Friday night at Great Southern Bank Arena
- 8:30 p.m. — No. 1 Nixa vs. No. 2 Republic
Gold Division championship game
Friday night at Great Southern Bank Arena
- 7 p.m. — No. 1 Central vs. No. 3 Glendale
Final Republic 54 Willard 37
Republic allowed nine points in the second half and it's headed to the Blue Division championship where it will play Nixa.
The two Blue and Gold champs from a year ago will meet. One will repeat.
4Q 1:21 Republic 50 Willard 37
4Q 3:31 Republic 48 Willard 37
The orange Tigers are pulling away.
End 3Q Republic 41 Willard 35
A desperately needed three-point play for Willard right before the third quarter buzzer. Could be in for a fun finish.
3Q 1:25 Republic 41 Willard 32
Republic's defense has tightened up and Willard isn't hitting the shots it did in the first half.
Halftime Willard 30 Republic 28
Very fun first half between the two rivals. Nahmy Kelley has 13 points and three of Willard's eight 3's.
Aslan Ebisch has 11 points and three 3's for Republic.
2Q 4:38 Willard 20 Republic 18
Willard just knocked down its sixth 3-pointer of the game.
End 1Q Republic 11 Willard 8
Aslan Ebisch has five points for Republic. Blake Daugherty has a pair of 3's for Willard.
Final Nixa 45 Fair Grove 39
Nixa is back in a Blue and Gold Tournament championship after winning a title last year. A slow-paced game advances Nixa where it will play either Republic or Willard.
4Q 0:05 Nixa 43 Fair Grove 39
Bryden Baxter layup.
4Q 0:18 Nixa 43 Fair Grove 37
Garrett Hines makes his free throws.
4Q 0:23 Nixa 41 Fair Grove 37
Bryden Baxter layup.
4Q 0:31 Nixa 41 Fair Grove 35
Keivon Flint makes a pair of free throws.
4Q 0:34 Nixa 39 Fair Grove 35
Gavin Thomason layup.
4Q 0:45 Nixa 39 Fair Grove 33
Keivon Flint splits a pair of free throws.
4Q 1:24 Nixa 38 Fair Grove 33
Devon Kemp knocks down a pair of free throws. Nixa has been playing some keepaway.
4Q 2:07 Nixa 36 Fair Grove 33
4Q 4:12 Nixa 34 Fair Grove 31
End 3Q Nixa 32 Fair Grove 28
Fair Grove knocks down a 3 at the buzzer and we have a close game heading into the fourth quarter.
3Q 2:08 Nixa 28 Fair Grove 20
There has been more scoring in this quarter than the others! Yay!
Gold Division story
More:2023 Blue and Gold Tournament: Takeaways, scores from Gold Division semifinals
Halftime Nixa 16 Fair Grove 12
No one has more than five points in a low-scoring first half.
2Q 7:18 Nixa 10 Fair Grove 10
Final Glendale 68 Branson 52
Branson gave Glendale a bit of a scare for a second in the third quarter but the Falcons rallied and are headed to the Gold Division title game to play Central.
It'll be the first SPS vs. SPS Blue and Gold championship game since 1965.
4Q 2:45 Glendale 60 Branson 50
4Q 4:50 Glendale 52 Branson 44
Amare Witham has a pair of 3's in the quarter and he's heating up. Branson's been able to respond but not at the clip the Falcons have been able to score.
End 3Q Glendale 40 Branson 36
Falcons ended the third quarter on an 11-2 run. Ta'Veaion Washington has been awesome with 17 points.
3Q 2:02 Glendale 38 Branson 36
Falcons respond with a run of their own. Getting steals and scoring in transition.
3Q 5:17 Branson 34 Glendale 29
A 6-0 run from the Pirates out of halftime.
Halftime Glendale 29 Branson 28
Cinderella isn't going anywhere. The eighth-seeded Pirates are within a point with the Falcons at halftime.
Ta'Veaion Washington has 13 points for Glendale. Jayce Culver has 13 for Branson.
2Q 5:59 Glendale 20 Branson 11
A quick run from the Falcons forces a Branson timeout.
End 1Q Glendale 13 Branson 7
Final Central 80 Sparta 42
A special semifinal performance from what appears to be a special Central Bulldogs team. They're in a championship for the first time since 1984.
End 3Q Central 64 Sparta 36
Lots of scoring in a back-and-forth fourth quarter. Trojans haven't quit but the Bulldogs appear to be on their way to their first title game since 1984.
Halftime Central 47 Sparta 16
Wow.
That's 15 points for Devin Sanford with three 3's. Tyrique Brooks has 11 points. Keion Epps scored nine.
End 1Q Central 25 Sparta 7
Keion Epps has seven points and Tyrique Brooks has six points with a pair of highlight dunks. The Bulldogs continue to look like the best team at this event.
1Q 3:04 Central 12 Sparta 4
Central is doing what it's done the entire tournament so far. Overwhelming defense. Keion Epps and Devin Sanford each have five points and a 3.
Welcome!
Semifinal day at the 2023 Blue and Gold Tournament begins at 4 p.m. with Gold Division action at Great Southern Bank Arena.
We'll be courtside throughout the night to see who will move on and play in Friday night's championship games.
The first game of the evening features Central taking on Sparta.
Blue Division semifinal schedule on Thursday
Winners bracket games in Great Southern Bank Arena
- 7 p.m. — No. 1 Nixa vs. No. 5 Fair Grove
- 8:30 p.m. — No. 2 Republic vs. No. 6 Willard
Gold Division semifinal schedule on Thursday
Winners bracket games in Great Southern Bank Arena
- 4 p.m. — No. 1 Central vs. No. 4 Sparta
- 5:30 p.m. — No. 3 Glendale vs. No. 7 Branson
Quarterfinal stories from Wednesday
More:2023 Blue and Gold Tournament: Takeaways, scores from Blue Division quarterfinals
More:2023 Blue and Gold Tournament: Takeaways, scores from Gold Division quarterfinals
More:2023 Blue and Gold Tournament: The top performers from Wednesday's quarterfinal matchups
More:Glendale's Amare Witham has the 'it factor' and looks like the city's next great prospect
More:Why the Blue and Gold brings out the heroics in Sparta star Jacob Lafferty
More:Why Nixa found it important to support Logan-Rogersville after loss of Landis Carr
Coverage from Tuesday's first round
More:The top performers from Tuesday's opening round matchups
First half:Takeaways from the 2023 Blue and Gold Tournament's first half of opening-round games
Second half:Takeaways from the 2023 Blue and Gold Tournament's second half of opening-round games
Chase Branham:Why Logan-Rogersville freshman Chase Branham has chance to be special in his coach's eyes
More galleries
Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or X at@WyattWheeler_NL. He's also the host of the weekly "Wyatt's World Podcast" on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and other podcasting platforms
