Joplin (Mo.) High School must have lost the scouting report on Emporia High senior Caydrick Bloomquist — the one that says don’t let Bloomquist get a hot shooting hand.
Bloomquist torched Joplin for 34 points Thursday night in the opening round of the Ralph Miller Classic in Chanute, leading the fifth-seeded Spartans to a 74-59 romp over the fourth-seeded Eagles.
“He was in rhythm and wasn’t trying to hurry his shot, and the kids did a good job of finding him when he was open,” EHS coach Rick Bloomquist said. “It was a relief for him to not be mugged every time he came down the floor. He didn’t see the kind of defense that he’s been seeing in the Centennial League, and that helped him out a little bit.”
Caydrick Bloomquist scored all over the court against the Eagles. The three-point specialist knocked down four shots from long range and went 6-for-8 from the free-throw line while scoring the rest of his points on a variety of pull-up jumpers and layups off assists from teammates, Bloomquist said.
“He scored in every facet,” Bloomquist said.
With their leading scorer having a field day, the Spartans put together their second solid outing in a row after switching to a motion look offensively. Emporia went into halftime ahead 37-23 and increased that lead to as many as 19 points in the second half. From there, the Spartans turned back every Joplin advance on their way to the 15-point victory. Emporia also held Joplin’s leading scorer, Matt McCreary, to just five points.
“We just keep getting better with the way we’re playing,” Bloomquist said. “The game got pretty easy, and we haven’t been in a situation to learn how to put somebody away. It was a fun thing to be involved with because we hadn’t been in that situation. Good things just happened.”
Coach Bloomquist was particularly pleased with the way his team distributed the basketball against the Eagles. Sophomore Taylor Euler, in addition to his 14 points, also dished out seven assists. Troy Pierce, Jacob Torres and Brandon Childs also chipped in nine, eight and seven points, respectively.
“We did a good job sharing the ball and finding open guys,” he said. “It’s just another step for us. I really thought we had the game under control — it never did seem like the game was out of our control.
“It was a good way to start the tournament. We played really well, and the kids are starting to mesh together really well.”
The victory moved EHS (6-4) into the championship bracket of the tournament, where the Spartans next will face eighth-seeded Goddard, which defeated No. 1-seeded Chanute, 63-38, in the late game Thursday night. The Spartans, seeking to defend their tournament title from a year ago, will meet Goddard (2-6) at 8 tonight. In the other games of the tournament, Andover Central defeated Olathe Northwest, 51-36, and Shawnee Heights beat Olathe North, 78-60.
Emporia boys 74, Joplin 59
Ralph Miller Classic
Thursday at Chanute
Emporia 17 20 17 20 — 74
Joplin 8 15 19 17 — 59
Emporia (6-4) — Bloomquist 34, Euler 14, Pierce 9, Torres 8, Bra. Childs 7, Roberson 2
Joplin (6-7) — Stokes 16, Williams 14, Menke 9, Hackett 8, McCreary 5, Taylor 3, Ha rrison 2, Britt 1.