WARDSVILLE, Mo. - There wasn't much Blair Oaks could do to keep Cody McKinney from making shots Friday night, but the Falcons' defense locked down on everyone else.
McKinney scored a game-high 32 points, making 10-of-13 from the field, including 9-of-11 from beyond the arc. But the rest of the Sullivan Eagles shot 7-of-28 as Blair Oaks won 59-52.
"I thought defensively we really adjusted well," Blair Oaks coach Ryan Fick said. "Cody McKinney is a great shooter. I don't think our guys realized going in how good of a shooter he was. I still don't know if we ever figured him out, but we made things difficult for him."
Sullivan made three 3-pointers in the first three minutes of the game, but the Blair Oaks defense settled in after that.
The Eagles only managed five points in the next 9:30 of the game while the Falcons scored 21 to lead 28-14 late in the first half.
"We had a lot of guys do some things tonight that won't show up on the stat sheet," Fick said. "Those guys, we make a big deal about those things in practice. Those things are important for the team success."
McKinney kept the Eagles in it, adding a 3-pointer at the first-half buzzer to get within 30-23.
He added two more threes in the first couple minutes of the third quarter, pulling the Eagles within three with 5:45 on the clock.
"We came out at half and were a little sloppy with the ball," Fick said. "We weathered the storm and had some guys make some big plays down the stretch."
The Falcons took a 43-40 lead into the fourth quarter, but another Sullivan 3-pointer tied it up on the first possession of the final quarter.
Then the defense came back around for Blair Oaks, only allowing three points in the next six minutes.
The Falcons scored six straight points after the 3-pointer.
Dru Rackers got a steal and Webb Villmer rolled in a layup before Eric Northweather assisted Rackers for an inside basket.
"Webb Villmer came in and did a great job when Ethan (Luebbering) got in foul trouble," Fick said. "He understands his role. Took care of the basketball."
A Villmer steal then led to another Rackers bucket. Rackers scored all six of his points in a four-minute span.
"I give Dru a lot of credit," Fick said. "He came back in and really responded for the rest of the game. What may go unnoticed is the fact he really played solid defense tonight. Got his hands in the passing lane a couple times, contested a couple times and rebounded on the defensive end. He took a step in the right direction tonight."
Northweather and Tim Fick each scored inside for a 53-46 lead. Then the Falcons continued their hot streak at the free throw line, making 6-of-7 in the final minute. Blair Oaks finished 17-of-20 from the line.
Fick made all 11 of his free throw attempts on his way to a team-high 22 points.
"They did a great job being on his hip pretty much everywhere he went, and he didn't force tonight," Ryan Fick said. 'He didn't force shots. He put the ball on the floor and got to the free throw line. He showed some maturity tonight in that regard."
Northweather made 6-of-7 from the field and all four at the line for 16 points.
"We knew Sullivan, despite the fact we had a descent size advantage in the paint, we knew they would gameplan well against Eric," Fick said. "They did a good job at bumping on him and they typically had a guy in front and a guy behind him and made it difficult for him, but he did a good job at setting screens and slipping to the basket on a few occasions. Our guards found him right at the rim and he finished."
Blair Oaks (4-1) is back at home Tuesday to host district foe Father Tolton.
The Falcons held on to win Friday's JV game 55-50.
David Dell and Corban Bonnett each scored 12 for Blair Oaks (3-0).