Knights vs. Dragons for tournament title
By MATT KING
Daily Journal Sports Writer
Daily Journal Sports Writer
Dec 31, 2008 - 10:46:05 CST
PARK HILLS — The Farmington boys basketball team avenged a crushing season-ending loss from last season, and reached the finals of the Central Christmas Tournament for the sixth consecutive year on Tuesday night.
The third-seeded Knights often executed with precision at both ends of the floor, and maximized their team depth for a convincing 73-46 semifinal win over rival North County before a capacity crowd in Park Hills.
Lance Miller scored a game-high 15 points with seven rebounds for the Knights, who committed only five turnovers while posting their fifth straight victory. Derek Franklin recorded five assists off the bench and matched Taylor Denman with 11 points each.
Farmington (7-2) will meet De Soto tonight at 7:30 p.m. for the title, while North County (6-5) battles Hillsboro at 4:30 p.m. for third place.
Derek Emily gave the Raiders their only lead with a three off the opening tip, but Denman promptly answered with one of his own, and the Knights would never look back.
Two perimeter steals yielded transition layups for Bryan Krause and Nick Baker during an opening quarter that saw the Knights crash the boards for several extra shots. A fourth-chance basket by Miller made the score 15-6.
Jared Clippard followed a missed free throw early in the second period, and the margin ballooned to 33-14 when Franklin completed a sequence of solid passes with a three-pointer.
The majority of field-goal attempts for North County were attempted away from the basket. Jordan Thompson found the range before halftime with a pair of fading jumpers, but the Raiders trailed 39-20 when Andy Summers connected from the elbow at the buzzer.
Farmington received points from seven different bench players during the second half, and achieved its largest advantage of 67-38 on a Landon Barks layup with 5:10 remaining.
Thompson scored 14 points for the Raiders, who downed defending champion South Iron on Monday to reach the semifinals as the No. 7 seed. Emily finished with nine points and Tanner Beers added eight.
North County 8 12 10 16 - 46
Farmington 18 21 18 16 - 73
SCORING:
North County - Thompson 14, Emily 9, Beers 8, Martinez 5, Parker 4, Holland 2, Caldwell 2, Neubrand 2. 3-point FG - Beers 2, Thompson, Martinez, Emily.
Farmington - Miller 15, Denman 11, Franklin 11, Baker 8, Clippard 6, Krause 4, Detring 4, Schnurbusch 4, Thompson 4, Summers 2, Barks 2, Rhodes 2. 3-point FG - Denman, Franklin.
De Soto 45, Hillsboro 42
PARK HILLS — De Soto suffered its lone setback of the basketball season against neighboring Hillsboro on December 12. The Dragons successfully returned the favor at a neutral site on Tuesday night.
Senior forward John Bruemmer delivered a superb effort with 17 points and 14 rebounds, and De Soto dumped the top-seeded and unbeaten Hawks, 45-42 in the first semifinal played at Central.
The Dragons overcame 16 turnovers with a commanding 31-16 margin in total rebounds, and will seek their first championship victory since 2003 tonight against Farmington.
Both offenses thrived under a deliberate pace during the first quarter, combining to make 12-of-15 shots from the field over the first 6:30. Hillsboro (8-1) enjoyed a 15-9 lead when Kevin Kramer powered in a reverse layup.
But with freshman standout Jared White on the bench with two early fouls, senior guard Adam Jones stepped up with consecutive triples on his way to 12 points and five assists for De Soto (9-1).
John Krodinger continued the momentum with a putback after Bruemmer reeled in a high entry pass for a basket, as De Soto extended a solid 12-0 run into the second quarter. However, two jumpers from Zack Winchester brought the Hawks within 28-25 at the half.
Hillsboro trailed 42-34 when Bruemmer scored on another lob early in the fourth, but mounted a sudden comeback down the stretch. Winchester slashed through the lane with 1:39 left to make it 43-42.
A nervous exchange of six turnovers ensued before Jones converted two insurance free throws for De Soto with 1.9 seconds remaining. Winchester nearly forced overtime when his desperation heave from midcourt drew iron.
Winchester paced Hillsboro with 13 points and eight boards, while Lance Kiggans added nine points. The Hawks finished 6-of-13 overall from the line.
De Soto 15 13 10 7 - 45
Hillsboro 15 10 7 10 - 42
SCORING:
De Soto - Bruemmer 17, Jones 12, Krodinger 6, White 6, Sapper 3, O’Day 1. 3-point FG - Jones 2.
Hillsboro - Winchester 13, Kiggans 9, Kramer 8, Huskey 5, Ludwig 4, Foster 3. 3-point FG - Kiggans, Winchester.
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The third-seeded Knights often executed with precision at both ends of the floor, and maximized their team depth for a convincing 73-46 semifinal win over rival North County before a capacity crowd in Park Hills.
Lance Miller scored a game-high 15 points with seven rebounds for the Knights, who committed only five turnovers while posting their fifth straight victory. Derek Franklin recorded five assists off the bench and matched Taylor Denman with 11 points each.
Farmington (7-2) will meet De Soto tonight at 7:30 p.m. for the title, while North County (6-5) battles Hillsboro at 4:30 p.m. for third place.
Derek Emily gave the Raiders their only lead with a three off the opening tip, but Denman promptly answered with one of his own, and the Knights would never look back.
Two perimeter steals yielded transition layups for Bryan Krause and Nick Baker during an opening quarter that saw the Knights crash the boards for several extra shots. A fourth-chance basket by Miller made the score 15-6.
Jared Clippard followed a missed free throw early in the second period, and the margin ballooned to 33-14 when Franklin completed a sequence of solid passes with a three-pointer.
The majority of field-goal attempts for North County were attempted away from the basket. Jordan Thompson found the range before halftime with a pair of fading jumpers, but the Raiders trailed 39-20 when Andy Summers connected from the elbow at the buzzer.
Farmington received points from seven different bench players during the second half, and achieved its largest advantage of 67-38 on a Landon Barks layup with 5:10 remaining.
Thompson scored 14 points for the Raiders, who downed defending champion South Iron on Monday to reach the semifinals as the No. 7 seed. Emily finished with nine points and Tanner Beers added eight.
North County 8 12 10 16 - 46
Farmington 18 21 18 16 - 73
SCORING:
North County - Thompson 14, Emily 9, Beers 8, Martinez 5, Parker 4, Holland 2, Caldwell 2, Neubrand 2. 3-point FG - Beers 2, Thompson, Martinez, Emily.
Farmington - Miller 15, Denman 11, Franklin 11, Baker 8, Clippard 6, Krause 4, Detring 4, Schnurbusch 4, Thompson 4, Summers 2, Barks 2, Rhodes 2. 3-point FG - Denman, Franklin.
De Soto 45, Hillsboro 42
PARK HILLS — De Soto suffered its lone setback of the basketball season against neighboring Hillsboro on December 12. The Dragons successfully returned the favor at a neutral site on Tuesday night.
Senior forward John Bruemmer delivered a superb effort with 17 points and 14 rebounds, and De Soto dumped the top-seeded and unbeaten Hawks, 45-42 in the first semifinal played at Central.
The Dragons overcame 16 turnovers with a commanding 31-16 margin in total rebounds, and will seek their first championship victory since 2003 tonight against Farmington.
Both offenses thrived under a deliberate pace during the first quarter, combining to make 12-of-15 shots from the field over the first 6:30. Hillsboro (8-1) enjoyed a 15-9 lead when Kevin Kramer powered in a reverse layup.
But with freshman standout Jared White on the bench with two early fouls, senior guard Adam Jones stepped up with consecutive triples on his way to 12 points and five assists for De Soto (9-1).
John Krodinger continued the momentum with a putback after Bruemmer reeled in a high entry pass for a basket, as De Soto extended a solid 12-0 run into the second quarter. However, two jumpers from Zack Winchester brought the Hawks within 28-25 at the half.
Hillsboro trailed 42-34 when Bruemmer scored on another lob early in the fourth, but mounted a sudden comeback down the stretch. Winchester slashed through the lane with 1:39 left to make it 43-42.
A nervous exchange of six turnovers ensued before Jones converted two insurance free throws for De Soto with 1.9 seconds remaining. Winchester nearly forced overtime when his desperation heave from midcourt drew iron.
Winchester paced Hillsboro with 13 points and eight boards, while Lance Kiggans added nine points. The Hawks finished 6-of-13 overall from the line.
De Soto 15 13 10 7 - 45
Hillsboro 15 10 7 10 - 42
SCORING:
De Soto - Bruemmer 17, Jones 12, Krodinger 6, White 6, Sapper 3, O’Day 1. 3-point FG - Jones 2.
Hillsboro - Winchester 13, Kiggans 9, Kramer 8, Huskey 5, Ludwig 4, Foster 3. 3-point FG - Kiggans, Winchester.