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| Eli Rockett 16 points, 4 assists (photo by Jim Lindquist) |
Johnny Dittman and Mac Bassett followed Darren Beenken's game-opening basket with back-to-back three-pointers and Eli Rockett followed with a bucket inside to close out a 10-0 run.
From there it was a downhill run for the Tigers who won for the second time in three outings.
"Hastings is young and I told our guys before the game that this was a game in which we should be favored," coach Shane Wyandt said. "Sometimes it's not so easy to play in those circumstances, but we stepped up and played like we should.
"I thought our passing and patience on the offensive end was key and our defensive pressure created a lot of problems for them (Hastings). We had some possessions against their zone where the ball never hit the floor, just several passes and an open shot."
The Tigers pushed their lead to 18-4 midway through the first half and were sitting on a 38-20 cushion at halftime. Dittman and Beenken led the first half assault with 11 and eight points respectively.
The Raiders scored the first points of the second half but Beenken and Rockett followed with a little highlight reel material of their own to up the lead to 48-22.
Rockett started the run with a pair of free throws. Beenken followed with three straight baskets and then lobbed a perfect pass to Rockett who slammed it home to the delight of a frenzied student cheering section.
"We're playing the style of basketball our guys want to play," Wyandt said, "but it's not always an easy style to play. Tonight our decision making was really good."
By the time it was over, every player on the bench saw floor time and 11 of them broke into the scoring column.
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| Johnny Dittman 13 points, 4 assists (photo by Jim Lindquist) |
Farmington hit a blistering 27 of 38 two-point shots (71 percent), thanks largely to its passing and easy points off turnovers. Overall, the winners shot 59 percent from the floor.
The Tigers also controlled the glass against the outsized Raiders with Nick Varner topping the charts with eight rebounds. Varner also led in assists with six; Dittman and Rockett each had four. Beenken led in steals with four.
Wyandt said his team wouldn't get a lot of time to dwell on its two-game winning streak as next week brings a pair of significant challenges.
"Tuesday we go to Spring Lake Park and Friday we are at Lakeville North," he said. "Both of them are rated in their classes so we'll get a better picture of where we are after that.
