Boys BB: Tigers open Missota schedule in style

Darren Beenken 5 three-pointers vs. Northfield (photo by Jim Lindquist)

Farmington used an early three-point shooting barrage to set the stage for a convincing 75-54 win over Northfield in their Missota Conference opener Tuesday night in Northfield.

The Tigers made nine of their first 10 shots, including their first seven, to build a comfortable 23-10 lead and were never seriously challenged.

Darren Beenken canned four-straight three-pointers in the early blitz in which Zach Speikers and Alex Chadwick also hit from downtown.

"That is by far our most complete game of the season," Tiger coach Shane Wyandt said. "We knew before the start of the season that we had eight or nine guys who could  be major conributors and tonight we needed all of them."

That need arose out of first half foul trouble that sent four Tigers to the bench with three fouls. Farmington committed a whopping 14 personals before intermission.

Despite the foul problems the visitors built a 44-31 advantage on the back of red-hot shooting (16 of 28 from the field) and a big rebounding edge.

The pace slowed a little in the second half but the Tigers continued to shoot the ball well and this time it was the visitors who found their way to the charity stripe where they drained 10 of 13 attempts.

Farmington led by as many as 23 points in the second half and Wyandt was able to substitute liberally over the final six minutes.

"Mac (Bassett) was playing through illness and we had the foul trouble," Wyandt said, "but guys stepped up and there was no letdown when we had to sit people down...We were much more patient tonight offensively and we obviously shot the ball well from the perimeter."

The Tigers finished the night making eight of 12 three-point tries, their best perfromacne from behind the arc all season.

"I'll take those kind of numbers any night," Wyandt said.

Nick Varner 10 points, eight-rebounds (photo by Jim Lindquist)

Beenken scored 14 points in the first five minutes and finished with a season-high 26, including five triples, to lead Farmington scorers. Speikers followed with 16 and five assists while Nick Varner put together a solid night off the bench with 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Eli Rockett added nine points and six boards.

Farmington's superior depth was illustrated by the fact that starters Bassett, the team's leading scorer, and Johnny Dittman combined for just two points and their team won by 21. Both were plagued by foul trouble though Dittman did finish with a team-high seven assists.

"Our depth can be a real strength for us as we get more into the conference schedule," Wyandt said.

The league season continues Friday night when Farmington gets back on the bus and heads to Red Wing to face the Wingers who are ranked among the top ten Class 3A teams in Minnesota.