Boys B-Ball: Slow start ends Tiger season

Eli Rockett 23 points, six rebounds (photo by Jim Lindquist)

Second-seeded Farmington stumbled out of the gate and the poor start eventually brought an end to its otherwise successful season in a 77-68 loss to third-seed Rochester John Marshall in Saturday night's Section 1AAAA semifinal at Tiger Gym.

The Tigers shot the ball as poorly as they have all season and seemed to play tentatively as the Rockets burst to a 19-5 lead over the game's first eight minutes.

"I wouldn't call it playing scared," Tiger coach Shane Wyandt said, "but we seemed nervous from the start and made some uncharacteristic, poor decisions. The effort was there, but we just played tight."

The Tigers battled back to cut the deficit to 29-22 on a pair of free throws by Wyatt Ferm but the Rockets extended their lead back to double digits by halftime at 36-26.

The shooting numbers told the story as the Tigers made but six of 23 tries (26 percent) from the field in the first period. They stayed as close as they did by converting 13 of 18 free throw opportunities. 

Mac Bassett and Eli Rockett sparked a mini-run early in the second half but each time it looked like the Tigers were getting back in the game, the visitors had an answer. The Rockets drained five three-pointers in the first six minutes of the half to keep the home team at bay.

"We kept battling but they (JM) kept coming up with the big shot when they needed it," Wyandt said. "The bottom line is that you can't spot a good team like John Marshall a big lead like that and expect to win."

The Rocket lead swelled to 17 points before the Tigers began to chip away at it. The visitors sewed up their trip to the finals at the foul line where they made 10 of 12 tries down the stretch. Ferm's three-pointer in the closing seconds finally reduced the final deficit below double figures.

Wyatt Ferm 16 points, 4 assists

The Tigers played their second straight game without junior guard Zach Speikers (torn ACL) and his 19.1 points per game.

"Zach gives us a different dimension," Wyandt said, "and we missed him being out there. That being said, when we beat them (JM) at their place, we had good scoring balance and tonight we didn't have that."

Senior Rockett put together a solid final game for the Tigers, scoring 23 points and pulling down a team-high six rebounds. Ferm finished with 16 points, four assists and three steals.

Senior Nick Varner chipped in with eight points, six rebounds and three assists. Jordan DeCroock scored eight points and Bassett added six in their final game in a Tiger uniform.
  
Farmington finished the 2013-14 season with an overall record of 19-8, the second highest win total in school history.

"We didn't meet all of our goals, but it was still a good season" Wyandt said. "We wanted to be playing Lakeville North next week in that section championship game."