Admirals tame Panthers
Last Tuesday night, Dec. 9, Farragut High School’s boys’ basketball team fell way behind in the first half on the road at Oak Ridge High School. The Admirals fought back ferociously but fell short in the end.
Again on the road last Friday night, this time in Lenoir City, FHS quickly made it clear it wouldn’t repeat what it had done against the Wildcats.
The Admirals jumped on the Panthers from the start and played a nearly flawless first half, leading 44-23 at halftime. LCHS picked it up a bit in the second half, but Farragut still won comfortably, 76-58.
“We played more like a team tonight,” FHS coach JP Burris said. “We were really good in the first half. We shared the ball, we got out and ran in transition.”
The Admirals’ first quarter was any coach’s dream. High-flying offense and stingy defense led to a 15-point lead after one, 24-9. FHS scored the game’s first nine-points – all on three-pointers – and later used a 7-0 run to score 11 of the period’s final 13.
Farragut continued to pour it on in the second quarter, outscoring LC 14-5 over the first three minutes to lead 38-14. They managed only six the rest of the way but still had a commanding 21-point halftime lead.
“We, as a staff, knew they were gonna come out and play better in the second half,” Burris said.
The Panthers’ offense did come more to life in the third quarter. LC slowly chipped away at the Admirals’ lead, hitting from long range four times and cutting the halftime gap to 13 at the end of three, 57-44.
The teams traded baskets to open the fourth, and FHS led 59-46 with 6:53 to go. If Lenoir City still had any comeback hopes, the next three minutes squashed them. In that time, the Admirals outscored the Panthers 8-3, and led 67-49 with under four minutes left.
Burris substituted widely late in the game.
“When you’re a good team, you’re gonna put a game away when you have a chance,” Burris said. “We didn’t necessarily do that.”
Four Admirals scored in double figures, three of them – Parker Lane, Dan Lanning, and Reid Vining – with 17.
Matthew Dickens added
13. Hunter Click and Benjamin Barr each got 15 for LCHS.
As usual, Vining’s presence on the boards was every bit as important as his contribution on offense, as the senior post battled constantly for rebounds.
“We came off a really good practice so we were just trying to get the job done and give it everything we got,” said Vining. “This defense was on points tonight. I take more pride in defense than anything.”
