Tigercats prep for district title game

The prediction made by head coach Mike Jones that districts would be filled with physical and fast-paced basketball games proved true during the Tigercats’ first round district games. The Tigercats took a win on Thursday night over Rosalia to move the Tigercats into a game with the number one league ranked team, Garfield-Palouse.

After trailing for the majority of the game, the Tigercats snuck past the Rosalia Spartans to earn a 50-44 win during the first round game. The Tigercats hosted the game in LaCrosse, giving the team home court advantage but proving to be a tough match up for the Tigercats.

After hitting the first two shot attempts, the Tigercats had an early lead in the first quarter. The Spartans took over the scoring drive at the end of the first quarter and left the teams tied at 11 points when the first buzzer sounded.

During the fast-paced match, both teams accumulated fouls but struggled to convert the aggressiveness to points. The Spartans scored nine points in the second quarter and held the Tigercats to five points, giving Rosalia the halftime advantage at 20-16.

At halftime, Jones worried about the team playing to their potential as the Tigercats played solid defense, but were playing too tight and letting the game slowly get away from them. During the halftime chat, Jones emphasized the need to control rebounding and move on offense, even without the ball.

“I felt like we were playing to not lose instead of aggressively attacking the basket and being aggressive on defense,” Jones said. “We were letting Rosalia dictate the game.”

The second half brought about a physical brawl between the two teams, filled with fouls and turnovers for both sides. When the Spartans went up by double digits, Jones sent the Tigercats out in full court press to help close the gap.

Momentum swung in favor of the Tigercats in the final two minutes of the game following a three-point play by Jed Zimmer. After closing the gap, Justin Wargo hit a three to put the Tigercats up by one point.

“Fortunately, in the last minute and a half, the ball bounced our way,” Jones explained. “Next thing you know, we went on a bit of a run.”

Zimmer stepped up in the second half to score the majority of the Tigercats’ points and ended the night with 21 points. Wargo contributed 10 points and Darcy Stamper, who struggled early in the game with having shots fall, sank nine points.

Joey Guske, Matt Stubbs and Austin Summers all put up three points for the Tigercats. Alec Fleming sank a free throw for one point.

The win moved the Tigercats into a game against Gar-Pal on Saturday night, and the Tigercats were able to keep the momentum going and get the win over GP, 48-44.

“It was an intense atmosphere, and a very physical game just like Thursday night,” Jones said. “The kids knew it was going to be a difficult game.”

At halftime, the Tigercats had a four-point lead over Gar-Pal, 23-19. Stamper and Zimmer both scored six points for the team in the first half.

The second half remained close, and with only a minute left in the game, the Tigercats found the game tied. With under a minute left, Stamper put up a shot and missed, but Zimmer rebounded for the put-back points.

The game concluded with Stamper leading the offensive drive with 14 points. Zimmer had 12 and Wargo put up eight points. Summers and Guske each had five points, and Riley Roberts and Fleming had two apiece.

The win over Gar-Pal moves the Tigercats into the district championship game against Pomeroy on Friday at 7 p.m. in Colfax. The Tigercats split league games against the Pirates and Jones expects the game to be a physical match until the final buzzer sounds.

Jones expects the game to be back and forth, with the keys to the game coming from rebounding and taking care of the ball.

“We held them right around 40 both times,” Jones said about league play against Pomeroy. “If we do that again, we have a good chance at winning. We need to be more aware in some areas, and cover our weaknesses.”

With a win over Pomeroy, the Tigercats will play the number two team from District 7. A loss puts the Tigercats into a loser-out game against the winner of the losing side of the district’s bracket.