4th-Q run seals FMS boys win vs. Robertsville

Lynn Allen might have celebrated Eighth-Grade Night with a non-conference home win against Robertsville. But the Farragut Middle School boys basketball head coach couldn’t hide his frustration.

“We don’t get ourselves into position where we play hard all the time,” Allen said after the Admirals had to come from behind to outlast the Rams, 37-32, Thursday, Jan. 4, in Farragut Middle School’s Bobby J. Henry Gymnasium.

Though leading 16-10 at halftime, the Admirals found themselves behind 25-23 heading into the final six minutes of the contest.

But things finally kicked into gear and the Admirals opened the fourth quarter on a 14-0 run, building a 37-25 lead when Brooks Johnston knocked down a shot with 2 minutes, 44 seconds to play in the contest.

Brooks, who scored 10 points against the Rams, had four in the fourth quarter, including a bucket to give Farragut a 27-25 lead early in the frame.

“We were ahead, and then we stopped playing team basketball,” Robertsville head coach John Spratling said.

Farragut had two other players also post double figures in scoring. Braylen Gibbs led the way with 13 points, scoring seven over the final eight minutes to key the Admirals’ late surge. Kyle Clark had 11, as he buried three 3-pointers.

Lamiere Porter led the Rams in scoring with 10 points.

Farragut, which trailed 10-8 after the opening frame, kept the Rams off the scoreboard in the second stanza — and dribbled out two minutes of game time just before the break.

“We were really struggling offensively ...,” Allen said about choosing to run off time late in the half, wanting to assure his team’s six-point halftime advantage.