Losing fourth quarter 17-9, Ads’ season again ends in Clinton, 52-50
CLINTON — Clinton recovered from a rough third quarter to end Farragut’s boys basketball season — just as it did one year ago in the Region 2-AAA quarterfinals at CHS — with a blocked shot just before the final buzzer sealing the deal.
Though the Admirals led 41-35 entering the fourth quarter it was Clinton, the No. 2 seed from District 3-AAA, outscoring the Admirals 17-9 in the fourth quarter for a 52-50 region quarterfinal win at CHS Saturday, Feb. 27. Farragut, the No. 3 seed from District 4-AAA, ends its season at 12-13. Clinton improved to 17-5.
In the finals seconds down two points, Farragut junior guard Carter Mayfield drove to the basket and quickly passed to an open Jake Bishop in the paint.
But the senior’s shot was blocked by CHS’s Jeremiah Blauvelt as time expired.
Junior guards Mayfield, 16 points, and Ryan Neal, 12, led the Admirals offense. Sophomore post Dallas Carbaugh scored 10 and grabbed 11 rebounds.
Though FHS outrebounded Clinton 28-18, the Dragons scored 16 points off turnovers and hit 17-of-21 free throws.
“I thought we played hard, followed the gameplan for the most part. We just didn’t make enough plays,” FHS head coach Jon Higgins said. “I have no complaints with how hard and tough we played.
“I really love our seniors and the work that they have put in over the past four years.”
Jackson Garner led the Dragons offense with 18 points.
“I think it was every bit the game I thought it was going to be,” CHS head coach Chris Lockard said about a tight game throughout. Clinton led 15-13 after one quarter, but the Admirals jumped ahead 25-23 by halftime.
Though making those big three-pointers late, Clinton — in a reversal of fortune — only made three treys the entire night versus Farragut’s nine. What kept CHS in the game, though, was converting on 17-of-21 free throws while scoring more two-point baskets. The Dragons, meanwhile, only allowed Farragut seven free throws. Though the Admirals outrebounded Clinton 28-18 — with a 10-1 edge on offensive rebounds — CHS forced 12 turnovers for the night, scoring 16 points off those turnovers. “Unfortunately, we didn’t shoot the ball well — at all. We had a lot of clean looks, but we hit some big baskets late. I thought it was sort of a lot of a chess match for us, since they’re so much bigger than us in a lot of areas, so I was having to manipulate our defense a little bit more than we typically do. “We didn’t score in transition like we normally do, but we made some adjustments and started getting a lot of good looks,” the coach added. “We got Rishon in the paint and he was scoring. …”
