Sikeston 'avalanche' takes out Timberland to capture 10th St. Dominic title

O’FALLON, Mo. – For the 10th time in 15 years, the Sikeston Bulldogs reign supreme at the St. Dominic Christmas Tournament.

The top-seeded Bulldogs faced a stiff test from second-seeded Timberland and found themselves trailing at the half, but Sikeston erupted with a huge third quarter to pull away and claim the championship plaque with an 88-70 victory over the Wolves at St. Dominic High School.

“I couldn’t be happier with our effort tonight,” Sikeston coach Gregg Holifield said. “We preach maximum effort and keeping fresh bodies in the game and the players are buying into that. This is a difficult tournament and Timberland is one of the top teams in the area. We knew they would be ready to play and we had to match that energy.”

Timberland came into the game undefeated and ranked among the top large schools in the St. Louis area, and in the first half, they showed why.

The Wolves (9-1) showed relentlessness on the boards from 6-foot-7 standout Mason Carroll while slick ball-handling point guard Jacob Aydelott broke down Sikeston’s man-to-man pressure defense with penetration and deep 3-pointers.

However, Sikeston senior all-state guard P.J. Farmer, who battled foul trouble through the first half, took control of the game in the second half – he scored 18 of his team-high 23 points in the second half to go with his eight rebounds and 10 assists.

“P.J. played a terrific game and he really led us in the second half,” Holifield said. “He’s such a good player and understands situations very well. I was really proud of his effort.”

Farmer was hardly alone as Sikeston demonstrated its superior depth with production up and down the lineup.

Senior teammate Trace Sadler scored 14 points with eight rebounds and two assists while protecting the paint with his 7-foot length.

“I thought Trace played really well,” Holifield said. “He was a factor defensively and he hit the boards. He was more aggressive tonight and I was pleased to see that.”

The Bulldogs (10-1) got major production from its bench as junior guard Marquel Murray had 14 points with 10 rebounds and three assists while junior guard Kobe Thomas scored 13 with four assists.

“I think that their depth really caught up to us,” Timberland coach Kyle Deweese said, who is now in his 17th year with the Wolves. “[Holifield] does such a good job of running guys in and staying fresh. We came out in the second half a little flat and they went on a run and it kind of deflated us a little bit.”

Timberland controlled most of the first half as they led 18-17 after the first quarter and opened up a 31-24 lead after a 3-pointer by Aydelott with 2:45 left in the half.

Sikeston rallied to trim the lead to 33-32 on an inside basket by Sadler with just three seconds left, but Aydelott, who hit a miraculous 60-foot halftime buzzer-beating 3-pointer in Friday’s semifinal win over Wentzville Holt, did it again on Saturday – this time from 40 feet out to take a 36-32 lead into halftime.

Aydelott’s shot seemed to demoralize Holt on Friday.

It did not have that same effect against Sikeston on Saturday.

“That was a great shot and we didn’t even discuss it at halftime,” Holifield said. “We talked about what we needed to do as a team to make up the deficit and it all started with intensity on the defensive end.”

The Bulldogs came out in the third quarter with perhaps their most impressive basketball of the season as they out-scored Timberland 35-15 in the period.

They did it with relentless pressure defense – forcing turnovers and getting out into transition – and attacking the offensive glass.

The Bulldogs started with a quick 6-0 run on an offensive putback by Sadler, an offensive putback by Lekereon McCray followed by a Tristan Wiggins steal and assist to McCray for a transition basket, forcing Deweese to burn a timeout.

“We did a pretty good job of stopping their transition buckets in the first half, but once they get that going they’re pretty hard to stop and it just kind of hit us like an avalanche,” Deweese said. “We like to run so the tempo wasn’t something we necessarily didn’t like. But I think we got a little tired. They just keep coming at you.”

The Bulldogs continued to roll as they steadily pulled away in the third quarter, opening up a 50-39 lead after a Wiggins layup to cap a 18-3 run.

Sikeston eventually led by as much as 20 with a 67-47 lead after back-to-back baskets by Farmer and Murray, but the Wolves were able to score a pair of baskets to cut the deficit to 67-51 by the end of the third.

Timberland fought desperately to come back, but Farmer scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to help keep the Wolves at bay.

Two McCray free throws gave Sikeston its biggest lead of the night at 81-59 with 3:50 left.

Timberland never got closer than the final margin the rest of the way.

“That’s a great team and we just kind of ran out of gas – once it gets to that point it’s hard to come back,” Deweese said.

Sikeston also got production from McCray (8 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals), Chris Artis (6 points, 4 rebounds) and Wiggins (2 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals) who all drew the tough defensive assignments of guarding Aydelott.

The senior trio helped the Bulldogs force 17 turnovers by the Wolves.

“Those three seniors were invaluable defensively,” Holifield said. “There’s a reason I have them guarding the other team’s best players. They are great defensive guys and they played their hearts out.”

Junior Jaharus Goodwin came off the bench to score five points with seven rebounds and two steals.

Farmer, Wiggins and Artis were all named to the all-tournament team. Aydelott (25 points) and Carroll (23 points) were also named to the all-tournament team.

Timberland has lost all four of its matchups with the Bulldogs since Sikeston joined the St. Dominic Tournament in 2010.

This is Sikeston’s 10th St. Dominic championship, the most in the tournament’s history. Timberland has never won the tournament.

“This team reminds me of a lot of their teams they’ve had,” Deweese said of the Bulldogs. “They do a great job of running [Holifield’s] stuff. They don’t fall off when they go to their bench, which is so impressive to be that deep. And that really wears on you. Contributions from across the board and that’s what makes them hard to guard. They have so many guys that can hurt you at any time.”

__SIKESTON 88, TIMBERLAND 70__

Timberland 18 18 15 19 -- 70

Sikeston 17 15 35 21 -- 88

TIMBERLAND (70) – Jacob Aydelott 25, Mason Carroll 23, Gavin Kimberlin 8, Miles Roby 6, Austin Humphrey 3, Braden Schroepfer 3, James Aydelott 2. FG 29, FT 7-16, F 10. (3-pointers: Aydelott 4, Humphrey 1. Fouled out: none).

SIKESTON (88) – P.J. Farmer 23, Trace Sadler 14, Marquel Murray 14, Kobe Thomas 13, Lekereon McCray 8, Chris Artis 6, Jaharus Goodwin 5, Marcus Sanders 3, Tristan Wiggins 2. FG 37, FT 9-13, F 18. (3-pointers: Thomas 3, Farmer 1, Sanders 1. Fouled out: none).