Sikeston dominates Lift for Life and advances to third consecutive Union Invitational final

UNION, Mo. – With a dominating victory on Friday night, the Sikeston Bulldogs are back in the championship game of the Union Invitational Tournament for the third straight year.

The top-seeded Bulldogs defeated fifth-seeded Lift for Life Academy 85-45 in the semifinals on Friday.

Sikeston will play second-seeded St. Francis Borgia (12-5) for the third straight year in the championship game on Saturday at 7 p.m. Borgia defeated sixth-seeded Lutheran South 75-49 in their semifinal game.

Lift for Life, which was fresh off an eye-opening victory over Class 6 power Cardinal Ritter on Thursday night, had no answer for the Bulldogs on Friday.

Sikeston (16-2) jumped out to a double-digit lead in the first quarter as they were able to beat the Hawks down the floor in transition.

Life for Life struggled all night from the field as they hit only two 3-pointers against Sikeston’s suffocating defense.

“We worked all week on our defensive positioning,” Sikeston coach Gregg Holifield said. “It’s an area I felt we needed to improve. I saw a lot of positive things defensively tonight.”

Sikeston led 23-15 after one quarter of play and continued to extend the lead in the second quarter.

Lift for Life had trimmed the lead to 34-21 on a Myles Moorehead free throw, but Sikeston went on an 8-0 run capped by two Chris Artis free throws to open up a 42-20 lead.

After a Moorehead 3-pointer, Sikeston’s P.J. Farmer drew a foul and sank both free throws to take a 44-23 lead into halftime.

“We felt good about our first half but I felt like we left some points on the table,” Holifield said. “We missed some shots that we usually make and had some turnovers that disrupted our rhythm. I wanted us to play a cleaner second half.”

Holifield’s team did just that as they out-scored the Hawks 33-13 in the third quarter to blow the game wide open.

Sikeston took a 77-36 lead into the fourth quarter where the mercy clock ran the rest of the way.

The Bulldogs forced 17 turnovers in the game, converting most of them into transition baskets.

Sikeston also hit 26 of 36 (72 percent) from the free throw line, both season highs after Lift for Life was whistled for 31 fouls in the game.

“They were very physical and they made sure we weren’t going to score easy baskets,” Holifield said. “But credit to our guys for stepping up and making their free throws. We spend a lot of time on shooting and it showed.”

Farmer led the Bulldogs with 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists in three quarters of action.

Tristan Wiggins followed up with 16 points while Lekereon McCray had 14 points, five rebounds and four steals.

Sikeston has won the Union Tournament two straight years, defeating Borgia both times – 71-68 in 2023 and 69-57 last season.

“We expect another tough battle with Borgia,” Holifield said. “We are very familiar with their program and they are familiar with ours. We’ve had some great games with them for a long time and I expect the championship to be a tough one as well.”

SIKESTON 85, LIFT FOR LIFE 45

Lift for Life 15 8 13 9 -- 45

Sikeston 23 21 33 8 -- 85

LIFT FOR LIFE (45) – Tavion Bonner 9, Dorian Rogers 8, Ted Nassah 8, Jace Kern 5, Myles Moorehead 4, O’Mariyon Grissom 4, Blake Wilson 4, Jordan Reed 3. FG 17, FT 9-15, F 31. (3-pointers: Moorehead 1, Kern 1. Fouled out: Bonner, Nassah).

SIKESTON (85) – P.J. Farmer 18, Tristan Wiggins 16, Lekereon McCray 14, Chris Artis 13, Marcus Sanders 7, Kobe Thomas 5, Jaharus Goodwin 4, Drake Williams 4, Trace Sadler 2, Malachi Davis 2. FG 27, FT 26-36, F 13. (3-pointers: Wiggins 2, Farmer 1, Thomas 1. Fouled out: none).