C5D1: Sikeston runs wild, drops North County 113-64

FARMINGTON, Mo. – The North County Raiders felt they could play the up-tempo style Sikeston prefers in Wednesday’s Class 5 District 1 quarterfinal game.

North County, seeded seventh in the tournament, certainly had some success offensively, but No. 2 seeded Sikeston responded with its most prolific output this season, outscoring the Raiders 113-64 at Farmington High School.

Sikeston (24-3) advances to the semifinals where they will play third-seeded Cape Central on Friday at 7 p.m.

The Tigers defeated sixth-seeded Festus 48-39 in their quarterfinal opener.

The Bulldogs opened the game on fire, forcing turnovers and racing out to an 11-0 lead, forcing North County coach Hayden Sprenkel to burn an early timeout at the 6:22 mark.

“I was pleased from the start,” Sikeston coach Gregg Holifield said. “I thought we came out with great energy and it all started in warm-ups. I thought we came out with a focus and an intensity that you have to have every game, but especially in the district tournament.”

The Raiders (8-19) settled down and heated up from beyond the arc to keep things close as they narrowed the gap to 13-9 on a third consecutive 3-pointer.

Sikeston went on a 7-0 run on two layups and a 3-pointer by junior guard Kobe Thomas to lead 20-9.

The Bulldogs were never seriously challenged again the rest of the way.

Sikeston took a 30-15 lead on a layup by Chris Artis, although North County was able to score six straight points to close the quarter on a conventional 3-point play by Will Weible and a 3-pointer by Noah McMahon to trim the lead to 30-21.

The second quarter was a sight to behold for Sikeston’s offense as the Bulldogs rolled up a season-high 44 points to take a 74-38 lead into halftime.

“The pace was definitely to our liking and that’s the way we prefer to play,” Holifield said. “When we get up and pressure the ball it really contributes to our offensive production and I think you saw that tonight.”

The majority of the offense was a result of the Bulldogs’ pressure defense as Sikeston forced 10 turnovers in the second quarter – Sikeston forced 24 turnovers in the game – leading to countless easy transition baskets.

The frantic pace continued in the third quarter as Sikeston out-scored North County 26-18.

With the team leading 84-44, Holifield pulled his starters for the remainder of the game with 5:13 left in the third.

Sikeston carried an eye-opening 100-56 lead at the end of the third quarter, matching the team’s season-high of 100 they scored in the season-opener against Fox.

The Bulldogs tacked on 13 more points in the fourth quarter to reach the final margin.

Sikeston was led by P.J. Farmer’s 26 points – he scored 17 points in the second quarter – to go with his four rebounds, six assists and six steals.

Lekereon McCray scored 19 points with five rebounds, five assists and four steals.

Thomas came off the bench to score 16 points.

Artis scored 10 points with four assists and three steals and Tristan Wiggins added eight points with six rebounds and five assists.

Sikeston hit 11 of 26 (42 percent) from 3-point range and a sizzling 48 of 72 (67 percent) from the field.

North County was led by Will Weible’s 16 points.

Now Sikeston will play Cape Central (18-7), a team they’ve defeated twice this season – 92-50 on Dec. 13 and 63-44 on Feb. 14.

“Those first two games mean nothing at this point,” Holifield said. “It’s a brand new season and we know we will have a very difficult game with them.”

SIKESTON 113, NORTH COUNTY 64

North County 21 17 18 8 -- 64

Sikeston 30 44 26 13 -- 113

NORTH COUNTY (64) – Will Weible 16, Kyle Straughan 9, Gavin Barbee 8, Preston Aubuchon 8, Blayne Kennon 8, Cole Mullins 6, Noah McMahon 5, Jaxon Scherffius 4. FG 24, FT 6-10, F 8. (3-pointers: Weible 3, Straughan 3, Mullins 2, McMahon 1, Aubuchon 1. Fouled out: none).

SIKESTON (113) – P.J. Farmer 26, Lekereon McCray 19, Kobe Thomas 16, Chris Artis 10, Tristan Wiggins 8, Drake Williams 8, Marcus Sanders 7, Jaharus Goodwin 6, Christian Gibson 5, Trace Sadler 4, Malachi Davis 4. FG 48, FT 6-7, F 12. (3-pointers: Farmer 4, Thomas 2, Wiggins 2, Gibson 1, Williams 1, Sanders 1. Fouled out: none).