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The Dupo Tigers Varsity Boys Basketball team came into the Affton Holiday Tournament feeling good about the competition they would face and their chances of getting some wins despite receiving the 8th seed. The Tigers played well at times but the wins never materialized as they lost the Seventh Place game of the tourney to the St Pius Lancers 55-53.
Both teams struggled to find a rhythm in the first quarter, but the Tigers managed to take an early 4-0 lead. But ball handling errors and a plethora of missed shots gave the Lancers all the help they needed to get back into the game and take the lead 9-6 after the first quarter. Dupo Tigers Coach Matt Carpenter said, “The other coaches and I talked before the game today and earlier this season about implementing a run and gun type of offense. It didn’t work so well for the first three quarters so we slowed things down in the fourth quarter and that got us back in the game.”
The Tigers’ Caleb Tatum opened the second quarter with a three-pointer to tie the game at 9-9, but the Tigers still had trouble taking care of the ball and the Lancers capitalized scoring five straight points to expand their lead to 14-9. The Tigers went to a full court press with little effect but the Lancers shooting went cold and they were more than willing to foul putting the Tigers in the bonus with six minutes left in the second quarter. But the Tigers never capitalized at the free throw line. Coach Carpenter said, “In a two point game and you’re nine of twenty three from the free throw line, that explains it all. Free throws were the one thing I wasn’t worried about coming in to the game but it bit us today.” While the Tigers failed to take advantage at the free throw line the Lancers began to buckle against the Tigers’ press and Dupo was converting those turnovers into points. But as the pattern has been for the better part of the season, just as the Tigers began to get back in the game turnovers, bad passes and poor defense kept them from catching the Lancers as St Pius outscored the Tigers 24-18 in the second quarter to extend their halftime lead to nine points at 33-24.
The Tigers began to shuffle their lineup in the third quarter going to a quicker, faster lineup on the floor as guards Spencer George and Alex Pollard and freshman forward Jimmie Dickerson saw more game time. Coach Carpenter said, “I know that when Alex and Spencer are in the game they’re going to give us one hundred percent. Jimmie is a freshman who’s working his way into the varsity rotation here in the second half of the season.” The change began to work defensively resulting in steals and turnovers and the Tigers drew to within six points trailing 44-38 after three quarters.
The Tigers continued to get back in the game in the fourth quarter cutting the Lancers lead to four at 44-40. The game was delayed for a time at the 5:31 mark of the fourth quarter as officials ejected two St Pius fans who were a little too vocal in their displeasure with the officiating. The disruption seemed to give the Tigers a spark as they tied the game at 46-46 and then took their first lead since early in the first quarter 47-46 with 4:19 left in the fourth quarter. The Tigers increased that lead to 49-46 until the Lancers tied it at 49-49 on a three-pointer with 2:40 left in the game. With less than two minutes to go in the game the Tigers took to fouling the Lancers and they converted taking a two-point lead 51-49 with 1:45 left in the game. The Tigers drew to within one 51-50 after Caleb Tatum hit on the back end of two free throws. After another Tiger foul the Lancers converted at the line taking a 53-50 lead with 1:20 left in the game. The Tigers came right back feeding the ball inside to Kaleb Anderson who scored to cut the Lancers lead to one at 53-52. The Tigers got possession back and Alex Pollard was fouled as he hit the front end of a one and one to tie the game at 53-53 with forty seconds left in the game. The Lancers played patient on offense and got a bucket in the lane against the Tiger defense to take the lead 55-53. Dupo took a timeout with 7.4 seconds left in the game and a chance to tie or win. After an inbound pass to Kaleb Anderson he drove the lane stumbling and throwing up a desparation shot as he fell, missed the basket giving the Lancers the win 55-53.
Caleb Tatum led all Tigers with eleven points and was named to the all tournament team. Coach Carpenter said of Tatum, “Tatum had a great game against Priory on Monday and he was in double digits in scoring and rebounds in all three games. He’s not afraid to shoot the ball, he’s confident shooting the three. With his size and athletic ability he can be a force whenever he wants to be and he is very deserving of being on the all tournament team.” The Tigers had a number of players in the scoring column on Wednesday. Kaleb Anderson with nine points, Alex Pollard eight points, Matt Ragsdale, Kevin Steinhauer and Sean Pierce with six points each, Jimmie Dickerson four points and Spencer George three points. Coach Carpenter said, “With the exception of one player I think everybody that played for us today scored. They did a good job of taking their shots and we told them we need more scoring. If they’re open from fifteen feet in we want them to shoot.”
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