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Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Boys relinquish 18-point lead vs. St. George's
Reardan junior Tristo McCrea shoots and underhanded shot between the bodies of St. George juniors Oscar Zhou, left, and John Nowland during Tuesday's loser-out game at West Valley High School.
Reardan senior guard Cody Sprecher races into the key past St. George's freshman Mason Zarlingo in a loser-out District 7 game Tuesday, Feb. 15.
SPOKANE VALLEY-The seventh-seeded Reardan boys basketball team saw its season come to an end in the second round of loser-out play at the District 7 2B Tournament at West Valley against St. George's after the sixth-seeded Dragons erased an 18-point fourth quarter en route to a 69-65 overtime victory Tuesday, Feb. 15.
Reardan had previously fallen to Colfax in the second round of the winners bracket last Thursday after defeating Chewelah 58-50 Monday, Feb. 7 in the tournament's opening round. The boys needed to win three straight games to keep its season alive following the setback against the Bulldogs.
Reardan began to pull away from St. George's in the second and third quarters, building a 53-35 lead heading into the final eight minutes. The Dragons then began to slowly whittle away at the lead before tying the game 61-61 on a putback shot by Tanner Watkins with three seconds left.
The game went to overtime, where St. George's built a 68-65 lead. Reardan senior Cody Sprecher drilled a three-pointer, but the shot was waived off after Reardan was called for an illegal screen. One SGS free throw sealed the game.
"We did exactly what we said we needed to in the game plan. We took their big man out, defended their guards well and built a lead," Reardan head coach Brian Graham said. "But (St. George's) benched their big man and went to a smaller lineup and got after our guards. Then it became a guard-heavy game, and that favored them."
Reardan received sterling performances from Sprecher, freshman Jakari Singleton and junior Logan Flaa. Singleton scored 22 points, Sprecher had 21 and Flaa added 17 as the trio carried the majority of Reardan's scoring load.
"Jakari and Logan stepped up their offensive presence," Graham said.
The Dragons advanced to another loser-out game against Northwest Christian Thursday, Feb. 17.
Reardan's season ended, and the team loses its leading scorer to graduation in Sprecher. However, the team returns most other players on a team that had three freshmen and one sophomore playing major minutes.
"We'll have seniors in Logan (Flaa), Kaden (Fourbear) and Tristo (McCrea) that we'll be able to lean on heavily and use their experience going forward," Graham said. "We've got to have a big summer and get these guys playing a lot together."
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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