Girls basketball: Shakopee hands Tigers first loss

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Ninth-ranked Farmington got beat at its own game Friday night.

The previously-unbeaten Tigers played their usual suffocating defense, but Shakopee’s was even better. The Sabers, playing in front of an enthusiastic home crowd, allowed just 12 points in the second half and forced 21 turnovers as they improved to 3-0 in the Missota Conference with a 41-34 win.

“It was a great high school game. Good crowd, lots of energy,” Farmington coach Jason Berg said. “It was also one of the most physical games I have been around.”

The Tigers led 20-12 with six minutes left in the first half, but didn’t score again until Jordan Bridges’ buzzer-beater made it 22-22 at the break. The offensive dry spell continued continued over the first 10 minutes of the second half as the Sabers moved ahead 28-24 with 7:30 to go.

The Tigers pulled within 32-30 with 3:30 left, but couldn’t get any closer. They finished 4 of 12 from the field in the second half after going 10 of 17 in the first half.

“We did a real nice job of defending. We lost our composure a little in the second half on offense and started to force some passes — resulting in the turnovers,” Berg said. “They are a very good defensive team, and we did a nice job of moving the ball in the first half and being patient.”

Bridges went 6 of 9 from the field and finished with a team-high 13 points. Elena Koch and Taylor Meyer each added eight points and four boards.

Jamie Kenealy had four points and four assists.

The Tigers are back in action tomorrow night at Northfield. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.

Farmington 56.

Chanhassen 50

The Tigers trailed 48-44 last Tuesday night at Chanhassen, but rallied for a six-point win despite not making a field goal over the final five minutes of the game.

Four free throws by Bridges and two by Koch tied the score at 50-50, then two free throws apiece from Kenealy, Meyer and Steele sealed the team’s 11th straight victory.

The Tigers shot just 36 percent from the field, but made a season-high 22 of 37 shots from the free-throw line.

Bridges tallied a double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds, and Meyer added 14 points and nine boards as the Tigers posted a 46-28 edge on the glass.

Isis Alexander added nine points and Kenealy and Koch each scored six. Steele had a solid all-around game, scoring five points, grabbing six rebounds, dishing out three assists and grabbing six steals.

Tags: girls basketball, sports, farmington, tigers, prep