Tartan Boys Basketball Defeats Stillwater to Advance to Section Finals

Despite the final score, the section semifinal game between the and the Stillwater Ponies was a lot closer than it would appear. Although Tartan led the entire game, they did not pull away until late in the second half.

Tartan got out to an early lead with efficient shooting and forcing turnovers on defense. However, Stillwater was able to fight back in the game by breaking the Tartan press and getting good looks inside the paint. At the end of the first half Tartan led 27-22.

The second half continued as the first ended with Tartan mainting the lead, but with Stillwater still hanging around. Tartan was able to force some critical turnovers and Xavier Hall  scored a couple of crucial baskets to put the Titans into a comfortable lead with a little over five minutes left in the game.

The overall key to Tartan's success, especially late in the game, was aggressive defense and patience on offense. They were able to control the clock by passing the ball around the Stillwater defense and not forcing ill-advised shots or drives to the hoop. This was especially evident as Stillwater was forced to foul Tartan, and send them to the free throw line, with five minutes still left in the game. Even when Tartan had the man advantage on the fast break, they were able to show their patience by pulling back to take time off of the clock. 

Free throws helped build the lead for Tartan and they won by a final score of 51-33 to advance to the Section finals this Friday night vs Cretin-Derham Hall. The gametime is 7 p.m. at East Ridge High School.