FARMINGTON -- Rogers Heritage extended their defense making scoring difficult for Farmington senior guard Matt Wilson, who still put in 17 during the fourth quarter in a Dec. 16 road loss.
The 56-51 setback was just Farmington's second loss of the season and their second game against a 7A West school in a week. The Cardinals (8-2) haven't yet played a 5A West team, but that opportunity could come during the Alma tournament Dec. 28-30.
Rogers Heritage 56, Farmington 51
Farmington^5^16^9^21^—^51
Rogers Heritage^9^18^12^17^—^56
Farmington (9-2): Matt Wilson 36, Skyler Montez 6, Xavier Staten 3, Peyton Maxwell 2, Cade Fenton 2, Jacob Gray 2.
Rogers Heritage (6-3): Seth Stanley 21, Dawson Peek 8, Ty Olsen 8, Bryce Breedlove 8, Ryan Giesen 4, Seth Cooper 4, Nick Lowrey 3.
Junior Varsity: Rogers Heritage 33, Farmington 21.
Wilson had 19 points through the first three quarters at Rogers Heritage and he earned every one. Heritage coach Tom Olsen had his team prepared to pay special attention to the Farmington star and not only were they able to make Wilson work for his points, the War Eagles didn't allow any of his teammates to get going. No other Cardinal scored in double figures and Wilson was the only scorer in the first quarter.
Heritage's 6-feet-5 forward Seth Stanley led the War Eagles with 21 points. He used his size to advantage, making 8 of 10 shots, including a 3-pointer in the first quarter that ended with Heritage ahead, 9-5. Stanley added 6 more points in the second, coupled with a trio of 3-pointers by Dawson Peek. Farmington's offense was more balanced in the second with Skyler Montez scoring twice, but they could only trade baskets against Heritage.
Playing on the wing, Wilson threw the ball to Peyton Maxwell in the corner. He hit Montez for a layup. Stanley made a turnaround jumper in the post for Heritage. Montez snapped a free throw line jumper, but Stanley powered in an offensive rebound. Xavier Staten's free throw kept Farmington with, 19-13, near the five minute mark, but Heritage went on a 5-2 over the next 2:30. The War Eagles led, 24-15, on Stanley's off-balance foul line jump shot.
Farmington cut into the lead over the last 2:18 of the half. Wilson scored on an in-bounds play, then took a steal all the way to the basket. He rebounded his own miss and got off another shot that was tipped in by Staten. Bryce Breedlove put Heritage back up by eight, at 27-19, with a 3-pointer. The War Eagles in-bounded under their own goal with 15.8 seconds to go but Maxwell's steal set up Wilson for a drive. He weaved in between two War Eagle guards and tipped in his own miss with two seconds remaining to make the halftime score, 27-21.
Heritage's lead stayed at six for much of the third quarter. Wilson was greeted with a hard foul during a 1-on-1 confrontation with a defender in the open court. He missed both free thows and later a jumper allowing Stanley to push Heritage back to an 8-point advantage with another bucket inside. Nick Lowrey's free throw made the difference, nine points, at 39-30, at the end of the third quarter.
Heritage built a 44-32 lead on Peek's 3-point play, but Wilson got his offense going, scoring 17 points in the final 4:54. He followed a 3-pointer from the left corner with a run-out score enabled by Staten's blocked shot. Peek and Stanley combined to score the next three points for Heritage opening up a 10-point War Eagle lead, at 47-37. The margin was enough for the War Eagles to withstand 12 points by Wilson over the last 2:13 and they won, 56-51.
Sports on 12/28/2016