| Fort Towson 49 Porter 44 |
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| Fort Towson boys basketball |
| Friday, 05 March 2010 00:00 |
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By Brian Moore NORMAN — The Fort Towson Tigers took the first of three final steps toward being crowned state champions by beating Porter 49-44 on Thursday night. The Tigers didn’t play their best as they didn’t take the lead until the fourth quarter, but senior forward Phillip Clark kept them afloat until his teammates found their shooting rhythm. Clark led Fort Towson by scoring 22 points and grabbing 10 rebounds— nearly half their points on the evening. “I’m proud of them. We started slow but found a way to win. It’s like I told them earlier- we’re not playing great but they (the players) have a will to win. That’s what gets us through it,” said Fort Towson coach Michael Clay. Tiger star shooter Zack Samaha was held to just 2 points before the fourth quarter, In the fourth, he scored 10 points including a game-tying 3-pointer that propelled Fort Towson to victory. Sophomore Jimmy Smith has returned to the Tigers and provided some invaluable minutes and has also taken the pressure off of Clark. “Smith gives us another scorer so they can’t double Phillip anymore,” Coach Clay said. Shane Acker had 6 points while Cade Clay had a couple. Friday night’s game Fort Towson plays Garber at 9 p.m. on Friday night in Norman. Should they win, they will play in the championship game on Saturday. Garber entered the state tournament as the favorite to win. Garber has a 6-foot-7 center and a couple guards that make good decisions. On defense, they play a 2-3 zone with the big center in the middle. To beat them, an opponent will have to play good defense, box-out and hit the boards and be able to shoot over their zone. Acker and Clark are tacticians at boxing out and establishing position in the paint. Samaha is an outstanding shooter. Clay and Smith can also shoot the ball well. Coach Clay and the Tigers pride themselves on playing tough defense as well, so Fort Towson has exactly what it would take to beat Garber. Let’s hope they can. Good Luck Tigers! |
