Saginaw Arthur Hill’s run to the Class A state championship left Clarkston among those felled by the Lumberjacks as the Wolves lost 65-58 in a state quarterfinal contest played at Saginaw Valley State University on March 21.
The Wolves did not go quietly as Clarkston trailed 57-55 with just under two minutes remaining in the game. The Lumberjacks? Darquavis Tucker showed why he was named All-State as he helped seal the game with eight straight free throws in the fourth quarter.
The Arthur Hill junior finished with 32 points on 10/18 shooting with one 3-pointer, went 11/11 from the free throw line, grabbed 11 rebounds, blocked four shots as well as making four steals.
‘He was the difference. When the game got tight he wanted the ball, got the ball and made the free throws. That’s what great players do. He was a man amongst boys out there,? Clarkston Coach Dan Fife said.
While Tucker was dominating all phases of the game, Clarkston did a good job of holding his teammates in check. The rest of the Lumberjack’s shot a lackluster 36 percent from the field for the game.
‘We were out of that game about three times and still came back,? Fife said.
Clarkston trailed 13-10 at then end of the first quarter and watched Arthur hill build the lead to 18-10 before going on a 16-6 run to close the second quarter. The Wolves led 26-24 at halftime.
The Wolves hot shooting did not continue into the third quarter as Clarkston shot 0/6 to start the second half while Arthur Hill went on a 11-0 run to make the score 35-26 in favor of the Lumberjacks.
‘Defensively we started doing some things differently. Their shooters were getting open, they were setting excellent screens, so we jump switched everything and started getting in the passing lanes and started playing our type of game. Not to let them come out and score was huge because they had all the momentum going into halftime,? Arthur Hill Coach Gregg McMath said.
Clarkston found their groove midway through the third and slowly clawed their way back into the game, tying the score at 49-49 on a 3-pointer by senior Joe Moran and again a possession later at 50-50 on a free throw by junior Bren Bergquist, who scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half to go with eight rebounds in the game. Junior Dan Owens? deadeye outside shot played a significant role in Clarkston’s comeback bid as he hit three 3-pointers in the second half, scoring nine of his team high 15 points.
‘They (Clarkston) are so well coached I knew they were going to make a run. It was up to us to fight off the run,? McMath said.
After the game was tied at 50 with 3:35 remaining in the fourth quarter, Arthur Hill responded with a 7-0 run. While Clarkston did come within two late, Tucker’s free throw shooting down the stretch was impeccable and sealed the win.
For Fife this is the seventh time his team’s season has ended at the quarterfinals. He has compiled a record of 440-130 over 24 years of coaching at BY NOAH PURCELL
Clarkston News Sports Reporter
Saginaw Arthur Hill’s run to the Class A state championship left Clarkston among those felled by the Lumberjacks as the Wolves lost 65-58 in a state quarterfinal contest played at Saginaw Valley State University on March 21.
The Wolves did not go quietly as Clarkston trailed 57-55 with just under two minutes remaining in the game. The Lumberjacks? Darquavis Tucker showed why he was named All-State as he helped seal the game with eight straight free throws in the fourth quarter.
The Arthur Hill junior finished with 32 points on 10/18 shooting with one 3-pointer, went 11/11 from the free throw line, grabbed 11 rebounds, blocked four shots as well as making four steals.
‘He was the difference. When the game got tight he wanted the ball, got the ball and made the free throws. That’s what great players do. He was a man amongst boys out there,? Clarkston Coach Dan Fife said.
While Tucker was dominating all phases of the game, Clarkston did a good job of holding his teammates in check. The rest of the Lumberjack’s shot a lackluster 36 percent from the field for the game.
‘We were out of that game about three times and still came back,? Fife said.
Clarkston trailed 13-10 at then end of the first quarter and watched Arthur hill build the lead to 18-10 before going on a 16-6 run to close the second quarter. The Wolves led 26-24 at halftime.
The Wolves hot shooting did not continue into the third quarter as Clarkston shot 0/6 to start the second half while Arthur Hill went on a 11-0 run to make the score 35-26 in favor of the Lumberjacks.
‘Defensively we started doing some things differently. Their shooters were getting open, they were setting excellent screens, so we jump switched everything and started getting in the passing lanes and started playing our type of game. Not to let them come out and score was huge because they had all the momentum going into halftime,? Arthur Hill Coach Gregg McMath said.
Clarkston found their groove midway through the third and slowly clawed their way back into the game, tying the score at 49-49 on a 3-pointer by senior Joe Moran and again a possession later at 50-50 on a free throw by junior Bren Bergquist, who scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half to go with eight rebounds in the game. Junior Dan Owens? deadeye outside shot played a significant role in Clarkston’s comeback bid as he hit three 3-pointers in the second half, scoring nine of his team high 15 points.
‘They (Clarkston) are so well coached I knew they were going to make a run. It was up to us to fight off the run,? McMath said.
After the game was tied at 50 with 3:35 remaining in the fourth quarter, Arthur Hill responded with a 7-0 run. While Clarkston did come within two late, Tucker’s free throw shooting down the stretch was impeccable and sealed the win.
For Fife this is the seventh time his team’s season has ended at the quarterfinals. He has compiled a record of 440-130 over 24 years of coaching at Clarkston, but has never advanced past the quarterfinals. The Wolves were 21-4 this season, won their fourth straight regional title and finished second in the OAA I.
‘I have a lot of respect for coach Fife. He’s been doing this for years. He’s a great coach. It’s tough when you get here (quarterfinals) seven years and you can’t make it through. He probably will next year, I just hope it’s not against us,? McMath said.
While upset at his team’s ouster, Fife kept the loss in perspective.
‘It took me 12 or 13 years to win a regional. We won our first one in ?94 and I started coaching in ?83. When we come up here we’re playing great teams with great players. We’re one of the last eight. I can’t fault my kids, they played their hearts out,? Fife said.
‘I don’t want to define my program on wins or regional wins or quarterfinal wins or ever getting to the state finals. Do I want to get to the state finals? Heck yes, it’s always been a dream of mine. But I want to define our program on the quality of kids that leave us.?
In terms of program defining players Fife is especially sad to see four-year varsity players Moran and John Kast graduate this year.
‘Four years ago we might of been 11-12 and I thought I was losing my program and I thought I was losing my kids and I knew I had to find somebody willing to work hard and put time in. I’ve had (Kast and Moran) for four years and they’ve won four straight regionals and what a legacy they’ve left for our program through their work ethic,? Fife said.
Kast and Moran’s senior years took divergent paths. Moran shouldered the Wolves scoring load as Kast struggled with a knee injury which led to mid-season surgery. Despite undergoing the knife, Kast worked his way back into playing shape for the playoffs.
‘Joe shot over 30,000 shots this year. Kast has played with a half a leg all year. We lost him for basically the entire year playing with half a leg, to his credit he hung in there and played. When people talk about toughness, toughness is playing when you have half your knee cap cut off and you’re still trying to play to help your team. That’s what they represent to our program and not everybody wants to do that or will do that,? Fife said.
Though it offers little consolation to Fife, Arthur Hill bested Okemos 85-84 on March 25 in double overtime to take the state title.