Tigers take two wins over homecoming

The Encampment Tigers were down by 8 points at the end of the 3rd quarter on Friday against the Southeast Cyclones. Then, they let out a huge roar.

In the 4th quarter Kaben Pickett and Gunner Henrie both made some key defensive plays to get to the free throw line to win the game against the Southeast Cyclones.

Both the Tigers and Cyclones gave it all they got where both teams either took the lead back and forth or tail from behind. In the end, the Encampment found a way to slow down Southeast in the final minutes of the 4th quarter thriller.

“I just knew I had to make two baskets just to win the game,” Pickett said. “My team was counting on me so I had to do what I had to do.”

Pickett said Southeast was no stranger to him. He knew Southeast was going to come out swinging after facing the Cyclones early in the season and his team was ready for battle.

“We knew that we were as equally good as them because we lost to them early in the season and we were motivated ever since,” Pickett said. “ We know this is our homecoming and we have to get it done”.

In the 1st quarter, both teams started slow and got an early 2-2 tie. The Tigers and the Cyclones battle back and forth. Both teams turned over the ball and the game was tied 15-15 at the end of the 1st quarter.

In the 2nd quarter, both Encampment and Southeast turned it into an eight-minute tug-a-war where leads had quickly changed fast. The Tigers tried to take the lead in the final seconds but missed the shot. The score was 24-23 at the half.

Going into the 3rd quarter the Tigers jump into the lead at 27-24 with a big three-pointer. However, the Cyclones answered back and tied it at 27-27. Southeast would pick up one point at the free throw line but Encampment got the ball back and scored two points to make it 29-28 in favor of the Tigers. With under six minutes, both teams went back and forth on the lead but at the end of the 4th quarter Southeast took a 43-35 lead.

The 4th quarter would be a wild roller coaster ride for the Tiger and Cyclones. Both teams played strong physical defense for a full eight minutes. Encampment would break down their eight-point deficit with 2:17 on the clock, the Tigers would score on a key three-point shot that would reduce the deficit to 50-49 in favor of Southeast.

Then with 1:37 on the clock, things got interesting when the Tigers got the ball back and took a 51-49 lead with a big two-point shot. Then with 45 seconds on the clock, the Tigers were in a good position to take the game away when the Encampment defense made a big steal but did not score.

With 25.5 seconds on the clock, the Tigers threw a foul giving the ball back to Southeast. The Cyclones took the ball out with 22.6 seconds on the clock and got fouled. Southeast failed to capitalize on both free throws which gave another opportunity for Encampment to win the game.

Then with 0.9 seconds Encampment got fouled and went to the free throw line where Tigers Pickett made all two shots to take the lead at 53-52. On the rebound, Southeast threw another foul on Encampment with half a second before the buzzard hit. Encampments Henrie made one of two shots and the game was over. The Tigers won 54-52 in a heated battle.

“It felt great after playing a long game,” Henrie said. “It was just amazing and all the emotions that I was going through. All I could think about was when we were trailing the game that we had to slow the game down and speed it up when we got the lead. It was such a great effort by our team.”

The Southeast Cyclones gave it their all and dominated most of the game. They played physically on defense but in the end, they could not put away the Tigers when they had the chance to.

“It was having the fortitude and mental capacity of having the game in control,” said Cyclones head coach Craig Leithead. “ We kept the game within reach and at the end we had a couple of turnovers that were costly and missed free throws. I give credit to Encampment and their coach. They improved the last time we played them.”

After a Friday night come-from-behind performance, the Encampment Tigers gave everyone a reason why you don’t lose on your homecoming, and rightfully so. The Tigers gave no mercy to the Rock River Longhorns in a 74-16 rout.

Encampment simply dominated from start to finish to finish only allowing the Longhorns just 16 points. In the 3rd and 4th quarter, Rock River was held scoreless and there was nothing they could do to stop the hungry Tigers on their special day. Despite the fact Encampment played a rough and tough physical game against the Southeast Cyclones on Friday night, The Tigers showed there was no slowing down for them.

The Encampment Tigers will be hosted by the Saratoga Panthers (11-1, 3-1) at 4 p.m. on February 2 in Saratoga. They will then face the Upton Bobcats at 11 a.m. on February 3 at Natrona County High School.