Sikeston ends Dexter's season

Jerry Jarrell photo Dexter's Eric Windham (No. 5) is fouled by Sikeston's Eli Jackson while pulling down a rebound during Wednesday's 59-39 win by the Bulldogs at the Class 4, District 1 tournament in Perryville.

PERRYVILLE - There are reasons why the Sikeston Bulldogs are the state's third-ranked team in Class 4. The main one is they're good.

Hampered by injuries and a flu-type bug working its way through the team, the Sikeston Bulldogs still had the horses to defeat the Dexter Bearcats, 59-39, and advance to the Class 4, District 1 championship game Wednesday at the Perry Park Center in Perryville.

Juqualin Wiggins scored 16 points and Michael Porter, even under the weather a little, dropped in 13 along with teammate Dominic Fondon to help the Bulldogs improve to 22-3 on the season.

For the Bearcats, the season ended much like it started way back on Nov. 27, 2007. Dexter brought a desire and determination to the court, but poor shooting and inconsistent play hampered the team all season. The loss ended a disappointing campaign for the Bearcats, who finished with a 7-16 record.

"We didn't shot the ball very well tonight (Wednesday)," first-year Dexter coach Rob Nichols said. "We missed a lot of easy ones. Of course a lot of it was their (Sikeston's) defense and their size and athleticism. So give the credit to them.

"I feel like we played a little bit intimidated at times," Nichols added. "We could have made a few more of those shots, but we just didn't and that happens. That's a good team and who ever wins this district is going to go a long way."

Dexter started strong and battled Sikeston on even term until a basket at the buzzer ending the first quarter left the Bulldogs on top, 16-15. The Bulldogs stepped up the defensive pressure in the second and limited the Bearcats to just six points to take a 28-21 led into half time.

"We were ready to play," Nichols said. "We were prepared. I didn't feel like we could press them very effectively because they are so quick off the dribble. The keys were going to be rebounding and we had to shot the ball well. We had to play great and they had to play less than there A game and that didn't happen."

Sikeston opened the second half on a 10-4 run to increase the lead to 38-25, then finished the period on a 9-4 run to lead by 18 with just eight minutes to play. Lane and Porter each had six points in the third, while Wiggins scored four.

Junior Drew Kelley (14 points) and sophomore Jon Bowman each netted a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter for the Bearcats, but it wasn't enough to keep pace with the Bulldogs, who outscored Dexter 12-10 in the frame to lock up the 20-point win.

Dexter finished with three 3-pointers on the night, after connecting for nine in its first-round win over Ste. Genevieve on Monday.

Sikeston is scheduled to play the winner of No. 2 Notre Dame and No. 3 Fredericktown for the district title Friday at 7 o'clock.

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The No. 1 seeded Dexter Lady Bearcats will be in action tonight as they take on No. 4 Perryville in the first of two Class 4, District 1 semifinal games at 6 p m. at the Perry Park Center in Perryville.

The Lady Bearcats (20-4) are state-ranked at No. 8, but need two more wins to move on in the state tournament. Dexter defeated Perryville at home earlier this season, 52-36, in a very physical game.