The TL Hanna Yellow Jackets took down the Nation Ford Falcons in the second round of the 5A basketball playoffs.
The Yellow Jackets used a strong second half to get a 50-43 win over the Falcons Saturday night.
“I thought they came out and wanted to win the game, not that we didn’t, but we are still learning how to play with consistency,” said Nation Ford head coach Charles Brown. “We are still learning how to win. I don’t think they were better than us, just the intensity level was different.”
TL Hanna jumped out to a 21-17 lead after the first half as Nation Ford stayed close.
The Yellow Jackets came out in the third quarter and went up by four at 26-22 as the two teams fought for an advantage.
TL Hanna started to take advantage of turnovers by Nation Ford as they kept a comfortable lead.
The Falcons struggled in the third quarter to score despite multiple shot attempts per possession.
TL Hanna would go up by 10 at 35-25 with about 2:35 left in the third quarter before another timeout.
The Yellow Jackets kept the momentum in their corner as Nation Ford continued to struggle with their shooting. The Falcons unofficially hit 8-of-24 shots in the second half.
Nation Ford started to make a comeback in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t keep momentum going in their direction. Every time Nation Ford got it under 10, the Yellow Jackets would hit a big shot to swing momentum back to them.
With an 11-point lead midway through the fourth quarter, TL Hanna started to hold the ball more and run time off the clock.
Jackson Burnham hit a critical 3-pointer with about three minutes left in the game to cut the lead to less than 10 points again.
The Yellow Jackets continued to hold the ball and forced Nation Ford to start fouling them. Burnham was able to get the Falcons back in the game as he hit two more 3-pointers with about 90 seconds left to cut the TL Hanna lead to five points at 46-41. However, the Yellow Jackets would ice the game down the stretch and end the Falcons’ season.
Burnham led Nation Ford, who finished 14-13, with 21 points, 11 of which came in the fourth quarter.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
