The Bucks put themselves in position to do that with a dominating first three quarters en route to a 49-36 victory against Smyer on Friday in the Region I-1A Division I semifinals before 600 fans at the Texan Dome.
White Deer will meet Roscoe at 3:30 p.m. today with the winner advancing to the state tournament.
The Bucks won this one thanks to a great first three quarters in which they shot better than 60 percent from the field in building a commanding 38-18 lead entering the final eight minutes.
Things got sloppy for White Deer down the stretch as it was outscored 18-11 in the final period and turned the ball over 10 times.
"We will have to play better against Roscoe than we did in the final quarter of this one," said White Deer head coach Warren Swarb.
"I wanted us to finish strong and we didn't. It's nice to win the game but you just want to play better.
"That last quarter was as poorly as we've played in a game in a few weeks. We had a hard time getting the ball past mid-court and when we did it seemed like we threw it away."
Smyer scored only three points in the first quarter, shooting 2-of-13 from the field. The Bobcats scored 13 points in the second period but were only 4-of-13 and went to the dressing room at the break 6-of-26 from the field for 23 percent and trailing by 13 points, 28-15.
In the third period, the Bobcats again went ice cold, going 1-of-8 as the Bucks built a 38-18 lead.
White Deer shot 61 percent from the field in the first half on 11-of-18 and for the game was 19-of-32 for 59 percent.
Thomas Rapstine led the Bucks with 15 points while Cragar Swarb had 12. Parker Petty added 10 points and grabbed 13 rebounds.
White Deer 13 28 38 49
Smyer 3 15 18 36
WHITE DEER (20-7): Cragar Swarb 4 2-4 12, Tyler Perryman 1 1-1 3, Parker Petty 4 2-3 10, Thomas Rapstine 6 3-4 15, Tyler Smith 3 1-2 7, Nathan Story 1 0-2 2. Totals: 19 9-16 49.
SMYER (18-14): Brent Robertson 4 2-3 10, Cole Kerns 5 3-7 15, Chase Taylor 2 2-2 7, Jacob See 0 0-0 0, Dustin Nelson 1 0-0 2, Uriel Roman 0 0-2 0. Totals: 13 7-14 36.
3-pointers: White Deer 2 (Swarb 2) Total fouls: White Deer 18, Smyer 15. Fouled out: Petty. Technical foul: None. Attendance: 600.
Lubbock Online
White Deer romps past Smyer at Region I-1A
Saturday, March 01, 2008
Story last updated at 3/1/2008 - 2:42 am
LEVELLAND - Smyer scored first against White Deer in the Bobcats' Region I-1A, Division I semifinal Friday night.
However, the Bucks responded with a 13-1 run and went on from there to beat the Bobcats, 49-36, at the Texan Dome.
White Deer (20-7) will play Roscoe, a 47-32 winner over Wellington, for the Region I-1A championship today at 3:30 p.m.
Last season, White Deer lost to New Deal in the Region I-1A, Divison I final.
In the other semifinals at the Texan Dome, Lorenzo advanced to face Paducah in the Division II finals. The Hornets knocked off Happy, 48-45, while the Dragons eliminated Adrian, 80-48.
The Division II final will feature a pair of teams that won their district as Lorenzo (26-6) captured the District 6 title, while Paducah (22-5) won the District 5 title.
Brent Robertson opened the scoring for Smyer with a basket at the 6:51 mark of the first quarter. The Bobcats (18-14) wouldn't score another basket until just before the buzzer to end the first period, when Dustin Nelson connected to cut White Deer's lead to 13-5.
Between those two baskets, the Bucks got two baskets from Thomas Rapstine, a three-point play from Tyler Perryman and baskets from Cragar Swarb, Tyler Smith and Parker Petty.
Smyer shot 2 of 12 in the first quarter.
"My hats off to (White Deer's) defense," Smyer head coach Ryan Dykes said. "Offensively, we didn't hit some shots early, so the momentum never got swung our way."
The Bucks, meanwhile, only missed three shots in the opening period, finishing 6 of 9 from the field.
"They shot the ball well in the first half," Dykes said. "They worked their sets, they did a good job of executing and they did a good job of knocking down the shots."
Cole Kerns led Smyer with 15 points. Robertson joined him in double figures with 10.
Rapstine led White Deer with 15 points. Swarb had 12 and Petty 10.
Although Smyer's season is over, Dykes said he was pleased with the year.
"This season was magical," Dykes said. "It was a Cinderella story. We weren't picked to get out of district and we made the regional tournament."
At Texan Dome, Levelland
Division I
WHITE DEER 49, SMYER 36
White Deer 13 15 10 11 - 49
Smyer 3 12 3 18 - 36
Leading scorers: White Deer, T. Rapstine 15, J. Rapstine 12, Peetty 10; Smyer, Kerns 15, Robertson 10. Records: White Deer 21-6, Smyer 18-14.
Class 1A Division I
at Texan Dome, South Plains College, Levelland
Semifinals
Roscoe 47, Wellington 32
White Deer 49, Smyer 36
Championship Game
Roscoe (22-3) vs. White Deer (21-6), 3:30 today
