February 23, 2005

Destrehan falls to Thibodaux in finale

Montgomery leads Wildcats with 25, Smith has 22 in 85-75 loss

By Eric LeBlanc
Sports Editor
(Photo by ERIC LEBLANC)

The Destrehan Wildcats could not overcome a slow first half Friday night, as the Thibodaux Tigers took an 85-75 victory and secured a second-place tie with the East St. John Wildcats. With the loss, Destrehan falls to fourth place in the district.

The Wildcats were led by Trey Montgomery who put up 25 points while grabbing four rebounds. Jarrod Smith also broke 20 with 22 points. Brandon Rogers was the other Wildcat in double digits with 13 while grabbing four rebounds.

Destrehan started the first quarter very slowly. While Thibodaux scored 17 points in the first, Destrehan scored nine and trailed by eight.

The second quarter was better offensively for the Wildcats as they scored 13 points led by eight from Smith. But Thibodaux scored 21 to put their halftime lead at 38-22.

The second half was a different story. Destrehan outscored Thibodaux in both the third and fourth quarters, but the 16-point halftime deficit was too much to overcome.

Montgomery and Smith teamed up for nine points each in the third while Larry Pounds had six and Rogers put up five. The Wildcats scored an incredible 31 points in the third, besting the Tigers’ 26.

With the lead cut to 11 points, the Wildcats surged again in the fourth. Montgomery led Destrehan in the quarter with 12 points while Rogers and Smith each had five. The Wildcats outscored the Tigers 22-21, but could not catch Thibodaux before the final buzzer.

Also contributing for the Wildcats were Larry Pounds with nine points and four rebounds, James Flowers with four points and Dennis Ellsworth with two points and two steals.

With the loss, the Wildcats fall to 24-11 overall and 11-5 in district. Destrehan will likely still garner a wild card spot in the state playoffs and will likely find out their future today.

Eric LeBlanc can be reached at EricL@heraldguide.com or at (985) 758-2795, ext. 219.