Timberland escapes upset bid by Francis Howell Central to move to 8-0 for first time

O'FALLON, Mo. — Timberland senior Jacob Aydelott could only breathe a sigh of relief as the buzzer sounded Thursday afternoon at St. Dominic High School.

There wasn't much for Aydelott to say after the Wolves squeaked past Francis Howell Central 58-55 in the first round of the St. Dominic Christmas Tournament.

"Thankful we pulled that one out," Aydelott said.

Timberland (8-0) will play Holt (6-5) at 5:30 p.m. Friday in a semifinal game. Francis Howell Central (2-6) will play St. Charles West (3-4) at 1 p.m. in the consolation semifinals.

The win moved the Wolves to 8-0 for the first time in program history. The only other time Timberland attempted to go a perfect 8-0 was in 2015, when it lost its eighth game to Fort Zumwalt South, 56-55.

"It's great," Timberland boys basketball coach Kyle Deweese said. "We continue to try and take that one step at a time, but I'd be lying if I didn't say it was exciting. It's great for the kids."

It was no cakewalk for the Wolves to achieve the feat.

Timberland had a 58-55 lead in the closing seconds when Francis Howell Central launched a 3-pointer that Timberland senior Mason Carroll slapped away. But the loose ball found another Spartans shooter.

"I blocked that first shot and I saw they may get another good shot and I was thinking, 'It's going in,' " Carroll said.

The Spartans missed another 3-point attempt, and after a scrum for the ball, they got one more good look at the tying shot and all Deweese could do was hold his breath.

"They got another opportunity and I was thinking that the way this game is going, it felt like that one of those would go in," Deweese said.

Howell Central's third 3-point attempt of the sequence also came up empty and Aydelott sighed in relief.

The Spartans had chances to beat the Wolves for the first time in the last six tries, holding a seven-point lead with less than two minutes to go in the third quarter.

It was a far cry from their last meeting two weeks ago when Timberland bullied its way to a 21-point victory.

"Tonight, it's those growing pains, but at the end of the night, we had a shot to tie it, but it just didn't go our way," Howell Central coach John Varner said.

Within the game's first four minutes, Howell Central raced out to an 8-2 lead before Deweese called a quick timeout.

Not to whisper secrets or for him to rage at his team to wake up. It was a simple message to his senior-heavy team.

"That's a talented, very talented team and we've been down in a handful of games early and battled back," Deweese said. "They've been through a lot and haven't shown a lot of panic. Their temperament and mentality, I don't have to calm them down. Just re-guide and reset."

It helps to have two seniors in Carroll and Aydelott leading the way.

Carroll fought through foul troubles to record his second double-double of the season with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Aydelott also recorded a double-double, his fifth of the season, with 13 points and 10 assists.

Carroll also recorded six blocks for Timberland.

"You trust them ultimately to make a decision or a play," Deweese said. "Sometimes it doesn't work, but most of the time it does. They've earned that. That's a great thing as a coach to be able to rely on those veterans to make plays."

Sophomore Jamarious Britt led the way for the Spartans with 15 points, while junior Xavier Morrison poured in 13 points.

Though the Spartans have only two wins, Varner is pleased with what he has seen from his young team.

"We're building and it takes a while," Varner said. "It takes a while to build those and get the bad habits out of the way, but the growth we've shown. The record doesn't say it, but I think a lot of teams don't want to play us right now. I'm happy with what I've seen."