The first-grade Tigers put on an offensive showcase for all the fans at the East Lawrence Center on Saturday. The Tigers scored no less than eight points in each of the four quarters.

The Tigers’ high-octane offensive output helped them pick up the win over the Falcons, 42-22.

Tigers head coach John McDermott said his team played like a ferocious group of tigers throughout the game.

“I thought they played hard from the very beginning,” he said. “The game was a tough-fought battle because the other team really came ready to play. But we had a few lucky breaks and wound up winning it there at the end, so we’re really excited about it.”

Both the Tigers and the Falcons came out firing in the first quarter. Each team scored 10 points out of the gates to set a grueling pace for the rest of the game.

The Tigers were able to keep that pace behind the play of guard Peyton Habiger. Habiger ran coast-to-coast to finish on the fast break. He could also score in the half-court offensive system by stepping outside for deep shots. One of Habiger’s shots would have been a three-pointer if the first-graders used a three-point line. Habiger stepped up his offensive game during the second quarter, and the Falcons couldn’t stop him throughout the remainder of the game.

Falcons forward Isiah Headley might not have been able to stop Habiger, but that was the only Tiger he couldn’t stop. Headley had a crushing block in the second half that sent the ball flying 20 feet through the air. He used his height and strength to muscle opposing players out of position on the defensive blocks.

The Tigers continued their high scoring throughout three quarters and led 30-12 going into the final quarter of the season.

The Falcons struggled on offense for the middle quarters until guard Siam Boyd knocked down a layup from under the hoop. Boyd’s bucket brought the crowd back to life as they erupted with cheers. The crowd helped the Falcons claw their way back into the scoring column with four straight baskets. The Falcons finished the fourth quarter with 10 points.

The first-grade Tigers and Falcons line up for their final defensive assignments of the season during their last game of the year on Saturday at the East Lawrence Center.

This game, however, wasn’t just highlighted by points and scoring. During the first quarter Joachim Case, Tigers guard, intercepted a pass from the Falcons. After passing the ball off, Case ran up the court with a huge grin on his face as he waved to the fans in the stands as if he had just hit the winning shot in game seven of the NBA Finals.

McDermott said he is optimistic about next season.

“We hope to have a good class of second graders coming back next year,” McDermott said.

Being the consummate coach that he is, McDermott already has practice ideas for the 2006 season.

“Next year we want to work on learning to dribble with both hands,” McDermott said.

It’s never too early to begin thinking about what you can improve on.