4A NORTH REGIONAL TOURNAMENT: Buchanan Finds His Way

FARMINGTON — Kendall Buchanan waited near the 3-point line, and then in a sudden burst of energy he caught a pass, darted through the lane and made an off -balance layup over a defender.

The Farmington guard has never had trouble getting to the rim, and he made it look easy Monday during a drill toward the end of practice. Moments later, though, he admitted he’s altered his playing style to become more than just a one-dimensional scorer.

Buchanan said he knew he was becoming too predictable on the court. His tendency was to attack the basket, so he decided this past off season to take a step back - literally - and work on his outside shot.

“My dad and I went to the gym, and I’d shoot 150 (3-pointers and) 150 mid-range shots,” Buchanan said. “I’d run bleachers and then shoot free throws.”

Buchanan had no idea his work in the gym was preparing him to become Farmington’s leading scorer. He assumed he’d have an increased role in the Cardinals offense as a senior, but he didn’t think it’d be this big.

Thanks in part to his improved range, the 6-foot-2, 185-pound guard is averaging 18.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.

He has continued to fi nd ways to score despite at times facingdouble and triple teams, and he has shown he can hit shots as easily from outside the paint as inside it.

“Kendall has just evolved as a player. He’s always been a scorer,” Farmington coach Beau Thompson said. “He’s always been able to score the basketball from anywhere on the floor. He’s just so much more consistent this year.”

Buchanan’s emergence as Farmington’s leading scorer has even taken him by surprise. He struggled with his consistency as a junior last season, at times playing solid one game and then getting flustered the next game.

It wasn’t until Buchanan opened this season with a pair of 20-point performances that he fi gured he’d be counted on to carry a bulk of Farmington’s off ense.

“It was a big surprise,” said Buchanan, who’s shooting better than 35 percent on 3-pointers and 55 percent from the floor. “I didn’t think I’d score this many points a game.”

If the Cardinals (23-5) hope to match or surpass last year’s finish in the state tournament, they’ll likely have to rely on Buchanan’s multifaceted game. They’ll also have to quickly forget about last week’s loss to fourth-seeded Shiloh Christian in the 4A-1 Conference tournament fi nals.

Farmington will begin play at the 4A North Regional Tournament in Pottsville with a game against Mena at 5:30 p.m. Thursday.

“I knew that Kendall would be a big ‘X’ factor for us as far as if we could beat good teams or not this year,” Thompson said. “Kendalllogged a lot of playing time last year, but the biggest difference between Kendall now and last year is his maturity as a basketball player.”