Friday night wasn’t that chance.

Down two starters and unable to defend the Yachtsmen’s array of shooters, the Knights were a far cry from the team that nearly sprang a road upset in December. Falmouth, meanwhile, couldn’t miss in the second quarter and rolled, 64-39, in the rematch on this rainy January night.

Lacking Jake Littlefield and Drew Peterson from the rotation that took the floor in round one, Poland (8-6) didn’t wield the length or quickness to overcome Falmouth’s motion offense and contest its feathery jumpers.

“They do a very good job of reversing the ball to either side. I don’t know how many shots they hit from right here,” Poland coach Tyler Tracy said, pointing to a spot in the far right corner along the 3-point arc. “They didn’t miss, and they were open. We didn’t do a very good job getting back and getting out to them.”

Falmouth (14-0) was a scorching 9-for-10 from the floor in the second quarter. Oh, and that miss? Jeremy Lydick put it back for an uncontested layup.

Matt Packard led the Yachtsmen with 17 points and six assists. Lydick and Matt Kingry each added 13 points. The trio combined for nine 3-pointers.

Jack Cooleen made it four starters in double digits with 10. Falmouth’s starting five all are seniors.

Ricky Bryant paced Poland with 15 points and eight rebounds. C.J. Martin added seven points. Logan Nichols combined five points with five assists.

After an extremely rare absence from the 2010-11 postseason, Falmouth is one of only three undefeated teams in the state, joining Class C Dirigo and Class D Hyde.

Only five of the Yachtsmen’s wins are by single digits. One of those was a 61-58 survival against Poland on Dec. 17.

“We paid our dues last year. We were in a lot of games that we didn’t quite pull out, but we got some valuable experience,” Falmouth coach Dave Halligan said.

Poland scored six straight points to end the first quarter and trim Falmouth’s early lead to 14-12.

But the Knights missed seven of their next nine attempts from the field while the Yachtsmen caught fire in the second period.

“We played with them for stretches in the first half,” Tracy said. “They struggled that first quarter when it was walk-up situations. We did a good job digging down in the post and challenging shots.”

Falmouth’s 7-3 edge on the boards in the second quarter didn’t help Poland’s cause.

The Knights typically were one-and-done. Then Packard, Lydick and Kingry accelerated into the open floor and consistently found the open man.

“We have the shooters. It’s a matter of getting the ball to them in the right spot at the right time,” Halligan said. “They shared the ball tonight. When we do that, I think we’re pretty successful.”

Charlie Fay’s jump shot at the horn provided a fitting end for Falmouth.

Fay let it fly from the foul line after Packard found him in perfect position. It rattled the front rim, then rolled around to the back before falling through.

Falmouth shot 58 percent in the first half and 49 percent overall.

“We shoot the ball pretty well, so it’s hard to defend us,” Halligan said. “You take one player away, somebody will step up and shoot it.”

Now No. 8 in Western Class B, Poland isn’t any danger of falling out of the playoff field but is in a fight to protect home court advantage in the preliminary round.

“The second half we played hard, but it was just flat,” Tracy said. “That second quarter took a lot of energy and it showed. They’re undefeated for a reason.”

koakes@sunjournal.com

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