Hawks drop games to Cougars

and Wasps, will play Delta today

 

By Rhett Wilkinson

Staff writer

2-10-2021

 

Three weeks ago, the North Sanpete High School boys’ basketball team was riding high.

Despite missing top players and its head coach, the Hawks were in contention for the Region 14 title after a buzzer-beating win over mighty Juab before adding two more victories.

Since then, starting with a heartbreaking loss at Manti, the Hawks have lost four of five.

Most recently, North Sanpete (11-8, 7-5) fell 71-57 at Union and 46-36 to Juab.

Hawks Coach Cris Hoopes did not return a request for comment on the games.

At Union Wednesday, Feb. 3, Boone Lathem scored 29 points on 8-of-12 shooting for the Cougars (5-10, 4-6). For North Sanpete, Landon Bowles had 13 points and Trevin Morley and Brady Jacobson each had 10. Bowles also had five assists, though he also committed seven turnovers. Jacobson also got five steals. Dallon Steadman ripped seven rebounds.

The Cougars led by as much as 60-41 with 4:31 left in the game. The Hawks did respond with a 7-1 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Trevin Morley. It was defined by active defense from North Sanpete, with three straight steals off a press.

North Sanpete did lead 20-14 early in the second quarter. It was still 27-26 Hawks with more than four minutes left until halftime.

But then Union scored 11 unanswered points, marked by many turnovers by North Sanpete.

The Cougars shot 37 free throw attempts (making 25).

In the Hawks’ game against Juab Friday, the Wasps (15-3, 8-1) went on a 15-0 run, racing out to an 18-6 lead late in the second quarter.

Bowles scored 13 points, grabbing five rebounds and nabbing two steals, including going 2-3 from the 3-point line and 5-6 from the free-throw line. Morley added eight points. Steadman had five rebounds. Ty Allred and Brendan Allred scored 72 percent of Juab’s points with 18 and 15 points, respectively.

North Sanpete dished just five assists.

The Hawks made it 33-27 with a Bowles 3-pointer with eight seconds left in the third quarter, but then Jakob Bailey had a fade-away 3-pointer at the buzzer to extend the Wasps’ lead to nine going into the fourth quarter.

North Sanpete also made it 36-32 and then 39-36 Juab with 3:15 left in the contest after four straight Bowles free throws off personal and technical fouls by Juab’s Dawson Olsen. But then the Wasps scored the final seven points of the ballgame.

Hoopes started senior center Zach Allred on Senior Night.

The Hawks conclude the regular season at Delta (4-12, 3-7) tonight.