Late free throws salvage weekend split

Posted 2/22/22

As the final weekend of the regular season fast approaches, the Powell High School boys’ basketball team split a pair of home games with two southwest quadrant opponents. The Panthers lost on …

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Late free throws salvage weekend split

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As the final weekend of the regular season fast approaches, the Powell High School boys’ basketball team split a pair of home games with two southwest quadrant opponents. The Panthers lost on Friday to No. 4-ranked 3A foe Lyman in a close contest, 71-68, before pulling away late on Saturday for a 45-39 victory over Mountain View.

   

LYMAN 71, POWELL 68

The Panthers (10-9 overall, 1-3 3A Northwest) got a preview of a potential regional opponent on Friday, as they welcomed the Lyman Eagles (11-9 overall, 4-0 3A Southwest).

Powell came out fast, as sophomore Brock Johnson was scoring at all three levels of the court. He put up 12 points in the first quarter as the Panthers raced out to an 18-13 lead.

Lyman made a late push to make it 27-26 in favor of Powell with just 1:30 remaining in the half, but the Panthers extended the lead back out to seven at the half. PHS entered the locker room up 37-30, behind 20 points by Johnson.

Early in the second half, it looked as if Powell was poised to pull away from the Eagles, as they pushed the lead out to double digits early. However, Lyman made a push of its own, as the Panthers failed to match up defensively and allowed the Eagles to get to the rim.

“In the second half against Lyman, we made some mistakes in how we wanted to defend the pick and roll and the dribble handoffs,” Panther head coach Mike Heny said. “The mistakes we made unfortunately led to some easy shots at the rim for them [Lyman]. They are a really good offensive team and we need to do a better job of defending without fouling and communicating on the floor to take away those easy shots and make it more difficult for them to score.”

The Eagles continued their push to make it 55-51 going into the fourth and grabbed a 59-57 lead with 4:40 left.

They extended that lead out to eight points, but a 3-pointer by sophomore Gunnar Erickson and a basket plus the foul by Johnson brought Powell back within two.

“Brock [Johnson] and Gunnar [Erickson] both played extremely well on Friday,” Heny said. “They really gave us a lift offensively and their one-two punch kept Lyman on their heels for most of the game. Their scoring was the reason we held the lead for most of the contest.”

Senior Toran Graham was fouled with a minute left and went to the free throw line with an opportunity to tie the game, but a missed front end of a one-and-one kept it a two-point game.

The Eagles were able to outlast the Panthers, as they walked away with a 71-68 victory.

Johnson led the Panthers with 31 points, followed by Erickson who had 21.

“Lyman did a good job taking some things away and we weren’t as aggressive offensively in the second half,” Heny said. “In order for us to beat a good team like Lyman, we will need to spread out our scoring a little more evenly.”

   

POWELL 45, MOUNTAIN VIEW 39

Heading into Saturday, the Panthers looked to regroup as they welcomed Mountain View (9-12 overall, 2-2 3A Southwest).

Powell did not come out firing like Friday, as they trailed 8-5 with 2:45 left in the first quarter.

PHS then used an 8-0 run the rest of the quarter to take a 13-8 lead going into the second.

The Buffaloes continued to battle and tied the game at 17 with 2:42 left in the second, but the Panthers closed the half with a 21-19 lead.

Neither team was able to gain a significant advantage in the third quarter, but Powell increased its lead to 31-26 heading into the fourth.

Mountain View took the lead in the fourth quarter, hitting a jumper to make it 34-33 with 4:50 left in the game.

After retaking the lead at 35-34, a steal and a long rebound led to wide open layups for Johnson as the Panthers extended the advantage to 39-34.

Mountain View was unable to make up the gap. They fouled senior Zach Ratcliff in the final minute and he went 6-of-8 at the free throw line to seal the PHS win, 45-39.

Ratcliff led the way for the Panthers with 15 points, followed by Johnson with 11.

“The main takeaway from our games against the southwest is that regionals is going to be a dogfight,” Heny said. “I like our chances against any of those teams if we play well but there’s going to be a lot of close games.”

   

REGULAR SEASON FINALE

The Panthers have one final home game on Friday against Lovell (6-11 overall, 0-4 3A Northwest), then hit the road to take on Lander (7-11 overall, 2-2 3A Northwest) in the regular season finale on Saturday.

If the Panthers win against both Lovell and Lander, they have a path to the No. 2 seed at the regional tournament — a contest they will host next week — as they try to make their way towards the state tournament.

“We will approach this week like we do every other week: Our next game is our most important game,” Heny said. “We need to focus on Lovell first so we can give ourselves a chance for the best seed possible going into next week.”

   

LYMAN 71, POWELL 68

Points — Brock Johnson 31, Gunnar Erickson 21, Toran Graham 6, Keaton Rowton 4, Trey Stenerson 2, Jhett Schwahn 2, Jay Washington 2

   

POWELL 45, MOUNTAIN VIEW 39

Points — Zach Ratcliff 15, Johnson 11, Erickson 9, Graham 6, Schwahn 3, Rowton 1

Powell High School, Panther Basketball

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