Those 12 losses in December are all but forgotten now.
Well, not completely forgotten, because the Carson High School boys basketball team was able to apply some of the lessons learned from those preseason games last month toward a Sierra League-opening 58-53 victory at home against Hug on Wednesday night at Morse Burley Gymnasium.
The Senators used their deliberate style to slow down the explosive Hawks - regarded as one of the teams to beat in the league - and move to a 17-point lead midway through the fourth quarter. Hug rallied back to within a single field goal, but Carson weathered the storm and held on for its biggest win of the season to date.
"With 4:40 to go, coach (Bruce Barnes) reminded us about the meltdowns we always seem to have; it happened, but the guys fought back and we were able to get through it," said junior guard Adam Houghton, who was 4-for-4 from the free throw line down the stretch and finished with a team-high 14 points.
Nobody ever likes to lose, but the lessons of December sure helped out against Hug.
"Those losses get you ready for this," Barnes said. "Without those games against real good competition, we wouldn't have been prepared for the pressure we saw tonight."
Hug used pressure defense and the hot hand of sophomore Armon Johnson to cut a 47-30 deficit with 3:59 left to 49-47 with 2:00 showing on the clock.
Johnson scored 18 of his game-high 24 points in the fourth quarter, 15 of which came in the final 3:59. Along the way, he fired in two shots from well beyond the three-point arc, including a four-point play that made it 49-45, and another three ball that kept the Hawks within 53-50.
Kyle Bacon drew a foul as he scored on a putback and added the free throw to give Carson a 53-47 lead. Houghton knocked down two free throws to make it 55-50 with 1:09 left. Tony Fagan made one of two free throws to make it 56-51 and John Gradert all but put the game away when he sank the second of two free throws to extend Carson's lead to 57-53 with 10 seconds left. Murph Gardner closed out the scoring with one more free throw at the end.
Even when the lead was 17, Barnes said he knew Hug would make a run. He also figured, correctly, that the Hawks would end up in a situation where they'd be forced to foul.
"That was one aspect I was comfortable with. I knew they would have to foul and I felt I had our best free throw shooters out on the floor," said Barnes, whose Senators were 15-for-20 from the line in the final period and 22-for-29 for the game overall.
The Senators did encounter foul trouble themselves on a night when Brice Crook, Tilor Smith and Brian Welch fouled out. Welch finished with 13 points, including a trio of three-pointers that helped stake Carson to a 21-17 halftime lead. Crook also scored seven points.
A 13-1 run midway through the third quarter put Carson in the driver's seat. Crook scored off an assist from Houghton, Bacon drove for a basket and Gardner scored on a tip-in as the Senators moved out to a 35-25 lead at the end of three quarters.
Steve Mandoki fed Houghton for a left-handed layup to start the fourth quarter and the Senators went on to extend their lead to 47-30 when Gardner scored on a layup, assisted by Houghton.
Bacon finished with 12 points and six rebounds. The senior shot 6-for-7 from the line in the fourth quarter.
Darrell Feemster also had 12 points for Hug (11-6). The Hawks only scored 11 points in the second and third periods, but finished with 28 in the fourth.
Carson (5-12 overall) may not have entered the game with a winning record, but the Senators have good reason to be excited about their 1-0 league record, which is good for a share of first-place right now with Reno and Wooster.
"It's a great way to start things out," Houghton said. "I'll tell you, they (preseason losses) say something, but right now, we're 1-0 in league, and that's the one that counts," Houghton said.
Contact Dave Price at dprice@nevadaappeal.com or call 881-1220.
