HANGING TOUGH

HOUSTON — After watching his team suffer a lopsided loss to Lathrop just a few weeks ago in Fairbanks, Houston head coach Dave Porter was curious to see how his Hawks would react when they hosted the Malemutes at Houston High.

Through the first 16 minutes it looked like Houston was the team accustomed to dealing those big defeats, but Lathrop survived the Hawks’ tenacious defensive effort to piece together 40 second-half points and score a 54-50 Mid-Alaska Conference win at Houston High Friday night.

“I thought the kids played exceptional defense in the first half and we took care of the ball,” Porter said. “The second half was a little different.”

Lathrop scored 24 in the fourth to cap the rally. That followed the Malemutes’ 16-point third.

“We gave up too many points, got in a bit of a race with them,” Porter said. “That’s kind of their game.”

Lathrop led in the first quarter, but sparked by its defense, Houston took control of the game in the second and carried a lead into the fourth. Late in the fourth, Lathrop was able to take its first lead since early in the game. Tyler Hamilton, who was held to just eight points in the game, went to the basket to give his team the 43-42 lead. The Malemutes would never trail again.

Everett Green, who scored seven of his 15 points in the fourth, hit four free throws to give his squad the 47-43 lead. He also came up with a clean block on a Houston three-point attempt and fed Hamilton with a pass that led to a clear shot at the basket. That score pushed Lathrop’s lead to six.

Max Rothley, Russell Ruta and Scott Kramer hit free throws down the stretch to allow Houston to keep the game within two possessions, but Lathrop was able to prevail.

“You’ve got to give Lathrop credit after being down 10 at the half,” Porter said. “But that’s what good teams do.”

Houston used the defensive effort to hit halftime with a 10-point lead, and built that advantage with a 15-3 second quarter run. The Hawks also held Lathrop without a field goal from late in the first quarter to the 6-minute mark of the third.

“I’m very proud of the kids in that aspect,” Porter said of the defense.

Lathrop managed just three free throws in the third, and junior Tyler Barron paced the Hawks offense with five of his 14 points in the second. Barron went hard to the basket to give the Hawks their first lead of the second quarter, a 13-12 advantage. That was the beginning of a 9-2 Houston run. Junior Beau Frank capped the run with a steal that led to an easy lay-up.

Houston took its biggest lead of the game, 12 points, when Kramer completed a three-point play after going to the basket and drawing a foul with about five minutes left in the third.

After that Kramer score, Hamilton hit a jumper to spark Lathrop’s third-quarter ending 11-1 run.

Despite the loss, there are several areas of the game that left Porter really pleased. Houston’s defense was stellar early, and the Hawks poured in 50 points, which is much higher than their season average.

“I’m still proud of the team, they made one heck of a game out of it,” Porter said. “For us to score 50, that’s really an exceptional feat for us.”

Kramer led the team with 15, Barron added 14 and Rothley chipped in 12.

Lathrop 54, Houston 50

Friday, Houston High

Lathrop 11-3-16-24—54

Houston 9-15-9-17—50

Lathrop (54) - Carlson 4 1-6 9, Silva 1 0-0 2, Streeter 2 1-1 5, McCoy 0 1-2 1, Taylor 1 5-6 7, Green 3 9-12 15, Gladden 1 1-2 3, Holland 0 2-2 2, Hamilton 4 0-0 8; Totals: 17 20-31 54.

Houston (50) - Lapham 1 2-2 4, Frank 1 0-0 2, Kramer 4 5-5 15, Ruta 0 3-4 3, Rothley 2 8-11 14, Barron 4 6-8 14; Totals: 12 24-34 50.

West Valley gets

by Houston

West Valley used a 15-2 second-quarter run to grab a 44-33 MAC win over Houston Saturday afternoon at Houston High School.

The Hawks led 13-12 before West Valley’s big run. Scott Kramer scored seven of his game-high 15 in the first quarter.

West Valley 43, Houston 33

Saturday, Houston HIgh

West Valley 12-15-4-12—43

Houston 13-2-8-10—33

West Valley (43) — Aariola 1 0-0 2, Carson 2 1-2 5, A. Vealy 3 1-2 7, W. Vealy 3 0-0 6, Hadjukovich 5 2-4 13, Howdshell 1 0-0 3, Graham 1 0-0 2, Barker-Reynolds 2 1-1 5; Totals: 18 5-9 43

Houston (33) — M. Barron 0 1-2 1, Lapham 2 1-2 5, Kramer 5 3-4 15, Ruta 1 0-0 2, Rothley 1 4-7 6, T. Barrow 1 0-2 2; Taylor 1 0-0 2; Totals: 11 9-18 33.

Girls’ basketball

Lathrop wins despite Houston junior’s game-high total

HOUSTON — Lathrop may have pulled out the 56-49 victory over the Houston Hawks, but the Malemutes had no answer for Savanna James.

Lathrop grabbed the Mid-Alaska Conference victory Friday night at Houston High despite the performance of James, who scored a game-high 27 points.

The 6-foot junior hit nine shots from the field and was 8 for 12 from the free throw line. Senior Savannah Ritter added 10 points for Houston.

James scored six early points to help Houston take a 12-10 first quarter lead, and added 11 during the Hawks’ 17-point second.

Lathrop held a slim 29-27 lead at the half, but extended its advantage with an 18-10 third-quarter run. Lathrop’s Sierra Luke hit a key three-pointer in the third, and Alicia Brawley was 4 for 4 from the free-throw line during the quarter.

On Saturday, James scored 12 of her team’s 19 points during a 66-19 loss to West Valley.

Lathrop 56, Houston 49

Friday, Houston High School

Lathrop 16-17-18-11-56

Houston 12-17-10-10-49

Lathrop (56) - Angell 1 0-0 2, Luke 5 1-3 12, Allen 5 4-5 14, Kennedy 3 1-2 7, Lizotte 4 1-1 9, Harris 1 0-0 2, Brawley 2 6-9 10; Totals: 21 13-20 56.

Houston (49) - Dodds 1 0-0 2, Wagner 2 0-0 4, James 9 8-12 27, Acton 1 0-1 2, Ritter 3 4-5 10, Shannon 1 1-4 3; Totals: 17 13-22 49.

Three-point field goals: Lathrop 1 (Luke 1), Houston 2 (Dodds, James 1); Total fouls: Lathrop 17, Houston 16.

West Valley 66, Houston 19

Saturday, Houston HIgh School

West Valley 28-18-16-4—66

Houston 7-0-8-4—19

West Valley (66) — Ackiss 1 0-0 2, Franz 0 2-2 2, Hajdukovich 2 0-0 4, Brice 5 2-4 12, Mattson 6 3-4 15, Yarde 7 3-4 19, Phillips 4 0-0 8, Washburn 2 0-2 4; Totals: 27 10-16 66.

Houston (19) — Dodds 0 0-2 0, Wagner 0 2-2 2, James 4 3-8 12, Acton 1 0-0 3, Nida 1 0-0 2; Totals: 6 5-10 19.