Hawks boys, girls lose by 1 point

NOME — It was the Savanna James show Friday at the Nome Subway Showdown basketball tournament. The Houston junior was the only player in double figures scoring, stroking the net for 18 points in a close 35-33 Hawks win over the Point Hope Harpooners. It was the second of three days of the showdown.

James hit 7 of her 15 shots and was 4-of-5 from the free-throw line, and snagged 18 rebounds as well. Add a blocked shot and three steals, and James was easily the MVP for a game that, despite the close finish, saw only four ties and two lead changes.

Houston was steady for much of the game, surviving a lackluster third quarter. The Hawks led 11-6 after the first quarter and 21-13 at the break. But a third-quarter charge by the Harpooners paced Point Hope to outscore the Hawks 12-4 in the quarter and tie the game. Houston rebounded in the final stanza, outscoring the Harpooners 10-8 for the win.

Savannah Ritter and Paige Wagner each scored 6 points for Houston.

James was also strong in a close 35-34 loss to Nome on Saturday to close out the tournament for Houston, earning the girls’ MVP honors at the showdown.

“She really is a talented young girl,” said Hawks boys head coach Dave Porter. “A lot of the teams here were saying she was just unstoppable.”

For the Houston boys, Friday’s showdown game against Point Hope began promisingly, but a disastrous second and third quarters plucked the Hawks in a 79-43 loss.

Scott Kramer, who was named All-Tournament, led the way for the Hawks with a team-high 16 points, followed by Tyler Baron with 12.

Houston started strong, outscoring the Harpooners 18-16 in the first quarter, but Point Hope’s offense exploded to outscore the Hawks 48-12 over the second and third quarters.

Although the Houston boys played within two points of Point Hope in the fourth, the damage had been done.

Houston just isn’t set up to run with team like the Harpooners, Porter said.

“We told our kids to be patient offensively, and they weren’t,” he said. “We tried to get in a running game with them and that doesn’t work.”

Although the Hawks turned it around in the fourth, “it was too little, too late,” the coach said. “They had a dominant lead by then. Give them credit, they came out and just dominated the game.”

Houston followed Friday’s blowout loss up with a nail-biter against Nome on Saturday, dropping a tight 24-23 defensive battle. Although not earning a win, Porter said he was happy with his team’s defensive performance, holding a team that usually averages in the 80s to 24 points overall, and zero in the fourth quarter.

“We’re still trying to figure out our team, but I thought the tournament went real well,” he said. “Nome is a phenomenal team. They’re averaging 80-plus. We went into, basically, a 1-3 chaser (defense), were we chased their best player. They have two of the top players in the state on their team and we held them to zero points in that fourth quarter.”

In fact, Houston had a chance at the end of the game to win, but missed what would have been the winner at the buzzer.

“It was a great opportunity, we just didn’t knock down the shot,” he said.

Contact Greg Johnson at greg.johnson@frontiersman.com or 352-2269.

Houston girls 35, Pt. Hope 33

Nome Subway Showdown

Friday, Nome High School

Pt. Hope 6-7-12-8—33

Houston 11-10-4-10—35

Pt. Hope (33): Long 2 0-2 5, Kowunna 2 0-0 5, Koenig 2 0-0 4, Tooyak 3 2-2 8, Tooyak 3 2-3 8; Totals 13 4-7 33.

Houston (35): James 7 4-5 18, Wagner 2 2-3 6, Ritter 3 0-0 6, Shannon 1 0-0 2, Shaffer 1 0-0 2, Acton 0 1-2 1; Totals 14 7-10 35.

Three-point field goals: Pt. Hope 3 (Long 1, Kowunna 1, Tooyak 1); Houston 0.

Pt. Hope boys 79, Houston 43

Nome Subway Showdown

Friday, Nome High School

Pt. Hope 16-23-25-15—79

Houston 18-6-6-13—43

Pt. Hope (79): Sage 10 2-2 25, Z. Lane 8 0-0 21, Tooyak 4 0-0 9, Oviok 4 0-0 8, Vincent 4 0-3 8, J. Lane 2 2-4 6, Omnik 1 0-0 2; Totals: 33 4-9 79.

Houston (43): Kramer 7 0-1 16, Baron 6 0-2 12, Frank 3 0-0 6, Thompson 1 0-0 3, Ruta 1 0-0 2, M. Baron 1 0-0 2, Richardson 1 0-0 2; Totals: 20 0-3 43.

Three-point field goals: Pt. Hope 9 (Z. Lane 5, Sage 3, Tooyak 1); Houston 3 (Kramer 2, Thompson 1).