Hawks nearly rebound from 1-point quarter

HOUSTON — Houston makes a comeback — almost.

Headed into the fourth quarter with a 33-31 lead, the Houston boys looked to have and advantage over Cordova Friday, the same team the Hawks beat 61-48 the night before. But despite an outstanding fourth-quarter effort from Houston guard Matt Barron, the Wolverines won 48-41 and escaped the Valley with a 1-1 split with the Hawks.

Although Houston led going into the deciding fourth quarter Friday, the Hawks found themselves in foul trouble early, and Cordova took advantage. Cordova held Houston without a point for almost eight minutes to close out the first half. The lone Houston point in the second quarter was a free throw from Lane Taylor. Cordova sophomore guard Dylan Cheshier hit two three-pointers in the second quarter and finished tied for a team-high 14 points.

But the Hawks would fight back in the second half. Trailing 28-13, Taylor deflected a pass out of bounds to stop Cordova running in transition. Then, following a line violation on the in-bounds pass, Houston had the ball. Forward Colton Buzby took the ball from the top of the key through the lane and put a shot up. As the ball fell through the hoop and the referee signaled a foul, the Houston fans erupted, followed by dead silence as Buzby hit the free throw to complete the three-point play.

From that point, Barron knew what he had to do.

After going 1-6 shooting in the first half, Houston’s leading scorer would use his defense to create offense. The next three consecutive Cordova possessions were stolen by Barron, in the middle of a trap defense, and run the length of the court for Houston scores.

“He’s got to lead the state in floor burns,” Houston head coach Steve Henderson said. “It really gets us going when he gets going.”

Then Barron took over. He stole another pass and hit a three-pointer, and Houston would take the lead on a Jace Taylor layup just moments later. After being outscored 17-1 in the second quarter, the Hawks had won the third quarter 22-8.

“I think we were just being more patient on offense trying to get better looks in the second half,” point guard Mitchell Ruta said about the difference between the second and third quarters.

Eight minutes stood between the Hawks and their second win over Cordova in as many nights. But Cordova’s Daniel Adajar had other endings in mind. The Hawks would have to play error-free, foul-free defense to survive the game.

Adajar would be the general on the court for the Wolverines. An Adajar steal turned into a Dylan Cheshier three-point play at the other end of the floor to tie the game at 36 with just under six minutes to play. Off a missed Adajar three, Cheshier pulled down one of his game-high 12 rebounds and scored, and the Wolverines had the lead with 4:38 left.

“We preach defense and rebounding. It’s good to see,” Cordova head coach Jason Boerger said.

Adajar hit a free throw to extend the lead, and free throws would be the theme of the fourth quarter for the Wolverines. Houston committed 27 personal fouls in the game and fouled out three players. Cheshier pulled down another rebound and Cordova kept possession for nearly a minute.

Adajar hit six free throws in the fourth quarter, along with leading the attack on defense and running the offense from the point guard position. Adajar seemed to find space where there was none and make passes to teammates in lanes that did not exist. Adajar finished with 14 points.

“He’s really important for us as far as getting us off on the right sets. He’s a really smart, savvy basketball player,” Boerger said. “It’s just nice to have him out there controlling the ball and distributing to his teammates.”

Early in the fourth quarter, Barron leaped in the air to save a ball from going out of bounds, but fell awkwardly on his ankle. At the time, the injury seemed to shake the senior guard, but it would not affect his performance. Barron hit a clutch three to tie the game at 39 with 2:18 left. Barron scored the last seven points for the Hawks and finished with a game-high 16.

Colton Buzby finished with 9 points for the Hawks.

After shooting just two free throws in the first half, the Wolverines went 16-25 from the line in the second half, securing the game down the stretch. With 1:39 left, a missed Cordova free throw fell into the hands of Cheshier. Cordova would keep the ball for the next minute and rack up six free throw attempts on Chesheier’s three consecutive rebounds.

“He’s the biggest guy we’ve got. Teams look at him and think he doesn’t look very quick and then he’s all over you. He’s got a high motor like Matt does. He’s one of the quickest guys we’ve got and he’s a real good defender,” said Henderson.

The loss dropped the Houston boys to 1-3 on the season, while Cordova improved to 1-4.

Houston girls 49, Cordova 44

The Houston girls held on Friday to survive a fourth-quarter charge and beat the Cordova Wolverines 49-44 for the second time in two days.

Victoria Baybado scored a team-high 16 points for the Hawks. Dajonee Hale scored 11 points, pulled down nine rebounds and had nine steals.

Cordova senior Mallory Merritt led all scorers with 21 points, including four three-pointers.