A second back-and-forth battle between the Carbon Dinos and Grand Red Devils ended in similar fashion to the first as Grand earned a 76-75 win Wednesday night in Price.

Trailing 74-70 with under 20 seconds to play in regulation, Noah Bradford brought the Dinos within two as he scored on an offensive rebound. In an attempt to extend the game Carbon was forced to foul Grand’s Moroni Seely-Roberts, who connected on two clutch free throws to extend the Red Devils’ lead back to four with 7.2 seconds remaining, putting the game out of reach.

Faced with a 21-13 deficit at the end of the opening period, the Dinos recovered with a solid second quarter performance to capture a 36-34 lead at the break. The two teams battled in a chess match the rest of the way before Grand created slight separation in the fourth quarter.

Senior Merrick Morgan scored a team-best 22 points on 53-percent shooting from the field. Bradford chipped in with 17 points, while Preston Condie ended with 16, including a three-point make as time expired in regulation to bring Carbon within one.

Wednesday’s victory gives Grand a solid edge in the Region 12 standings. Now sitting at 6-1 in league play, the Red Devils hold a two game lead over Carbon and San Juan, and a game lead over Richfield.

After suffering an 85-79 loss to Grand in Moab back on Jan. 22, the Dinos needed a win to remain within striking distance for the region’s top spot. In order to win a division title now Carbon must win the remaining three games and Grand must lose the remaining three games.

Now ranked No. 7 in the 3A classification, Carbon will return to the court on Friday for a home contest with rival Emery. The two teams have played once already, in a game that ended with an 18-point win for the Dinos back on Jan. 15.

Live coverage of Friday’s contest will air on KRPX 95.3 The Peak beginning at 6:15 p.m.. Tip-off will follow shortly after at 7:00.