Looking to defend their home court, the Carbon Dinos returned to Jurassic Park to face off against the region-leading Richfield Wildcats on Friday, Jan. 24. A big first quarter for the Wildcats would be the difference maker as they battled to a 58-48 victory over the Dinos.
Entering fresh off a game where they scored 22 points in the first quarter against the Emery Spartans, Richfield would carry this momentum into the contest against Carbon. The Wildcats would play relentlessly on both sides of the ball, opening the game on a 10-0 run.
Richfield would continue to push the pace, scoring in bunches and clamping down on the Dinos, only allowing four points in the frame. At the end of one, the Wildcats would hold a 23-4 advantage.
In the second quarter, the Dinos would put together a much more consistent performance, going blow-for-blow with Richfield. Leading the way would be Logan Bennett – who was playing in his first contest since Dec. 4 – helping Carbon begin to claw back from the double-digit deficit. However, Richfield would keep pace with the Dinos and head into halftime up 36-14.
The second half would be owned by Carbon, starting in the third where the Dinos would outscore the Wildcats 17-15. This was in part due to Bennett’s continued offensive explosion, ballooning his point total up to 10 before the end of the quarter. Fellow junior Kyler Orth also found his footing, establishing himself as a consistent presence at the rim. This effort would help Carbon start the climb back, entering the final frame down 51-31.
The Dinos’ defense would be on full display in the fourth quarter, holding a potent Richfield offense to just seven points in the period. Carbon would also match their offensive output from the third quarter, hanging 17 on the Wildcats but ultimately falling short as the final buzzer sounded 58-48.
Leading the way for Carbon was Bennett, who in his first game back from injury ended with 15 points. Orth closed with eight, Cannon Mortensen with six and sophomore Jackson Bosone also had six.
The loss brings the Dinos’ record to 4-15 (1-9 Region 12) with only four games remaining in the regular season.
The Dinos now look ahead to a rematch against the Manti Templars (4-12, 2-7 Region 12) on Wednesday, Jan. 29. The Templars previously defeated the Dinos at Manti on Jan. 3, 78-60. Live coverage for the game will begin at 6:30 p.m. on KRPX 95.3 the Peak with the Landon’s Diesel Service Pregame show with tipoff following at 7 p.m. The game can also be streamed on YouTube at Castle Country Sports-Carbon.