The first region win of the season was in major jeopardy, but the Spartans managed to get back in the win column Friday night against the Canyon View Falcons in Castle Dale.
Trailing by one point in the final seconds, Junior Luke Justice scored a go-ahead basket to lift Emery past Canyon View 53-52, improving to 1-1 in region play in the process.
“We have this play where the two top guys will twist, so I brought the ball up and was looking for Wade (Stilson),” said Justice. “I got passed my guy and saw I had a lane. At that point I said I’m just going to shoot and it happened to go in.”
Controlling the tempo throughout the first three quarters the Spartans saw a double-digit lead turn into a deficit late in the ball game. Before Justice’s game winning shot, Emery had been outscored 18-8 in the fourth quarter.
“We love to make it interesting, doesn’t matter if we are up or down, we are entertaining,” head coach Dave Justice said jokingly following the win. “I felt like we were in control for a bit, but then everything flipped. Give credit to Canyon View because they fought back.”
Senior Brett Rasmussen was a problem for Canyon View throughout the night as he recorded a double-double with 14 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks. The 14-point effort was highlighted by one of the most efficient offensive nights of Rasmussen’s career as he finished 7-9 from the field.
Balance was key for the Spartans as four players scored in double-figures. Justice and Talon Tuttle both logged 11 points, while Wade Stilson scored 10. As a team Emery shot 41-percent from the field.
Still early in the region season, Friday’s game was deemed a near must win for Emery to remain in contention for the division crown after falling to Richfield on Wednesday. That point was made clear to the team entering the game.
“This was a huge game for us after dropping the one in Richfield,” said coach Justice. “It was a must win in the sense of a region title. We obviously have a lot of work to do, but this one was so important.”
The win places Emery at No. 3 in the latest UHSAA RPI rankings. Now 10-4 overall on the season, the team will play just one game this week in a road tilt with the No. 11 Carbon Wednesday night.
