Rams, Nikiski split

The Nikiski boys basketball team has won just one game this year, but on Friday the Bulldogs showed they have plenty of fight left against visiting Susitna Valley.

A furious fourth-quarter comeback attempt came up just short as the Bulldogs dropped a 53-49 Southcentral Conference decision to the Rams (7-8, 2-5).

In the girls game, Nikiski (15-2, 6-1) cruised to a 64-20 victory over the Rams.

In the boys game, the Nikiski boys made a run at getting back in the game in the third quarter, but the Rams stretched the lead back to 41-26 at the start of the fourth quarter.

The Rams had a 47-30 lead when the Bulldogs made their move. A layup by Wiley Bennett cut the lead to 49-47 with just 35 seconds remaining.

With 31 seconds left, Nikiski fouled Colin Olner. Olner hit one of two fouls shots, but then Nikiski turned the ball over. Su Valley’s Travis Clark went one of two from the line for a 51-47 lead, but when Clark missed his second free throw, there was a jump ball on the rebound and possession went to Su Valley. That allowed Clark to again hit one of two for a 52-47 lead with 18 seconds left.

Evan Holloway nailed a running bank shot in the lane to make it 52-49 with 8 seconds left, but Su Valley’s Mac Stevens iced the game by making one of two foul shots with 7 seconds left.

Nikiski coach Reid Kornstad said the comeback was encouraging.

“Losing is always tough,” Kornstad said. “These guys are finding out what it means to believe.

“There is no crisis in belief when you are winning all the time.”

Su Valley coach Mike Matthews said two things helped his squad avoid a fourth-quarter collapse. Earlier this season, the Rams had been up by 10 with 3 minutes to play against Valdez and lost by one point.

“They were all very down after letting them back in the game,” Matthews said. “I don’t think they wanted to experience that again.”

Matthews said his team has been struggling with foul shots this season. Although the Rams made just 9-of-17 on Friday, it was just enough to get the win. Matthews said the team has been spending extra time shooting free throws and it paid off.

One week earlier, Susitna Valley had defeated Nikiski 70-47. Both Matthews and Kornstad agreed that a major difference in the games was rebounding.

“There was a time tonight where I counted and they got five second-chance shots,” Matthews said.

Kornstad said his team has rebounded well in spurts this season, but on Friday the Bulldogs put out a consistent rebounding effort. The coach also said Nikiski did a better job of executing its offense.

“They’ve made improvements based on what we’ve shown them in practice,” Kornstad said. “That’s pretty much all you can ask.”

Travis Clark had 13 points for the Rams while Olner added 12. Matthews said freshman guard Paxson Matthews also had seven key points.

Sheridan Olsen paced a balanced Nikiski attack with 11 points.

Nikiski girls 64, Susitna Valley 20

The Bulldogs grabbed a 13-5 lead after the first quarter, then outscored the Rams 29-2 in the second quarter to take complete command of the game. The Bulldogs scored on 12 of their 18 second-quarter possessions.

Su Valley had trouble beating Nikiski’s press, turning the ball over 21 times in the first half compared to Nikiski’s six first-half turnovers.

The Bulldogs also hit 26-of-61 (43 percent) from the floor to Su Valley’s 9-of-35 (26 percent) and rolled up a 42-22 edge on rebounds.

Rachel Romans and Becca Carlson paced Nikiski with 13 points, while Tasha Thompson added 10 points and 14 rebounds. Nikiski received 3-pointers from five different players, including the first varsity 3-pointer for Lacey Carlson, and also got points from all 10 players.

Su Valley was led by the seven points and 10 rebounds of Megan Ostermick.

Boys

RAMS 53, BULLDOGS 49

Su Valley 18 12 11 12 —53

Nikiski 7 11 8 23 —49

SUSITNA VALLEY (53) — Bartel 3 0-1 7, Clark 4 4-6 13, Drover 1 0-0 3, O’Hara-Barnard 0 0-0 0, Olner 5 2-5 12, Matthews 2 2-2 7, STevens 3 1-2 7, Hartley 0 0-0 0, Hicks 2 0-1 4, Frier 0 0-0 0. Totals — 20 9-17 53.

NIKISKI (49) — Olsen 5 0-2 11, Smith 1 0-0 2, Wik 1 0-0 3, Fagan 4 1-3 9, Bennett 1 0-0 2, Cook 3 2-3 8, Holloway 3 1-3 7, Vance 2 2-2 6, Thompson 0 1-2 1, Burns 0 0-0 0. Totals — 20 7-15 49.

3-point goals — Su Valley 4 (Bartel 1, Clark 1, Drover 1, Matthews 1); Nikiski 4 (Olsen 3, Wik 1). Team fouls — Su Valley 13, Nikiski 18. Fouled out — Cook.

Girls

BULLDOGS 64, RAMS 20

Su Valley 5 2 5 8 —20

Nikiski 13 29 11 11 —64

SUSITNA VALLEY (20) — Ostermick 3 1-2 7, Crosby 2 0-0 4, Hunt 0 0-0 0, Wigew 2 0-0 4, Bartel 1 1-2 3, Crosby 0 0-0 0, Tran 0 0-0 0, Moore 0 0-0 0, Reynolds 1 0-0 2. Totals — 9 2-5 20.

NIKISKI (64) — Romans 5 1-2 13, B. Carlson 5 2-2 13, Pritchard 1 0-0 2, L. Carlson 2 0-0 7, Chadwick 3 0-2 6, H. Thompson 2 0-0 5, T. Thompson 4 1-2 10, Jorgensen 2 2-4 6, Rorrison 1 0-0 2, Peek 1 0-0 2. Totals — 26 6-12 64.

3-point goals — Nikiski 6 (Romans 2, B. Carlson 1, L. Carlson 1, H. Thompson 1, T. Thompson 1). Team fouls — Su Valley 9, Nikiski 9. Fouled out — none.