Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
The Logan boys basketball team fell short in its comeback bid with a 50-48 district loss Thursday at Melrose.
The Longhorns fell behind by as many as 15 points in the third quarter and still were trailing by nine midway through the fourth.
“We struggled to score in the first half,” Logan coach Kyle Griffiths said, “but in the second half got things going a little bit. Boys really locked in defensively the entire game.”
Christian Kotara made two free throws with 1:36 left to bring Logan to within 49-48.
During the final 38 seconds, Kotara and teammate Diego Sanchez each were whistled for offensive fouls while driving along the baseline.
Melrose’s Josiah Roybal made one of two free throws to make it 50-48.
The Longhorns attempted a 3-point shot in the final seconds. It missed, and on the rebound attempt the ball was batted around to near midcourt as time expired.
Brock Burns led Logan with 11 points.
Melrose improved to 15-4 overall and 3-1 in district play.
Clovis Christian 61, Logan 55
The Longhorns lost their third straight with a 61-55 district defeat Saturday to defending district champ Clovis Christian.
The Eagles rallied in the second quarter to take a 27-21 lead at halftime. Logan rallied early in the fourth quarter to seize a brief 42-41 lead.
The likely key moment happened in the final minute. With the Longhorns trailing just 56-53, they made a steal but Kotara missed a contested layup with about 35 seconds left.
The Eagles rebounded, went on a fastbreak, and Noah Gershon scored on a layup while being fouled. He made the free throw to give Clovis Christian a 59-53 lead with 28.5 seconds left.
“They beat us up and down the floor in transition last night,” Griffiths said Sunday. “We have to do a better job getting back on defense. The guys played hard but didn’t make enough shots to beat a really talented Clovis Christian team.”
Logan, led by Burns’ 12 points, fell to 15-9 overall and 2-4 in district play.
Clovis Christian improved to 14-7, 2-3.