DIVISION IV BOYS: Golden Eagles survive ‘look-ahead fever’, punch finals ticket

Spring Mountain boys basketball coach Ed Cheltenham said his team had a case of “look-ahead fever” in the Division IV Southern League semifinals Friday at Chaparral.

Luckily, the Eagles survived against Round Mountain, largely due to the poor shooting of the Knights.
Round Mountain made only 10 of 52 shots, and Spring Mountain took advantage in the Eagles’ 44-36 win.

Spring Mountain (16-7) will face Pahranagat Valley (12-11) for the title at 12:45 p.m. Saturday at Sunrise Mountain.

“We were very sluggish, it’s as simple as that,” Cheltenham said. “Our mind wasn’t in the game. I think we were looking ahead to Pahranagat Valley, instead of the opponent at hand.”

The difference in the game was the shooting woes of Round Mountain. The Knights (22-3) went stretches of 7:37 in the second quarter and more than nine minutes in the second half without making a field goal.

“We didn’t shoot the ball much better either,” Cheltenham said. “Our kids aren’t used to the bigger gyms, so shooting was tough. But, it’s still a victory.”

It was the nine-minute drought that ultimately was Round Mountain’s downfall, as the Eagles used a 13-5 run in the final period to take control for good.

Roemello Tatum led the Eagles with 19 points, and Develle Williams scored 10.

Mitchell Doheny led the Knights with 14 points and nine rebounds.

Pahranagat Valley 49, Beatty 29 — Austin Poulsen and Tyler Higbee combined for 29 points as the Panthers cruised by the Hornets.

Pahranagat Valley held Beatty to one field goal in the second period and took a 25-8 halftime lead. Poulsen had nine of his game-high 15 points in the first half.

Carlos Gomez and Chris Dunlap each scored 10 points for Beatty (6-8).