Preview: Emery Spartans vs. North Sanpete Hawks
Emery is 8-2 against North Sanpete since January of 2018, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Emery Spartans are on the road again and plays the North Sanpete Hawks at 7:00 p.m. on February 9th. Emery has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.
Emery put the finishing touches on their ninth blowout victory of the season on Wednesday. Everything went their way against Carbon as Emery made off with a 69-44 victory. That's two games straight that Emery has won by exactly 25 points.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Emery to victory, but perhaps none more so than Wade Stilson, who almost dropped a double-double on 11 points and nine rebounds. Stilson has been hot recently, having posted three or more steals the last three times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Zack Tuttle, who scored 15 points along with six assists and six rebounds.
Meanwhile, North Sanpete pushed their score all the way to 65 on Wednesday, but even that wasn't enough to win. They took a 75-65 hit to the loss column at the hands of Manti. While losing is never fun, North Sanpete can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Utah basketball rankings (they are ranked 95th, while Manti is ranked 34th).
Despite their loss, North Sanpete saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Dimick Huntington, who scored 26 points along with four steals, was perhaps the best of all. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Huntington has scored all season. Ridge Hendry was another key contributor, scoring 17 points along with six assists and four steals.
North Sanpete struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only two offensive rebounds. That's the fewest offensive rebounds they've managed all season.
Emery pushed their record up to 17-5 with that win, which was their third straight on the road. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 63.7 points per game. As for North Sanpete, they have not been sharp recently as the team's lost eight of their last ten games, which put a noticeable dent in their 8-13 record this season.
This contest is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: Emery have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 29.7 rebounds per game. However, it's not like North Sanpete struggles in that department as they've been averaging 24.6 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it'll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Everything came up roses for Emery against North Sanpete in their previous meeting back in January as the squad secured a 75-40 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Emery since the team won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
