Basketball Game Preview: Emery Spartans vs. North Sanpete Hawks

Emery is 8-2 against North Sanpete since January of 2019 and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Wednesday. The Emery Spartans will head out to square off against the North Sanpete Hawks at 7:00 p.m. Emery is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 53 points per game this season.

Emery took a loss when they played away from home on Wednesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They strolled past Carbon with points to spare, taking the game 55-38. The win was a breath of fresh air for the Spartans as it put an end to their three-game losing streak.

Emery got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was West Johansen out in front who went 7 of 14 on his way to 15 points along with seven rebounds and six assists. Those six assists gave Johansen a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Porter Hurdsman, who posted nine points in addition to six assists and four steals.

Johansen wasn't the only one working in the assists department: Emery was working as a unit and finished the game with 20 assists. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Carbon only racked up ten assists.

Meanwhile, North Sanpete was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their seventh straight defeat. They were six points away from ending the streak, but they lost a 74-68 heartbreaker at the hands of Manti. One positive for the Hawks, at least, is that this was the most points they've scored all season.

Emery's win was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 10-11. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 57.5 points per game. As for North Sanpete, their loss dropped their record down to 3-14.

Emery didn't have too much breathing room in their contest against North Sanpete in their previous matchup back in January, but they still walked away with a 53-49 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Emery since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.