Cowboys Split The Week

Last week the North Gem Cowboys played two conference opponents with different results.  The Cowboys have slipped towards the bottom of the conference so every game is important with district seeding on the line.

The Cowboys first opponent last week was Taylor’s Crossing.  In their first match up this season the Cowboys and Eagles had an epic battle that ended with the Cowboys eeking out the win in overtime 64-61.  That game was in Bancroft on the Cowboys home court but this time North Gem traveled to Idaho Falls for the contest.  Ryver Haden has been the teams leading scorer this season and he got the Cowboys started in this one scoring the first two baskets.  Haden’s proficiency this season has not gone unnoticed resulting in teams keying on him.  As a result other members of the Cowboy’s team have needed to step up at times to help add points to the board.  In this game it was Parker Hill who added six points in the first to help North Gem earn a first quarter lead.  In the second period the Cowboys struggled from the foul line going just one for seven and only added five total points.  As a result the Cowboys lead was all but lost ending the first half with just one point separating the teams.  In the third both teams found it difficult to score from the field.  The Cowboys only made a pair of shots to the Eagles three and the third quarter ended with the game still a one point affair but now with the Cowboys trailing.  The game was shaping up to be a repeat of the early season match up until the fourth quarter rolled around.  Hill added five more points to his total while Haden and Yost each added a basket.  Unfortunately the Cowboys got a little handsy sending the Eagles to the foul line where they made nearly every free throw.  All the foul shots combined with a trio of three point shots helped the Eagles pull away from the Cowboys in the final quarter.  That loss sent the Cowboys down in the conference rankings.

After the tough loss the Cowboys next faced Clark County on the road in DuBois.  The Bobcats are sitting right at the bottom of the conference and the Cowboys had already easily beat them earlier this month.  That knowledge helped boost the Cowboys confidence going into this game.  After struggling to get good looks at the basket against the Eagles Haden exploded in the first quarter of this game matching his previous game scoring total in just one quarter.  The rest of the Cowboys helped lock down the Bobcats offense holding Clark County to just five first quarter points.  In the second period Craig Yost and Rusty Hatch got in on the action combining for fourteen points in the period.  The Cowboy defense did give up several outside shots allowing the Bobcats to stay somewhat in the game at the half.  Starting the third quarter the Cowboys held an eleven point lead.  The Cowboys offense continued to roll in the third while their defense made some improvements and the lead grew to a comfortable nineteen points.  In the fourth quarter North Gem continued to coast and easily picked up the victory over the Bobcats. 

The Cowboys have a busy week this week.  First they hosted one of the top teams in the conference Watersprings Christian on Tuesday.  That game had not yet taken place at the time of the writing of this article.  After the tough Tuesday match up the Cowboys hit the road first traveling to American Heritage on Thursday then Richfield on Saturday.

Cowboys 13 5 7 9 34

Eagles 8 9 9 21 47

P.Hill 11, R.Hatch 10, C.Yost 3, R. Haden 10

Cowboys 11 18 17 12 58

Bobcats 5 13 8 9 35

P.Hill 1, R.Hatch 20, C.Yost 17, R.Haden 18, W.Wakley 2

Unfortunately I was unable to get any information on the Lady Cowboys game against the Lady Eagles last Thursday.  Listed below is the final score without the box or individual scoring.

Lady Cowboys 28

Lady Eagles 34