ETV News stock photo by Dusty Butler
On Wednesday, Emery traveled to take on South Sevier. The Rams took Emery by surprise and came flying out of the gates. South Sevier went up 10-2 in the early portion of the game. The Spartans began their uphill climb and cut it back to five, 14-9, by the end of the first. Emery continued fighting and pulled within one by halftime, 26-25.
Emery captured the lead in the third but the Rams did not fold. The contest went down to the final minutes as the competition remained close. With the scored tied at 49 with under three minutes left, Brax Jensen stole the ball and completed the fast break with a layup. The Spartans held tough on the defensive end to keep South Sevier off the board. Jensen was fouled on the ensuing possession and made two free throws to extend the Spartans’ lead to 53-49.
South Seiver came up empty once more and Justin Rasmussen was fouled on the rebound. Rasmussen missed the front end of the one-and-one, giving life to the Rams with just over a minute remaining. Kyler Wilstead came up with a huge steal and Jensen was fouled once more. He failed to close the door by missing the front end of the one-and-one. The Rams again shot a quick three but it was off target and Wilstead gathered the rebound and passed it down court to Jensen, who finished with a layup. Time expired as Emery avoided the scare with a 55-49 victory.
Jensen continued his impressive season with game-highs of 27 points, six assists and four steals. Jordan Ekker recorded 11 points for Emery. Three Rams finished in double-figures; Brandt Williams scored 18 points followed by Tracen Winkel with 15 and Brennen Hunt with 12. Wilstead and Rasmussen finished with nine and seven rebounds, respectively.
The Spartans shot well on the night, going 21-42 from the field (50 percent) and 8-22 from beyond the arc (36 percent). Emery held the Rams to 40 percent shooting, including 27 percent from the three-point line.
The win keeps Emery in the hunt for the region title. Emery (12-3, 4-1) will host Richfield (12-3, 5-0) on Friday night in the Spartan Center. The Spartans could force a first-place tie in region with a win on Friday night. Catch all the action of the pivotal game live on ETV Channel 10 and online at etvnews.com/livesports.