Travis Hansen scored 18 of his game-high 32 points in the fourth quarter to lead Smith Valley High School to a 68-62 non-conference boys basketball victory against Whittell on Tuesday night in Zephyr Cove.
Whittell led most of the way -- 18-11 after one quarter, 34-33 at halftime and 46-45 after three quarters -- before the Bulldogs began their comeback.
Hansen sank a pair of free throws to give the Bulldogs a 66-62 lead with 14 seconds left, then stole the ensuing inbounds pass and went for a layup to push the lead to six points.
Daniel Shehady also scored 11 points for Smith Valley and played a key role in the second half when he took over the defensive chores against Nestor Flores of Whittell. Flores scored 11 of his 14 points in the first half.
Ryan Salomon finished with 23 points and 15 rebounds for Whittell (2-19).
The Bulldogs (10-12, 4-2) will try to create a three-way tie for first-place in the Northern 1A race when they host Pyramid Lake on Friday night.
First-place in the division girls race will also be at stake in the
preliminary game between Smith Valley and Pyramind Lake. Smith Valley's girls limited Whittell to six first-half points on their way to a 48-30 win on Tuesday.