RENO — It wasn’t the prettiest of starts, but in the long run it didn’t make any difference.
Carson used an 18-2 first-half run to open up a 24-point lead en route to a 57-35 win over Hug Friday night in a 4A crossover game.
Carson improved to 2-1 in league and 2-4 overall heading into next Friday’s game at Reno at 5 p.m.
“I don’t think we came out ready to play,” Carson coach Carlos Mendeguia said. “I thought we were flat, and this was a game we needed to bring our own energy.
“Their pressure bothered us a little. I expected a zone, and they did a lot of run and jump on defense. We should have been prepared for that. After a while we settled down and got the shots we wanted.”
Especially Jayden DeJoseph, who had 10 of his team-high 18 in the opening quarter. Included in that total was two 3-pointers.
“I had a couple of 3s, but I have a ways to go,” DeJoseph said. I did have an airball. I was a little gassed in the third quarter.”
After Hug closed to 9-3 with 2:41 left in the opening quarter, Carson closed the period with 12 straight points.
Tez Alen (15 points) started the surge with two free throws, and ended it with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the left corner.
In between, DeJoseph had a trey and a bucket, and Trent Robison (10 points) added a basket.
The assault continued in the second quarter, as Hug had three turnovers and scored just one basket in the first four minutes of the period.
Carson scored six straight on buckets by DeJoseph, Allen and Robison to make it 27-5.
An 11-2 run by Hug, courtesy of 3-pointers by Randall Wilcox and Malik Youmans made it 29-16. Carson led 37-20 at the half.
“We let them have a run, and you can’t do that in a road league game,” Mendeguia said. “That comes with experience, and we have a lot of young guys.”
In the second half, a 10-2 run at the end of the third quarter extended Carson’s lead to 51-29.
It’s the second straight blowout win for the Senators, but the competition gets tougher with Reno, North Valleys and McQueen looming on the horizon.
“I think we’re going to contend,” DeJoseph said. “We have to get better on both ends of the floor.”
Fernley stops Dayton
FERNLEY — Fernley outscored Dayton 33-20 in the second half to roll to a 71-48 victory Friday night in a 3A game.
A dunk and free throw by J.J. Ply cut Fernley’s lead to seven late in the second quarter, but a 3-pointer pushed it to 38-28 at the half.
Ply finished with 14 points, eight rebounds and three blocks, while Trevor Burrows had 15 points and seven rebounds.
Brenden Thomas scored seven points, and Carson Crosby scored four points and did good job on the boards.
Dayton dropped to 0-2 in league play.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Carson girls cruise
RENO — The Senators rolled to an 18-2 first-quarter lead en route to a 57-21 win over Hug Friday night.
The game was played with a running clock for the final three minutes. In the past, Carson has been on the other end of that.
Ku’ulei Haupu led the Senators with 14 points, while Lauren Lemburg added nine and Bella Kordonowy and Camryn Quilling chipped in seven points apiece. Eleven different players scored for the Senators.
“I thought we played better as a team,” CHS coach Melissa Larsen said. “We still have to take better care of the ball.
“Ku’ulei did a good job of posting up (and scoring). We did a better job of blocking out and getting rebounds.”
Carson played everybody on its roster.
Dayton falls
FERNLEY — Elora Neep led the Dust Devils with 13 points, four rebounds and two assists, but it wasn’t enough in Dayton’s 54-34 loss to Fernley.
Kristina Mason had six points while Abby Sikora and Aleea McGill-Howe each had five points.
“Our goal this game was to keep turnovers low but we didn’t rebound well and that let the Vaqueros get easy buckets inside their own paint,” Dayton coach Kelly Frantz said. “We moved the ball well down the floor and got a lot of shots off but very little second opportunities on the offensive end. The game didn’t feel like it was a huge difference in score. We got down in the first half but played hard in the second.”
JV BOYS BASKETBALL
Carson wins
RENO — Jackson Sayre scored 15 points, Christian Ortega had 11 points and Gavin McIntosh added eight points as Carson (3-5) beat Hug 55-44.