Dominance in the second and fourth quarters on Tuesday night boosted Spanish Springs to a 73-45 boys basketball win at home against Douglas in opening round play of the Northern 4A Region Tournament in Sparks.
Spanish Springs (22-4), the High Desert League’s No. 1 seed, outscored Douglas 24-9 in the second quarter to take charge of the game, then the Cougars put it away with a 23-9 run through the fourth quarter.
Douglas (9-17) was up 10-9 after one quarter, only to see the Cougars surge to a 33-19 halftime lead. The Tigers were still within 50-35 at the end of three quarters.
Jalen Townsell, a 6-foot-7 junior, delivered on three 3-pointers and finished with 21 points. Marcus Loadholt, a 6-3, 200-pound senior, added 17 points while 6-5 Josh Prizina had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
The taller Cougars enjoyed the benefit of 18 offensive rebounds and shot 27-for-60 from the field overall.
Spanish Springs advances to the semifinals and a matchup against Bishop Manogue Thursday at 7:15 p.m. in Carson City. Manogue defeated Reed 73-51 on Tuesday.
Galena, a 74-51 winner over McQueen, will play Reno in the other semifinal at 5:30 p.m. The boys championship game is scheduled for 6 p.m. Saturday.