Black and Ivins carry San Juan to win over Enterprise in showdown of top two teams in 2A
In a battle of the two top-rated teams in 2A, the San Juan Broncos (15-3, 4-1) beat the Enterprise Wolves (13-5, 4-2) 62-47 on Friday night, exacting revenge on the Wolves and earning a split of the season series.
Back on Jan. 7, Enterprise left Blanding with a 58-57 win on the strength of 14 points from Nash Palmer and 12 points to go along with nine rebounds from Ryland Randall.
Without top scorer and interior presence Matthew Ramos, the Wolves struggled to find room to operate on offense, and 6'4" Cooper Black took advantage, dropping in a career and season-high tying 25 points.
Black also went for 25 against Canyon View in December.
"He's 6-foot-4," said Enterprise head coach Bud Randall of Black. "(He's) very athletic and can get to the rim."
Black tallied the first seven points for San Juan and scored nine overall in the quarter.
With the two teams in a deadlock in the last minute of the second quarter, Randall told his club to look for the last shot.
Instead, Enterprise went quick and opened the door for a quick 6-0 run in the final minute to give San Juan a 26-23 lead and momentum heading into the third quarter.
"We were up two with the ball, 30 seconds left and I yelled 'one' and we didn't go for one. They went from down two to up three. And then they come out in the second half and they score the next six points and our guys were a little deflated."
Using the energy from the final minute of the second and opening two minutes of the third, San Juan outpaced Enterprise 20-8, building a 46-31 lead at the end of the third, and never looked back in the fourth.
Without Ramos, Enterprise had to rely on the perimeter game, which backfired in a big way.
"We shot horrible," Randall said. "I think we were 0/15 from three. I don't know what they were but they probably hit six or seven three-pointers. Us not hitting any of ours, that's 15-18 points right there."
In addition to Black's 25, Ladd Ivins poured in 18. Ivins is the top scorer on the top-rated team in 2A.
"One of our focuses was to try and shut him down," said Randall. "Hoping somebody else would pick up the slack, and obviously Cooper did."
Enterprise was led by Brady Crouch's 14 and Nash Palmer's 11.
The Broncos have now won five in a row following the loss to Enterprise earlier in the year.
Sean Ellertson is a sports reporter for the St. George Spectrum & Daily News. To continue to support his work, please subscribe to The Spectrum. Follow Sean on Twitter @SeanEllertson.
This article originally appeared on St. George Spectrum & Daily News: Black and Ivins carry San Juan to win over Enterprise in 2A showdown
