It had all the makings of an upset.
Union, ranked No. 3 in the Associated Press 4A boys basketball poll, was out of rhythm.
The Titans trailed Evergreen by six points midway through the third quarter Friday. The Plainsmen, with their home student section bouncing, led despite star Robert Franks scoring only three points.
How did Union respond? With one of its best fourth quarters of the season.
The Titans beat Evergreen 74-62 by outscoring the Plainsmen 27-16 in the final quarter, ending the game on a 17-5 run.
The win gives Union (13-1, 6-0) a two-and-a-half game lead over Evergreen (8-6, 3-2), Camas and Battle Ground near the midway point of the 4A Greater St. Helens League season.
“It’s probably one of the most important games of the year,” Union forward Riley Hawken said. “It shows no matter what team we play, we’ve always got to bring it. It was a grinder, all day.”
Cameron Cranston scored 10 of his team-high 18 points in the fourth quarter for Union. Hawken added 15 and Cole Weatherspoon scored 14, including four 3-pointers.
Evergreen’s Franks, a 6-foot-8 Washington State signee, entered Friday as Clark County’s leading scorer with 22.8 points per game.
But Evergreen’s other 6-foot-8 forward, Jordan Henderson, had Union on the ropes. Through three quarters, he had scored 23 of his game-high 24 points.
“They have one of the best big-man tandems in the league, if not the whole state,” Union coach Blake Conley said. “We really focused on Franks. But Henderson got a few too many dump-offs in there. But credit to him. He’s a good player who made some big shots.”
But the biggest shots Friday came from long range for Union. The Titans made four consecutive 3-pointers in the final 2:40 of the third quarter to take a 47-46 lead.
In the fourth quarter, Evergreen turned to Franks. He scored 10 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter. His 3-point play tied the game at 57 with 4:14 to play.
Union’s Carson Brucher responded with the biggest shot of the game. With the shot-clock winding down, he banked in a 3-pointer from five feet behind the line.
“That was a huge play,” Conley said. “Carson just has a lot of confidence. He loves the big shot. I don’t know if he called bank, but it was a great shot nonetheless.”
Union went on to score on six of its next seven possessions. Cranston scored eight of his team’s final 10 points.
Cranston said he and his teammates were calm despite being in a dogfight midway through the fourth quarter.
“We got stops on offense and were patient on defense,” Cranston said. “We know what to expect and what to do in these situations.”
On defense, they Titans clamped down on Franks, who didn’t score over the final 4:14.
“The key to that was staying on him,” Hawken said. “Every single person worked really hard in practice making sure we got a hand up. Today, everyone was tuned in making sure he didn’t get open shots. We played really physical with him.”
UNION 74, EVERGREEN 62
UNION — Keithen Shepard 0, Cole Weatherspoon 14, Micah Paulson 11, Carson Brucher 6, Nico Bricker 2, Thomas Lampkin Jr. 6, T. Combs 0, Cameron Cranston 18, Riley Hawken 15, Denis Kirichenko 0, Stephan Ammentorp 2. Totals 25 (9) 15-20 74.
EVERGREEN — John Hansberry 0, Kobey Eaton 8, Robert Franks 13, Tyrus Hosley 5, Greg Washington 10, Jordan Henderson 24, Michael Bozovich 0, Mitchell Carnahan 2, Dustin Nettles 0. Totals 25 (5) 7-16 62.
