It took four overtimes to separate the Bayfield and Pagosa Springs boys basketball teams the last time they met in Pagosa Springs.
BHS (8-8, 2-3 Intermountain League) survived 86-76 thanks largely to Preston Hardy’s massive 37-point, 13-rebound double-double.
The Wolverines will have to bounce back quickly after losing 82-53 against Ignacio High School on Tuesday.
“It’s one of the strengths of our team. We’ve been able to analyze what happened in any game, win or lose, and we’re able to figure out what we did well and we want to obviously keep those things,” BHS head coach Randy Stephens said. “And if we had any weaknesses figure out what those were and make adjustments.”
The rematch is 7 p.m. Friday at Bayfield High School.
Both teams are limping into the contest, though.
BHS has lost four of five games, and its one win during that stretch came via forfeit.
“It obviously is a big game for us mainly because it’s a conference game and we’re getting down to the bitter end,” Stephens said. “The biggest thing we are thrilled that we get these three at home. We’re looking for big crowds.”
The Pirates, the defending Class 3A champions, have lost their last seven games, five by double digits.
Luke Devooght leads Pagosa Springs (4-11, 0-5 IML) in scoring at 8.2 points per game. Briar Erskine and Keaton Smyth both average 7.5 points per contest.
They’ll have to contend with Hardy and his 13.6 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Zane Phelps ranks second on the Wolverines in scoring at 9.3 points per game.
Pagosa Springs currently is fifth out of five teams in the IML standings, while BHS sits fourth.
“These last three conference games at home are critical,” Stephens said Tuesday after the team’s loss to Ignacio High School. “We need to step up and get at least two out of three, if not all three of them.”
The Wolverines will host Centauri at 1:30 p.m. Saturday in the second game of an IML back-to-back.
The Falcons currently are first in the IML and have won four in a row.
Centauri (13-4, 5-1 IML) beat BHS 53-36 in the team’s previous matchup Jan. 31 in La Jara.
BHS is closing out the year with three consecutive conference games at home, which doubles the amount of home games the Wolverines have played this year.
“It’s not something that we haven’t had a lot of experience with. We’ve only played three out of 16 games at home so far,” Stephens said. “It’s nice to have those three at home, and we’re looking forward to finishing out the regular season strong and hopefully going into the playoffs on a roll.”
kgrabowski@durangoherald.com
