I-A BOYS BASKETBALL: Nelson helps Cowboys down Cheyenne

Much like he did for Chaparral's football team last fall, Richard Nelson proved to be the hungriest player on the school's playing surface.

Only this time, it was on hardwood.

Nelson converted a three-point play late in the fourth quarter Wednesday to break a 59-all tie and spark the Cowboys to a 70-63 home win over Cheyenne in a Division I-A Southern Region boys basketball quarterfinal.

Chaparral (18-9), the Sunrise League's No. 2 seed, will face Sunset champion Clark (19-8) in a semifinal at 4:40 p.m. Thursday at Desert Pines.

"He was just determined to win," Chaparral coach Steven Bentz said. "He would do anything, from slowing their scorer down to skying to get the rebounds and end possessions. He was huge. …

"We lean on him for experience and just knowing what it takes to get to that next level. He's definitely our leader. When we got down, he was the one yelling at the guys and getting on them."

Nelson — a second-team all-state selection in football — scored five of his seven points, and had seven of his 10 rebounds, in the fourth quarter to help the Cowboys finish the game on a 11-4 run.

Chaparral trailed 41-37 at halftime, but outscored the Desert Shields 18-10 in the third quarter to take a 55-51 lead going into the fourth.

Cheyenne's Kavon Williams tied the game at 59 on a put-back layup with 3:39 remaining, forcing Chaparral to call a timeout.

Out of the timeout, Nelson received a pass from Samuel Porras and drove to the hoop, hitting the basket while being fouled with 3:18 to go.

Nelson had three of the Cowboys' final four rebounds and held Cheyenne's William Moore — who had 13 points in the first half — to only two second-half points.

"We talked about coming back out and going hard (at halftime)," Nelson said. "It was hard work, dedication and hustle. Hustle all game. I'm well conditioned and I'm hungry."

Cheyenne pulled within 62-61 seconds later, but the Cowboys got a four-point swing on the ensuing possession.

Porras, who finished with 16 points, hit a 3-pointer in the right corner while teammate Ronnie Hicks was fouled away from the ball. Hicks made 1 of 2 free throws to give Chaparral a 66-61 lead with 58 seconds left.

Cheyenne missed its next 3-pointer and quickly fouled Ben Kirschbaum, who pushed the lead to 68-61 with two free throws.

Marc Silas had 19 points, and Marcus Hilliard added 10 points and nine rebounds for Chaparral, which shot 27-for-55 (49.1 percent) from the field.

Alahjan Banks had 15 points for Cheyenne (16-7), and teammate Dewayne Alexander notched 10 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots.

After shooting 53.3 percent in the first half, the Desert Shields made 11 of 32 shots (34.4 percent) in the second half and missed all 10 of their 3-point attempts.

Clark 64, Del Sol 35 — At Clark, Keyshaun Webb scored 17 points to lead the Chargers in a rout of the Dragons.

Darius Jackson added 15 points for Clark (19-8), which led 31-17 at halftime and padded that lead with a 21-6 third quarter burst.

Bo Beagle led Del Sol (15-12) with 13 points.

Faith Lutheran 56, Virgin Valley 38 — At Faith Lutheran, Zach Friel scored 18 points as the Crusaders rallied from an early deficit and defeated the Bulldogs.

Blake Bell added nine points for Faith Lutheran (19-7) which trailed 16-10 after a quarter but battled back and will face host Desert Pines (19-8) in a region semifinal at 8 p.m. Thursday.

Andrew Memmott had 13 points, and teammate Zach Barnum scored 11 for Virgin Valley (13-11).

Desert Pines 78, Sierra Vista 36 — At Desert Pines, Greg Floyd scored 22 points, and Trevon Abdullah had 14 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Jaguars to an easy win over the Mountain Lions.

Capri Uzan supplied 14 points and seven assists for the Jaguars, who led 25-13 at halftime.

Maka Ellis led Sierra Vista (11-16) with 17 points.