Needles boys top Boulder City

Boulder City’s boys basketball team looked to have stolen momentum when Devin Combs sank a 3-pointer at the third-quarter buzzer to give the Eagles a two-point lead Tuesday night.

Looks were deceiving.

Defending Class 2A state champion Needles scored the first eight points in the fourth quarter on the way to a 68-64 road win over defending 3A champion Boulder City.

“I told the kids, 'In order for us to win this game, we’re going to have to defend,’ ” Needles coach Jeff Plank said. “We were going to have to do a good job on (Kyle Dimpel); he had a lights-out game. We didn’t shut him out, but we played better defense.”

Dimpel, a senior guard, scored 22 of his 30 points in the first half to lead Boulder City (5-5).

But no one else scored in double figures for the Eagles, who graduated their entire starting lineup from last season.

Boulder City was held scoreless in the fourth quarter until Ryan Washburn knocked down a baseline jumper about four minutes into the final period.

Michael Hills led balanced Needles (3-0) with 13 points, eight assists and three steals. Daric Courtwright added 12 points, Andrew Mathews 10 and Daniel Solomon 10. Aaron Burns supplied nine points and nine rebounds.

Needles shot 13-for-21 from the free-throw line, while Boulder City was 0-for-4.

Boulder City returned only four players from last year’s state title team. Needles welcomed back nine.

“I have so much respect for Boulder City basketball,” Plank said. “It’s a top-notch program, so to come in here and win is big for us.

“But it doesn’t mean anything; we’ve got league play starting Jan. 5, and that’s what counts. Hopefully these experiences help us in the long run.”