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Weber senior Brandon Crockett (5) stretches past Northridge senior Ethan Christopher for a layup during a game Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, in Pleasant View.

CONNER BECKER, Standard-Examiner

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Weber junior Derik Bowden (10) chases after Northridge junior Daniel Sunkuli (3) during a game Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, in Pleasant View.

CONNER BECKER, Standard-Examiner

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Weber senior Ben Olpin (3) attempts to extract the ball from Northridge junior Jay Oliver, bottom, during a game Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, in Pleasant View.

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Northridge sophomore Jace Whitear, center, celebrates with senior Ethan Christopher (12) during a game against Weber on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, in Pleasant View.

CONNER BECKER, Standard-Examiner

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PLEASANT VIEW — Patience isn’t the easiest virtue in the playbook, but it mattered the most for Weber High boys basketball in a 59-53 comeback victory over Northridge on Wednesday night.

Up seven with eight minutes to burn, the Knights (1-5) collapsed from the field managing just six points through the final frame. Senior Ben Olpin (17 points) led the Warriors (4-3) in a late surge that sent Northridge scrambling in the final minutes.

Weber senior Brandon Crockett stepped up big as well, leading the floor with 18 points.

The unproductive Northridge finish came as a surprise, especially on a night when senior Cael Lake (17 points), junior Daniel Sunkuli (13 points), and junior Jay Oliver (13 points) were regularly undeniable at the hoop. Lake and Sunkuli each broke in double-figure scoring before halftime.

Ultimately, repeated tries from downtown doomed Northridge in the fourth quarter. Weber head coach and Weber State alumnus Landon Cosby watched his team bite heels all night long, leading only briefly at times, before delivering a 19-6 run for the win.

“I just try to stay calm and tell the guys not to panic,” Cosby said. “Eventually we turned our pressure up defensively, got some stops and we able to get out and run and convert there. … The guys kept believing and they kept pushing.”

The Knights chalked up their third consecutive loss on Wednesday, a trend Northridge head coach Cameron Wood said is critical for a group with plenty of promise.

“I think we tightened up,” Wood said. “We always preach that winning is just a skill, like all the other skills in basketball. We have a young team and a team that’s not very varsity experienced, and so we’re in the process of learning a skill. It’s one of those situations where you’ve gotta learn by experience.”

Northridge certainly came out the faster team, beating the Warriors down the floor on early misses for an 8-2 start. Sunkuli free throws and a Lake layup raised the Knights lead to eight with two minutes remaining.

Crockett gave the Warriors a much-needed shot in the arm, bringing the deficit down to four heading into the second quarter. Olpin and junior Thomas Packer (five points) each returned to the floor with 3-point bombs, pushing Weber ahead by four and forcing Northridge’s first timeout of the game with 5:17 left in the half.

Without big man Will Stratford (foot), the Warriors are leaning on Crockett and 6-foot-2 senior Luke Bingham (six points) to provide the length Crosby’s group needs to compete.

“We’re kind of learning on the fly,” Cosby said. “But the size definitely helps us. (Bingham)’s had a really good year and so has (Crockett). They’re unselfish and once we got that ball moving around, that’s when we made our run.”

Weber junior Derik Bowden (11 points) outmanned his competition in the paint for a key rebound leading to another 3-point bucket by Olpin to make it a one-possession game. Oliver found teammate Sunkuli for the final points, putting Northridge ahead 32-28 at halftime.

Weber, led by Bingham beneath the net, won two rebounds to retie the knot 32-all atop the third quarter. With Northridge on the run, Bowden registered another 3-point bucket, bringing Weber back within a possession, with roughly two minutes left in the third quarter.

Despite repeated turnovers, Northridge ended the third quarter strong as Lake knocked down another 3-point bucket, extending Weber’s deficit to seven points.

Weber traded timeouts with Northridge less than three minutes into the fourth quarter before Olpin and Packer ignited a 9-2 Weber run, including a deep 3-ball with under two minutes to go for a 55-52 lead with crunch time looming.

Cosby’s aforementioned “tempo” defense was getting to the Knights, Wood said.

“I think we got in a hurry a lot with our shots,” Wood said. “We got out of our comfort zone on offense and started taking what the defense was getting us to take. We kind of fell into their trap and were impatient with our shots.”

A Crockett layup and two late misses by Sunkuli from the stripe gave Weber all the breathing room it needed with 16 seconds left.

Cosby was most impressed with his group’s endurance, keeping the beat right down to the final minutes of play.

“We finally started to sprint back quicker,” Cosby said. “We were kind of on our heels the whole first half and I wanted to push tempo at least just to see what we have and maybe we catch them sleeping in that zone and not let it set up.”

Northridge returns Thursday at West Field (7 p.m.) and Weber jumps over to Bonneville (7 p.m.) on Friday.

BOX SCORE

Northridge 16 16 15 6 – 53

Weber High 12 16 12 19 – 59

NHS (53): Lake 17, Sunkuli 13, Oliver 13, Bowden 11, Bailey 8, Christopher 2.

WHS (59): Crockett 18, Olpin 17, Bingham 6, Packer 5, Howe 2.

SCORES, NO STATS REPORTED

Ogden 38, North Sanpete 34

Salem Hills 74, Northridge 73 (Tues.)

GIRLS BASKETBALL

WEST FIELD 55, BOX ELDER 42

BRIGHAM CITY — Canyon Britt scored at all levels, netting 28 points to lead West Field to a road win at Box Elder.

Britt made four twos, four 3-pointers and shot 8 of 10 at the foul line, totaling 19 points in the second half alone for West Field (2-4). Meghan Peterson scored nine points and Kennedee Solomon added eight.

Jocelyn Vranes and Emma Nelson each scored nine points for Box Elder (0-6). Brooklyn Burt pitched in eight points.

FREMONT 56, BEAR RIVER 36

GARLAND — Fremont outscored Bear River 34-15 in the second half to pull away for a road win.

Abby Christensen scored 14 points to lead a contingent of 12 players to score points for Fremont (5-1). Ava Post scored eight points, and Mia McArthur and Lily Hall each scored six.

Madison Littlefield and Aubree Fry each scored 10 points to lead Bear River (1-7). Brooklyn Capener added six points.

MORGAN 53, JUDGE MEM 47

SALT LAKE CITY — Eva Birkeland scored 22 points, shot 5 of 11 from distance and nabbed four steals as Morgan won Tuesday at Judge Memorial.

Keira Brewer pulled down 12 rebounds for Morgan (4-3). Zoe Rockenfield added eight points and four steals. Bella Nelson pitched in seven points and four rebounds

Sports editor Brett Hein contributed to score reports.

Connect with prep sports reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net and X @ctbecker.