The last time the Lowry High School girls basketball team won the Northern 3A Regional Basketball championship was in 2016 on a buzzer-beater to beat Churchill County.
It wasn’t a buzzer-beater in 2022 but the Lady Bucks had to rally from a rare fourth quarter deficit on Saturday afternoon at the Winnemucca Event Center to beat Spring Creek 53-47 and claim the regional title and improve to 25-3 on the season.
Lowry has won 17 games in a row and has not lost in 2022. The last defeat was to Flagstaff, Ariz., in Dec. 2021 in Las Vegas. Flagstaff is 28-2 and in the 4A state semifinals in Arizona.
Lowry trailed 42-38 with five minutes to play, but outscored Spring Creek 15-5 to end the contest. It was the third win of the season for the Lady Bucks over the Spartans.
Trailing by four points in the fourth quarter, Lowry senior Emily Backus knocked down a 3-pointer to cut the gap to 42-41 and with under four minutes to play, fellow senior Jovi Kuskie hit a short jumper to put the Lady Bucks up for good.
The next time down the floor, Spring Creek saw two jumpers from beyond the 3-point line bounce off the rim and into the hands of Lowry.
After struggling as a team for much of the day at the free throw line, senior Hannah Whitted made 1-of-2 free throws and Kuskie made a pair to cap off a 10-0 run and lead 48-42 with 90 seconds to play.
The Spartans did not go away and connected on a 3-pointer to cut the gap to 48-45. Lowry made 2-of-4 free throws with less than a minute to play, on each by Backus and Kuskie.
Spring Creek had its chance at the free throw line and made 1-of-2 shots and cut the lead to 50-46 and were forced to foul.
The foul worked as Backus missed both free throws, but Spring Creek turned the ball over, which led to Whitted making 1-of-2 free throws to make the score 51-46 with :34 seconds to play.
With :12.7 seconds to go, Lowry put Spring Creek at the free throw line, and the Spartans struggled from the charity strip as well, making 1-of-2 to make the score 51-47.
The Spartans quickly fouled and Kuskie missed two free throws with :11.3 seconds to go, but the Spartans turned the ball over once again and Lowry sophomore Savannah Stoker put the game out of reach with two free throws with :1.9 seconds to go.
The game was just as close from the start, as Kuskie scored nine of Lowry’s 12 first-quarter points to help the Lady Bucks to a 12-8 advantage after eight minutes of play. The gap grew six points at the start of the second quarter, as Kuskie connected on a long pass to Whitted for a bucket, but the Spartans hung tough and the Lady Bucks managed a 18-17 lead at halftime.
Lowry got its share of baskets from Kuskie, Backus, Stoker and McKenzi Petersen to maintain a five-point lead.
Lowry 63,
Elko 33
In order to reach the championship game on Saturday, Lowry needed to beat rival Elko for the third time in 11 days. The Lady Bucks beat the Indians by 29 points on Feb. 7 (67-38), by 27 points on Feb. 12 (67-40) and completed the sweep with a 63-33 win on Friday night at the Winnemucca Event Center to punch their ticket to the state tournament.
Lowry took control early, scoring 11 of the first 13 points and did not look back. Stoker and Petersen combined for 10 of those points, scoring from close range.
Elko closed within six points at 17-11 early in the second quarter, but it was time for Backus and Stoker to take over, as the duo combined for 14 points in the second quarter to give Lowry a 31-12 lead at the break.
The Indians made three 3-pointers in the third quarter to try to stay within striking distance, but Stoker and Kuskie kept Elko away, combining for 15 of Lowry’s 17 third quarter points. Petersen had the other basket in the third quarter.
The Lady Bucks led by as many as 32 points in the fourth quarter, before holding on to the 30-point win.
Lowry 69,
North Valleys 12
Lowry opened the tournament on Thursday night against North Valleys. The game was delayed for about 45 minutes, as North Valleys dealt with transportation issues from Washoe County.
Lowry dominated from the start leading 44-12 at halftime. North Valleys did not score in the second half, as the Lady Bucks built a 63-12 lead after the third quarter. Stoker scored a career-high 35 points, including 11-of-11 from the free throw line.
Lowry will play Pahrump Valley in the semifinals of the NIAA 3A State Championships on Friday in Las Vegas at the Cox Pavilion on the campus of UNLV. Spring Creek plays Moapa Valley at 10:40 a.m.
The championship game is Saturday at 10 a.m.
