Friday’s prep recap: Melba takes down Ambrose in battle of 2A heavyweights

Deep in the Melba High School boys’ basketball student section was a sign with four large words: “We can. We will.”

And they did. In a battle of 2A state powers, No. 3 Melba knocked off No. 2 Ambrose 64-57 on Friday to take over sole possession of first place in the 2A WIC standings with one week left in the regular season.

“It’s that time of year when you have to step up,” Melba coach Spencer Trappett said. “Those who step up win games. (Ambrose) is a great team. We knew it was going to be a great game and come down to the wire.”

Four Melba (16-2, 11-1 2A WIC) players finished in double figures, and two posted a double-double, as the Mustangs’ depth overwhelmed Ambrose (16-3, 10-2).

Joe Reiber had 17 points and 13 rebounds. Cache Beus racked up 13 points, 15 rebounds and four steals. And Braden Volkers and Tucker Lowber each scored 14 points as the Mustangs avenged a Jan. 13 loss at Ambrose.

Melba has now won seven straight since and held 2A’s top-scoring offense nine points below its season average Friday.

Early in the second quarter, Volkers provided crafty layups to put the Mustangs up 22-15. Then on the other side of the court, his swat out of bounds got the packed crowd fired up.

“It really starts with our defense,” Reiber said. “Our defense picked up big time and did a good job of not letting the (Ambrose) offense get transition points.”

But Ambrose would not go away. After trailing by as many as 12 points, two deep 3-pointers from Johnny Sugarman brought the Archers within two points in the third quarter.

A quick five points from Reiber and key baskets from Beus and Lowber extended the lead back to nine late in the fourth quarter. And Reiber, the reigning 2A WIC player of the year, got his hands on an important rebound to seal the win.

“(Joe) played well,” Trappett said. “He missed some shots, but everyone does. He’s a kid that other teams have to guard. They have to make their game plan around Joe.”

Sugarman led the Archers with 20 points, and Hudson Hughes added 16. But they couldn’t keep up with the multi-headed attack from Melba, which controls its own destiny with just two games left on the schedule.

“Coming off a game like this, it carries you for weeks,” Trappett said. “It goes back to one game at a time. In the long scheme of things, this time of year it’s one game at a time and then having to focus on what’s coming up.”

FRIDAY’S PREP STANDOUTS

• Nate Ojukwu, Mountain View (boys basketball): Stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, seven assists and six steals as the Mavericks routed Kuna 55-28.
• AJ LaBeau, Timberline (boys basketball): Had 13 points, eight rebounds and two blocks as the Wolves edged Skyview 37-35 on the road.
• DJ Green, McCall-Donnelly (boys basketball): He and Ethan Tinney both scored 20 points as the Vandals topped Fruitland 65-43 on the road to maintain a one-game lead atop the 3A SRV standings.

BOYS BASKETBALL SCOREBOARD

This story was originally published February 5, 2022 at 12:10 AM.