Boys basketball: North Central builds big lead, holds off late charge to down Lake City 60-53

As far as December nonleague matchups go, Saturday’s tilt featuring North Central at Lake City had a little bit of everything – a defending state champion playing on its home floor, an emerging team looking for a signature win, and a former local hero on the bench in his first stint as a varsity coach.

The Wolfpack are still very much a work in progress, but coach Robert Sacre – the former Gonzaga and Los Angeles Lakers star – has his squad looking up. And maybe even winning a game that last year might have gone the other way.

Jacori Ervin led NC with 16 points, Eli Williams had 14 – including seven in the fourth quarter after the lead shrank to single digits – and the visiting Wolfpack made their free throws down the stretch to beat the Timberwolves 60-53.

NC (5-1) led by as many at 15 early in the second half before the T-wolves – who won the Idaho 5A state title last season with University of Virginia commit, now college freshman, Blake Buchanan – trimmed the deficit to three late in the fourth quarter.

“We’re gonna have to learn how to play through adversity,” Sacre said. “And that’s life man. You know, life’s full of problems, and living life is solving them.”

“Last year we couldn’t really do well with adversity,” Williams said. “But this year we’re proving we can handle it better.”

Sacre was named “temporary head coach” of the Wolfpack in October. He is energized by the development of his team in the early season.

“We came out a little slow in the second half, which I didn’t like, but at the same time they grew,” Sacre said. “These guys are getting better, better and better and I’m really happy with how these guys are growing.”

“I would much rather have games like these than blow them out by 40,” Williams said. “This is where we learn. And this is where we get ready for state.”

Up by 12 at halftime, JuJu Ervin (10 points) started the third quarter with a steal and slam, then Jacori Ervin drove the lane with authority to make it 39-24 midway through the period.

“That’s how it should be,” Williams said. “We’re bigger than every other team. So, we’re just trying to get inside and get what we want.”

“They’re learning to grow,” Sacre said of the 6-foot-11 and 6-9 Ervin brothers. “They’re learning to get better and I’m slowly I’m seeing the growth inch by inch.”

Lake City (4-1) used a 6-0 run to cut it back to nine and Cason Miller’s layup at the third-quarter horn made it a seven-point game at 41-34.

Miller and Reese Strawn both scored on layups to start the fourth, trimming the deficit to three. But Williams stopped the run with a layup, and his 3 the next time down put it back to eight.

“Eli’s a coach’s dream,” Sacre said. “I’m so fortunate to have him on our team. He makes my life so much easier.”

Strawn’s 3 with 54.5 seconds left made it 54-50 but Travelle Jones and Nick Elliott made four straight free throws to ice it.

NC raced out to a 9-1 lead, punctuated by a fastbreak two-handed slam by JuJu Ervin. Jones added a 3 late and the Wolfpack led 19-13 after one.

The lead reached double digits late in the second quarter on a 3-pointer by Trey Workman. Jacori Ervin nailed a 3 from the top of the key and NC lead 32-20 at the half.

Strawn led Lake City with 16 points, 11 in the second half. Jordan Carlson, a 6-foot-6 freshman, added 12 and Miller finished with 10.