Blackhawks just miss three-game home sweep

Whether or not the Cheney High School boys' basketball team enjoys success on the court this season will depend on a lot of factors, some outside of the Blackhawks control.

But one thing might have been evident to fans attending last week's three-game home stand - and that is new head coach Gregg Smith's squad should be exciting to watch.

The Blackhawks flew to a two-game winning streak, routing Deer Park 69-42, Dec. 8, and Idaho's Timberlake 55-39, Dec. 11 before being grounded the next night in a Great Northern League opening loss to West Valley, 60-50.

Cheney took control early in their game with the Northeast A League Stags and never relinquished it, posting a 21-10 first-quarter lead and playing add-on from there, especially in the second half. Cheney's defense forced 20 total Deer Park turnovers, while the offense controlled the area in the paint, outscoring the visitors 42-6.

Drake Johnson led all scorers with 15 points, with Justace Reiter adding 12 and both Riley Jones and Gaige Felix chipping in 11. Morgan Wichman pulled down 11 rebounds as Cheney won the battle on the glass, 26-12.

Friday against the Timberlake Tigers the Blackhawks used a pair of runs to provide some breathing room, but needed a final scoring punch to put away the visitors from Spirit Lake. The Blackhawks went on a 9-0 run from the 3 minute, 28 second mark of the first quarter to 7:05 in the second to turn a 5-4 margin into a 15-4 lead, and used a 11-0 run in the first 3:14 of the second half to transform a 24-15 halftime lead into a 35-15 advantage.

Cheney eventually stretched their lead to 20 at 45-25 early in the fourth. But the Tigers rallied, closing the gap to 49-35 with under four minutes to play before Cheney regained some offensive form to close out the win.

Jamiel Worthem led Cheney with a double-double, 15 points and 12 rebounds, with Johnson adding 13 points.

Saturday the Blackhawks owned a one-point, 24-23 halftime lead in the league opener with the Eagles, only to have West Valley's John Sage dominate the third quarter. Sage scored 16 of his game-high 26 points in the frame, including back-to-back 3-pointers, and Cheney could never regain its stride.

Cam Hardt led the Blackhawks in scoring with 13 points while Reiter added 12.

Cheney drops to 3-2 on the season and begins GNL play at 0-1. They'll have a difficult time earning that first league win this week as they travel to defending 2A state champion Clarkston (2-0) Thursday, Dec. 17.

The Blackhawks will finish the 2015 portion of their schedule on the road, traveling to Rathdrum, Idaho to face 3A Lakeland Monday, Dec. 21, and then to Deer Park for a rematch with the Stags Dec. 29.

John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].