Dinos uspet Union in overtime

The Carbon Dinos defeated the Union Cougars 76-69 in overtime Wednesday night.
Carbon started the game off hot with a 11-2 run led by junior forward Derek Hillam.
Hillam had 11 points in the first quarter but the Dinos let Union come back to tie the game at 19 with 22 seconds left in the period. He would go on to be the leading scorer for the Dinos with 22 points.
Both teams exchanged leads in the second quarter until junior guard Ty Anderson hit a three at the buzzer for Carbon to take a 37-34 lead into halftime.
One of the key storylines of the game was the foul trouble of Carbon Jordan Vasquez. Anderson stepped up and filled the void for Vasquez and scored 18 points for the Dinos.
“I know I don’t lose anything at all with Anderson coming off the bench, he’s capable of that every night. Tonight was his night and I was proud of him,” said Carbon Head Coach Kyle Willson.
In the second half, the Dinos defense stepped up and helped stop Union’s Jon Parker. With Vasquez on the bench most of the half, Anderson guarded Parker and limited him to only two points.
“Ty stepped up big time, we needed that performance tonight. We were making sure that Jon Parker didn’t score, he is fantastic player, and we put Ty on him and Ty did a great job,” said Hillam.
With a seven-point lead heading into the fourth quarter, the Dinos had all the momentum and controlled the game most of the last period.
Union made a comeback in the final three minutes of the game and was able to take the lead with a minute left.
With 6.5 seconds left in the game the Dinos took a timeout to draw up a play for one more shot at forcing overtime.
Senior Ryan Gagon got the ball in his hands after the timeout and drove to the basket and scored a layup with three seconds left to force overtime.
“The plan was to draw a play up and shoot a three but I caught the ball and I wasn’t very confident about it. There were a couple guys that started to cheat up on me and my natural instinct was to drive and just look at the rim,” said Gagon.
To start overtime the Dinos got a big three from junior forward Collin Lewis to help get momentum and a lead going.
“That kick to Lew in the corner, I mean no shot is a bad shot for Lew and that was wide open and he stepped into it and that was a big shot for us,” said Willson.
Anderson continued to deliver for the Dinos in overtime going 4 of 4 at the free throw line to keep the lead.
“We handled the ball, had fun and played defense,” said Anderson.
After the game Willson said that it came down to that defense to help his team get the win over the top ranked Union.
“It’s about my guys not giving up and the pride they took tonight in their defense especially, is what got us the win tonight and I can’t be prouder of my guys than I am right now,” said Willson.
The regular season finale for the Dinos is Friday night at home for senior night against American Leadership Academy.
With a win on Friday, the Dinos chances to sneak into the final spot of the playoffs will be much better. The top four teams in the Region 14 standings will advance to the state playoffs next weekend in Heber City.
Gagon, Vasquez and point guard Ryker Smith will be honored after the game as seniors for Carbon. Tip off against ALA is scheduled for 7 p.m.