OGDEN — Bingham coach Mark Dubach demonstrated a lot of confidence in his team Tuesday.
After Northridge's Austin Robinson drained back-to-back 3-pointers to tie the 5A first-round game in the final two minutes, Dubach opted not to call a time-out, instead choosing to see how his team responded to the adversity.
Brett Sommerville rewarded the decision.
The junior guard buried a wide-open 3-pointer as the Miners regained the lead en route to the 60-54 victory at the Dee Events Center.
"Our guards have been big all year for us. We expect those kind of things to happen because we've been so successful," said Dubach. "If he doesn't make it, it's a different game."
A Sommerville miss could have given Northridge the ball with the game tied at 54, and the Knights' confidence level sky-high after battling back from a 10-point deficit. Instead, Sommerville's shot put Bingham in front 57-54, and the Miners' defense didn't allow another point the rest of the way.
"Every game is tough," said Dubach. "To win it all you need some luck and you need the ball to bounce your way, and you need that to happen for four games."
With the victory, Bingham advances to Thursday's 7:40 p.m. quarterfinal against Clearfield.
Bingham figured the game would be a battle, but Dubach didn't anticipate his team squandering a 10-point fourth quarter lead and relying on a clutch 3-pointer to bail the Miners out.
With 6:27 remaining in the game, Northridge's Grayson Dart committed a flagrant foul on a breakaway layup by Jake Peterson. Bingham turned the sequence into a four-point play, and a seemingly comfortable 52-42 lead.
Amazingly, on the very next possession, a technical foul on Bingham's John Clifford swung momentum right back in Northridge's favor.
Clifford appeared to block a shot by Northridge's Adam Jordan — who led all scorers with 27 points — but Clifford was whistled for the foul. Out of frustration, Clifford slapped his hand on the floor, and a technical foul quickly followed.
Four-straight free throws cut the deficit to 52-46, but two minutes later Bingham still led by six. That's when Northridge's Robinson finally woke up. After missing his first seven shots of the game, six from 3-point range, Robinson buried back-to-back 3-pointers to tie the game up.
"We were disappointed we weren't able to hold onto our 10-point lead in the fourth quarter," said Dubach.
Robinson's tying shots merely set the stage for Sommerville's even bigger shot. Sommerville finished with 14 points to lead Bingham, while Jake Peterson and Tyler Strong combined for 21 points.
E-mail: jedward@desnews.com