ROY — Unlike the sun during all the recent snow and rain, the Roy High girls basketball team broke through last week. The Royals won both their games against Kearns and Granger, a welcome respite after starting the season 0-9.

Friday against Granger, Roy saw what happens if it doesn’t take plays off. The Royals rebounded a missed free throw and ran out the clock to win 40-39.

But Tuesday against Cyprus, Roy saw what happens if it does take plays off in a 46-38 to the Pirates.

“It’s just a scrappy region, so you just can’t take plays off and that’s what I tell my kids,” Roy head coach Carolyn DeHoff said. “We have to come ready to battle defensively and we didn’t do that tonight on the 50-50 balls, because that’s what we hang our hats on.”

Among other things, the Royals (2-10, 2-1 Region 2) were undone by two buzzer-beating 3-pointers to end the second and third quarters that broke their back.

From a sideline out-of-bounds play, Cyprus junior Amelia Echternkamp banked in a 3 at the halftime buzzer, got fouled and made the free throw to put the Pirates ahead 33-22.

Viu Hosea made a buzzer-beater 3 from the corner to give Cyprus a 44-30 going to the fourth quarter.

“And it’s not always those last few possessions, like at the end of the half and stuff. It’s many before that, and we just couldn’t get going in the first half,” DeHoff said.

Roy trailed 8-2 early, then got 3s of their own from Lylian Rosenberg and Sienna Sanchez to level the score 8-8.

Rosenberg and Nicole Williams led Roy with nine points each. Williams had nine rebounds.

Tailor Butterfield’s second-quarter basket with 4:38 left gave the Royals their first lead of the game, 17-16. Cyprus turned it up a few notches, taking the lead on an Echternkamp layup during the next possession and finishing the half on a 17-5 run.

Roy didn’t have an answer for Echternkamp, who scored a game-high 19 points. Cyprus’ Tamila Francis scored 14 points, but none after halftime, which the Royals chalked up as a success.

Two late 3s in the fourth quarter by Rosenberg and Williams cut the Cyprus lead, which had been as high as 16 points, to 46-36. The Royals had series of defensive stops and chances to cut further into the deficit but missed shots at the other end.

DeHoff credited Roy’s second-half response as it outscored Cyprus 16-13 after halftime, including 8-2 in the fourth quarter. The Royals just ran out of time once they started to play better defensively.

Connect with reporter Patrick Carr via email at pcarr@standard.net, Twitter @patrickcarr_ and Instagram @standardexaminersports.

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