‘Tougher than cancer’: On an unusual senior night, Canyon View comes from behind to edge Hurricane

Chad Hartmann makes two free throws with eight seconds left in Canyon View's 55-52 comeback win over Hurricane, Cedar City, Utah, Nov. 30, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

CEDAR CITY — Although Wednesday night’s game was the Canyon View High School boys basketball team’s season opener, it hardly seemed like it.

Sarah Hartmann and her son Chad Hartmann before Canyon View’s game vs. Hurricane, Cedar City, Utah, Nov. 30, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

In an unusual move, the Falcons honored their senior players before their first game instead of at the end of the season, as is typically the case.

The reason for the early “senior night” was to ensure that Sarah Hartmann, who is battling terminal cancer, would be in attendance for the tradition typically reserved for the final home game of the season.

Her son Chad was the seventh and final CVHS senior to take the floor as the seniors and their parents were recognized before their matchup vs. Hurricane. 

As the home crowd gave Chad and his mother a standing ovation, Sarah Hartmann, turned to her son and said simply, “Play hard.”

Chad Hartmann ended up scoring a team-high 19 points, including two key free throws in the closing seconds to help Canyon View to a 55-52 comeback win over Hurricane.

“There’s things more important than the game of basketball that he’s facing right now,” Canyon View head coach Kim Blackner said of Hartmann, a 6-foot guard. 

“He obviously did some nice things down the stretch to get us over the hump and then kind of closed the door,” Blackner added.

Canyon View’s seven senior boys basketball players and their parents are honored before the Falcons’ game vs. Hurricane, Cedar City, Utah, Nov. 30, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

Blackner said he’s known Hartmann since May, when Chad and his mother moved to Cedar City from Texas a few months after his mother’s initial diagnosis.

“He has a really nice skill set and a great basketball IQ,” Blackner said of Hartmann. “He wasn’t flawless. He made some mistakes, but I love the fact that he just kept competing.”

“This was a rough night for him,” the coach added. “It’s his introduction to Canyon View High School. It’s our first home game, plus his senior night, honoring him and his mom. In the end, he’s got an uphill battle and we know that.”

Blackner noted that the phrase “Tougher than Cancer” appears on the back of his players’ warmup jerseys.

“We know Chad’s got a rough road ahead of him,” Blackner said. “He uses basketball as an outlet, which we get to benefit from because he’s a great player. Our hope is that we have the opportunity to support him and have him be a part of our Falcon family. Our love for him is stronger than cancer and he’s a part of a special group of really good dudes that have surrounded him and have accepted him.”

Canyon View hosts Hurricane in boys basketball action, Cedar City, Utah, Nov. 30, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

All seven of Canyon View’s seniors ended up in the scoring column, including Andrew Barnes, who made an early free throw despite seeing limited action.

Blackner said Barnes, who was the region’s MVP last year, had just barely received medical clearance to play earlier that day. 

“We’ll kind of lead him back into it over the next few days and get him back into basketball shape and put some pieces together,” Blackner added.

The Tigers led 11-3 with just under three minutes left in the first quarter, but Canyon View rallied to pull within one point by the end of the quarter, 12-11. After an evenly played second quarter, the score stood tied 22–22 at halftime.

During the third period, Hurricane pulled a few baskets ahead, eventually taking a 40-35 lead at the end of the third quarter.

At the midway point of the fourth quarter, the Tigers led 49-42. However, the Falcons closed the gap with a quick 7-0 run to tie the game at 49 at the 3:00 mark. The next minute of action was scoreless, but Hurricane’s Nifai Iloa made one of two free throws to give the Tigers a 50-49 lead with 1:58 left. On the Tigers’ next possession, Mason Gilberg drove the lane and made a layup to put Hurricane up by three, 52-49 with about 1:30 remaining.

That ended up being the last time the Tigers would score as Canyon View capitalized on a couple of key Hurricane turnovers plus a pair of missed free throws down the stretch. Canyon View’s Myles Topham scored from underneath the left side of the basket with less than 10 seconds remaining to give the Falcons their first lead of the game, 53-52.

Myles Topham makes the go-ahead basket for Canyon View in the Falcons’ comeback win over Hurricane, Cedar City, Utah, Nov. 30, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

Following a timeout, Hurricane wasn’t able to inbound the ball within the five-second limit, so the Tigers were forced to foul to stop the clock. Hartmann swished both of the ensuing free throws to give the Falcons a three-point cushion, 55-52, with eight seconds left.

Hurricane managed one last shot attempt, but Carter Ashby’s 3-point try at the buzzer bounced off the rim, and the home crowd erupted as Canyon View’s players and coaches ran excitedly onto the court in celebration.

Blackner said the game reminded him of an “old-fashioned Region 9 battle” from back when Hurricane and Canyon View were in the same region and classification a few years ago.

“For our first home game, I thought the fans and our student body were awesome,” he said.

Blackner said he sees himself and first-year Hurricane head coach Brennen Schweikart as being in similar situations as they are each getting started in their new roles.

“We’re new and we’re trying to get our guys to adapt to the things that we’d like to do,” he said. “Not that anything was wrong before, but just a change in styles or philosophies. He’s got the same challenge that I have. He’s got some guys that are long, while I think we have overall a little bit better basketball skill.

“Size is going to impact the game. And (Hurricane) definitely took advantage of their strengths. We were just fortunate enough to have, you know, a couple of things go our way down there at the end, with under a minute left.”

Hartmann was the only Falcon to score in double figures with 19 points. Cooper Malcom scored 8 points, while Jace Farrow and Topham each added 7.

Meanwhile, Owen Iloa led the Tigers with 15 points, while Gilberg added 14. Hurricane converted just 9-of-26 free throw attempts during the game (36%), while Canyon View made 14-of-21 (67%).

Canyon View High School’s ongoing commitment to fighting cancer will continue when it hosts the annual Steve Hodson Cancer Classic Dec. 28-30. At least eight varsity boys teams and eight varsity girls teams from around the state are scheduled to participate in the invitational tournament, which raises funds to support local cancer patients and their families.

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