The second and third quarters Thursday night  of the Chaparral-Dobson boys basketball game illustrate how wild the game can be. The wildnessand momentum favored Dobson this time.

Seniors Ryan Richardson and Kodi Justice combined for 26 of their 40 points in the second half as Dobson recovered from a dismal second period and held off Chaparral late for a 70-66 win in a Division I game at Dobson.

Richardson and Justice, who have big-game experience, showed it in the second half. Each finished with 20 points. Dobson (10-6 overall, 6-2 power-ranking games) came out strong taking an 18-11 lead after the first quarter. The Mustangs looked shell-shocked in the second as Chaparral blitzed them 25-6 in the period to take a 10-point lead to the dressing room.

Chaparral (10-5, 4-3) didn't have a magical first half offensively. It resembled a pre-game layup drill as the Firebirds made 11 layups and sank only two shots outside of 10 feet. Every player (five) who scored in the second period for Chaparral took the ball to the basket for easy points.

"It was like we were standing still and they just went right around us," Dobson coach Rick McConnell said of the his team's lackadaiscal effort at stopping or picking up penetrating foes. "Playing better defense helps our offense. We did a better job on defense the second half. That helped us to be more dialed in on offense."

Dobson lost its seven-point lead in less than two minutes of the second quarter. In the third period the Mustangs returned the favor, erasing their double-digit deficit in just more than two minutes. At the 4:33 mark of the third period, Dobson took the lead at 39-37 and never trailed again. Dobson outscored Chaparral, 25-9, in the third quarter.

"It was a game of runs, games usually are," Chaparral coach Dan Peterson said. "After we got down (second half) we told our guys we had to have another run. They have good shooters. We gave them too many good looks in the second half."

Justice scored nine points in the third period, hitting from three-point range, mid-range and a layup. Richardson tallied eight of his points in the fourth period as Dobson protected a six-or seven point lead most of the stanza. Richardson and Kairee Williams teamed up to connect on eight free throws in the final 1:33. Williams finished with 11 points -- all in the second half.

Chaparral trimmed a seven-point deficit to with 1:30 left to two with 7.7 seconds to play. Williams made two free throws to bump the lead to four. Chaparral turned the ball over hoping to get a four-point play at the end.

Chaparral senior guard Shane Cooper led all scorers with 25 points and sank the only threes of the game (two) for the Firebirds. Ryan Bayster and Brandon Hoffer chipped in 12 points apiece. Leading scorer Kenzo Nudo (16 points a game), who played a little more than three quarters, did not score. The junior guard was manned nearly all night by Richardson, who's effort on the defensive end contributed to an 0-for-6 night from the field for him.