Steamboat Springs — Despite playing its best game against the best team its seen all year, the Steamboat Springs High School boys basketball team couldn’t overcome cold shooting from the outside and fell, 49-37, to Evanston, Wyo., on Friday in the Flaming Gorge Classic Basketball tournament.

Steamboat finished the day 0 of 15 from the 3-point line, while Wyoming’s Class 4A fourth-ranked team hit six 3’s.

“That was really the difference,” Steamboat coach Luke DeWolfe said. “Otherwise, it was probably our best game both defensively and offensively. We got good looks, the shots were good, and they just rattled out.”

Steamboat (3-4 overall) kept the game close throughout, despite the team’s shooting woes. The Sailors trailed, 15-12, after one quarter and, 31-16, at halftime, before making runs in the third and fourth quarters.

Steamboat cut the lead to 38-29 at the end of three and closed within seven with four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

But at the three-minute mark, the Sailors had three consecutive turnovers, and the Red Devils were able to push the lead to 10.

“We had opportunities,” DeWolfe said. “They were making turnovers. We had a chance to capitalize and didn’t do it. That’s all you can ask against good teams.”

Nelson Brassell led Steamboat with 11 points. Charles Wood added nine points, and Alex Wood contributed seven.

Still, DeWolfe said, the Sailors played much better than they did Tuesday, when lapses in concentration cost Steamboat against Riverton, Wyo.

DeWolfe said Friday was as good as Steamboat has played all year. Althought the offense continues with its struggles shooting the ball, DeWolfe said, eventually, those shots will start falling.

“This summer it wasn’t a problem. We shoot well in practice, and now it seems like we’re in a slump,” DeWolfe said. “I think we just need to shoot through it. We’re shooters so we’ll keep shooting and hopefully shoot ourselves out of this slump.”

Steamboat finishes up play at 10 a.m. today against Cheyenne East. DeWolfe said he expects the Sailors’ play to carry over from Friday into today’s game.

“Hopefully we continue to carry that game into this game,” he said. “I think if we do, we’ll be all right.”