CEDAR CITY — In the first region boys basketball games of the new year on Friday, Desert Hills and Pine View both notched road wins over their Region 9 opponents, while the Hurricane Tigers won at home. Here’s St. George News’ capsule coverage of Friday’s games:
Desert Hills 64, Cedar 55
At Cedar, the visiting Thunder pulled away in the fourth quarter to defeat the Redmen, 64-55.
The first half was a back-and-forth battle, with the teams trading the lead several times. Cedar managed to take a 27-25 lead at the half.
With just under three minutes remaining in the third, freshman guard Zab Santana of Cedar drained a 3-pointer to put the Redmen up by four, 38-34.
However, Desert Hills proceeded to go on a 10-0 run from that point, sparked by an alley-oop dunk following a time out.
“We called the play out of the huddle,” Desert Hills head coach Wade Turley said. “They had a different defense than what we anticipated. So we switched it to the alley-oop.”
Senior guard Alex Sampson lofted the ball toward the hoop, and junior teammate Mason Chase dunked it home, helping the Thunder pull ahead with a lead they would not relinquish.
“That seemed to give our kids a little life when Mason threw that down. That was a nice dunk. So the kids got excited and I think they just played with a little more focus and intensity, and that helped us both defensively and offensively. We seemed to have a little more confidence, a little more sense of urgency, and we played better.”
Down 44-38 in the final seconds of the third quarter, Cedar’s Jaron Garrett banked in a long 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded, bringing the Redmen within three points heading into the final quarter.
However, Desert Hills’ Carson Thornton made a 3-pointer of his own at the beginning of the fourth period to put the Thunder back up by six, 47-41.
Over the next several minutes, Desert Hills slowly extended that lead via a mixture of inside shots and free throws, eventually pulling ahead by as many as 13 with a couple minutes left to play.
“We had a string of missed shots, and then they made 14 free throws in the third and fourth quarters and that really grew their lead,” Cedar head coach Russ Beck said.”We weren’t getting to the line and we weren’t hitting our shots from the perimeter.”
Nevertheless, Beck said he was pleased with his team’s effort, given that they were missing a few key players from their lineup due to injuries. Senior forward Tanner Eyre was also sick but still played, scoring four points.
“We’ve just got to get healthy,” Beck added. “Once we’re healthy, I think we’re one of the scariest teams in the region. We’re more advanced than we were last year because we weren’t in a lot of games last year. At least, even with our deficiencies in our injuries right now, we’re in ball games … we’ve just got to figure out ways to finish them.”
Thornton led Desert Hills in scoring with 20 points, while Chase added 14. Cedar was led by Santana’s 18 points, with sophomore guard Treyton Tebbs adding 17.
Cedar’s next game is at Pine View Wednesday at 7 p.m., while Desert Hills visits Canyon View that same night.
— Written by Jeff Richards
Pine View 64, Snow Canyon 50
In the Region 9 opener for Pine View and the second region game for Snow Canyon, the Pine View Panthers emerged victorious, earning a road win over the Warriors on Friday night.
The Panthers led for the entire game, building a 16-point lead by halftime before winning by 14.
Pine View shot the ball well in the win, going 20-for-36 from the field (55 percent), while hitting 9-of-19 shots from 3-point range (47 percent).
Taiven Shepherd dominated the game inside for the Panthers, scoring 19 points on 7-for-9 shooting. Michael Moore added 17 points along with 3 assists and 3 rebounds for Pine View, and Jared Sudweeks added 12 points, knocking down four three-pointers.
The Warriors were led by McKay Mecham, who topped all scorers with 21 points, including four 3-pointers. Jakob Dunkley added 10 points for Snow Canyon.
Up next, the Warriors will travel to take on region foe Dixie on Wednesday. The game is slated for a 7 p.m. tipoff.
The Panthers will look to continue their winning start to region play when they take on Cedar on Wednesday. The game begins at 7 p.m. and will be hosted by Pine View.
— Written by Spencer Rodak
Hurricane 58, Canyon View 51
At Hurricane, the Tigers broke open a tight game in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Canyon View Falcons 22-13 over the final eight minutes to win by seven, 58-51.
Bryce Thomas scored 17 points to lead Hurricane’s balanced offensive attack, which included double-figure scoring from Domenic Scott, who had 13 points, and Matt Meyers and Dallin Davis, who each finished with 11.
Canyon View head coach Robbie Potter said the Falcons played well right up until the end, executing their game plan well for most of the contest.
“I thought we played really well for about 30 minutes, but they made the key plays down the stretch and we didn’t,” Potter said. “They made 13-of-13 free throws in the fourth quarter. Dominic Scott got too many offensive rebounds, and we have to be tougher.
“It was a tough game. Credit to their kids who made tough plays.”
Canyon View’s next game is at home against Desert Hills Wednesday at 7 p.m. Hurricane next plays Friday, Jan. 11 at Snow Canyon.
— Written by Jeff Richards
Region 9 standings
Desert Hills 2-0 (8-4)
Dixie 1-0 (9-2)
Pine View 1-0 (4-6)
Hurricane 1-1 (5-6)
Canyon View 1-1 (5-7)
Snow Canyon 0-2 (4-7)
Cedar 0-2 (4-8)
Click on photo to enlarge it, then use your left-right arrow keys to cycle through the gallery.
Keegan Munson of Desert Hills battles for position against Cedar, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Desert Hills vs. Cedar boys basketball, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Carson Thornton of Desert Hills dishes the ball to a teammate against Cedar, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Trevin Lindstrom of Desert Hills dribbles downcourt against Cedar, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Desert Hills vs. Cedar boys basketball, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Zab Santana and Trevin Lindstrom battle for a rebound, Desert Hills vs. Cedar boys basketball, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Mason Chase hits a 3-point shot, Desert Hills vs. Cedar boys basketball, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Desert Hills vs. Cedar boys basketball, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Tanner Eyre of Cedar defends a shot attempt by Carson Thornton, Desert Hills vs. Cedar boys basketball, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Zab Santana of Cedar is guarded by Carson Thornton of Desert Hills, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Zab Santana of Cedar is guarded by Carson Thornton of Desert Hills, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News Pine View vs. Snow Canyon, St. George, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by David Larson, St. George News Pine View vs. Snow Canyon, St. George, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by David Larson, St. George News Pine View vs. Snow Canyon, St. George, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by David Larson, St. George News Pine View vs. Snow Canyon, St. George, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by David Larson, St. George News Pine View vs. Snow Canyon, St. George, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by David Larson, St. George News Pine View vs. Snow Canyon, St. George, Utah, Jan. 4, 2019 | Photo by David Larson, St. George News
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