Region 9 boys basketball: Crimson edges Desert Hills on buzzer-beater; Dixie, Cedar, Snow Canyon win on road

ST. GEORGE — In Region 9 basketball action Friday night, Crimson Cliffs edged Desert Hills on a last-second shot, putting the Mustangs into a tie with the Thunder for second place in the region standings. Meanwhile, Dixie moved into first place in Region 9 with a 19-point win over the Falcons at Canyon View. Cedar and Snow Canyon also picked up wins on the road. Here’s a look at each of the four games:

Crimson Cliffs 69, Desert Hills 67

Crimson Cliffs guard Trei Rockhill drained the game-winning shot, a 3-pointer at the buzzer, to give the Mustangs a dramatic 69-67 home win over Desert Hills.

The Thunder started off strong, taking a 23-16 lead in the first quarter as Mason Landdeck and Keegan Munson each scored seven points during the period, while Justin Judkins added six.

The second quarter was almost a reversal of the first, as Crimson outscored the Thunder 23-14, led by Rockhill’s eight points, including two 3-pointers.

Desert Hills at Crimson Cliffs, Washington City, Utah, Feb. 3, 2021 | Photo by Aaron Crane, St. George News

Up 39-37 at halftime, the Mustangs extended their lead in the third, thanks to a 17-7 run fueled by Hudson Hawes and Cole Sampson, who each made seven points during the third period.

Despite being down by 12 at the start of the fourth quarter, the Thunder rallied their way back into the game. Landdeck drilled a 3-pointer with 20 seconds left to put Desert Hills ahead by one, 67-66.

On the Mustangs’ last possession, as the final seconds of the clock ticked down, Rockhill almost got stripped of the ball by Landdeck, but he managed to pick the ball up off the floor and let it fly. It swished through the net as the buzzer sounded, setting off a brief but wild on-court celebration by the Mustang players.

The Mustangs were led in scoring by Brock Felder’s 14 points, followed by a trio of players who each made 13 – Hawes, Sampson and Rockhill. Jordan Eaton added 11 for Crimson.

Landdeck paced the Thunder with 24 points, while Reggie Newby added 14 and Munson made 12.

Both teams are not only 7-2 in region play, they also have identical 15-2 overall records, making them tied for second place in the Region 9 standings, behind 8-1 Dixie. The statewide RPI rankings, which had Desert Hills ranked at No. 1, Crimson at No. 2 and Dixie at No. 4 among all 4A teams going into Wednesday’s games, had not yet been updated as of late Wednesday night.

Desert Hills next plays at Snow Canyon on Friday, while Crimson Cliffs travels to Hurricane.

Dixie 60, Canyon View 41

At Canyon View, the Flyers jumped out to a 9-0 lead at the start of the game and never looked back, rolling to an eventual 19-point win over the Falcons.

Dixie at Canyon View, Cedar City, Utah, Feb. 3, 2021 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

Ethan Bennett scored 13 of his game-high 18 points in the first half as the Flyers took a 16-7 lead after one quarter and were up 33-12 at halftime. Dixie’s Isaac Finlinson, who finished with 16 points, scored 10 of those before halftime.

Dixie ended up leading by 30 points or more before the reserves went in for good in the fourth quarter. The Falcons made a flurry of shots at the end, outscoring Dixie 17-7 in the final period.

Brenden Greenhalgh scored 17 points to lead the Flyers.

Dixie saw 10 different players make it into the scoring column.

The Flyers improve to 8-1 in region play, will travel to Cedar on Friday to take on the 6-3 Reds. Meanwhile, Canyon View hosts Pine View on Friday.

Cedar 85, Hurricane 45

At Hurricane, the offensive-minded Cedar Reds racked up 85 points in a 40-point win over the Tigers.

After building a 40-18 halftime lead, the Reds outscored the Tigers 29-8 in the third quarter to put the game well out of reach.

All five Cedar starters ended up scoring in double figures, led by Dallin Grant, who finished with 20 points. Luke Armstrong and Treyton Tebbs each scored 12, while Zab Santana and Gaige Savage had 10 apiece.

For Hurricane, junior guard Kevin Bunn, who finished with 14 points, was the only player to score in double digits. Luke Wright added eight points for the Tigers.

Cedar, which improved to 6-3 in region play with the win, 11-5 overall, will host Region 9-leading Dixie on Friday, while Hurricane will host Crimson Cliffs.

Snow Canyon 54, Pine View 45

At Pine View, the Snow Canyon Warriors overcame a halftime deficit to defeat the Panthers by nine.

Snow Canyon at Pine View, St. George, Utah, Feb. 3, 2021 | Photo by Dave Larson, St. George News

Snow Canyon took a 14-10 lead after one quarter, but the Panthers outscored the Warriors 19-9 during the second quarter to take a 29-23 halftime lead.

Snow Canyon bounced back with a strong defensive effort in the second half, holding the Panthers to seven points in the third and nine in the fourth.

Lyman Simmons led the Warriors with 16 points, including four 3-pointers, while Blake Munson added 14 and Lincoln Polatis made 10.

The Panthers were led by Bensen Shepherd’s 16 points, with Joshua Bice adding 10.

Pine View travels to play Canyon View on Friday, while Snow Canyon hosts Desert Hills.

Friday’s game schedule (Feb. 5)

  • Pine View at Canyon View
  • Desert Hills at Snow Canyon
  • Dixie at Cedar
  • Crimson Cliffs at Hurricane

Region 9 boys basketball standings (as of Feb. 4)

  1. Dixie 8-1 (14-3)
  2. (tie) Desert Hills 7-2 (15-2)
  3. (tie) Crimson Cliffs 7-2 (15-2)
  4. Cedar 6-3 (11-5)
  5. Snow Canyon 5-4 (12-5)
  6. Pine View 2-7 (3-12)
  7. Hurricane 1-8 (2-15)
  8. Canyon View 0-9 (1-16)

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.

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