4A boys basketball playoffs: Cedar, Crimson Cliffs, Hurricane each advance with 1st-round home wins

Written by Jeff Richards
February 19, 2022
Desert Hills at Cedar, 4A boys basketball playoffs, Cedar City, Utah, Feb. 18, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

CEDAR CITY – The 4A state boys basketball playoffs opened on Friday night, with three Region 10 teams winning at home.

At Cedar City, the Cedar Reds outlasted region rival Desert Hills in triple overtime, while Hurricane edged Pine View and Crimson Cliffs defeated Bear River. 

The three winning teams advance to play in Monday’s quarterfinal round of the state tournament at Dixie State University. 

Following are recaps of Friday night’s first-round action:

Cedar 70, Desert Hills 62 (3OT)

Cedar senior Zab Santana scored 39 points, including four key free throws in the third overtime, to help the Reds outlast the Desert Hills Thunder.

The game was close from wire to wire, reminiscent of last year’s double-overtime thriller at Desert Hills, with the Thunder winning that contest, 101-100. Cedar would later avenge that loss by beating the Thunder twice after that, once at home during the regular season and again in the 4A state championship game.

Desert Hills at Cedar, 4A boys basketball playoffs, Cedar City, Utah, Feb. 18, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

This year, though, the teams’ lower seeds brought them together much sooner in the playoffs, with Cedar entering the first round at No. 7 and Desert Hills seeded 10th.

The Reds took a 13-11 lead after one quarter, with Santana draining a 3-pointer at the buzzer. Cedar then extended its lead to as much as 10 points during the second quarter, 25-15.

However, the Thunder closed the quarter on a 5-0 run, despite missing a free throw and a layup in the final seconds before halftime.

Desert Hills then made the first four points of the third quarter to pull within one. After that, the remainder of the quarter was a back-and-forth battle, with Cedar taking a 39-38 edge heading into the fourth period.

The low-scoring fourth quarter ended with both teams missing the front end of a one-and-one free throw situation within the final seven seconds. The score was tied 46-46 at the end of regulation.

The first two four-minute overtime periods featured missed free throws, turnovers and other miscues, as neither team was able to pull any farther ahead than a single basket. Both teams saw potential game-winning shots fall short or off the rim.

Then, at the beginning of the third overtime, Desert Hills guard Chomp Jones picked up his fifth foul and went to the bench. Santana sank both of the ensuing free throws to put Cedar ahead 60-58, and the Reds never trailed again.

The Thunder narrowly missed a few shot attempts down the stretch that Cedar was able to rebound, with the Reds converting just enough free throws to stay a couple possessions ahead.

“It wasn’t a pretty game, but we got it done,” Santana said afterward. “We screamed at each other, but everyone was just trying to win. We all went for the ball and mistakes happen, but we will learn from them. At the end of the day, we got it done and got the W and that’s all that matters.”

Cedar also got 14 points from center Aaron Munson and nine from reserve guard Ty Bronson.

The Thunder were led by Lincoln Holmes, who poured in 28 points. Eric Olsen added 13, while Jones and Boston Holbrook contributed seven points apiece. Desert Hills ends its season with a 7-14 overall record.

Cedar, meanwhile, advances to play the No. 2 seeded Dixie Flyers in Monday’s 4A quarterfinals, with the game scheduled for 12:50 p.m. at Dixie State University’s Burns Arena. To see the complete tournament bracket, click here.

Crimson Cliffs 80, Bear River 70

At Crimson Cliffs, the No. 5 seeded Mustangs shook off a tenacious challenger in the No. 12 Bear River Bears.

Bear River at Crimson Cliffs, 4A boys basketball playoffs, Washington City, Utah, Feb. 18, 2022 | Photo by Aaron Crane, St. George News

Both teams got off to a strong offensive start, with the Mustangs taking a 22-16 lead after one quarter. Crimson went on to lead by nine at halftime, 38-29.

The Mustangs still led by nine heading into the fourth quarter, which produced an even greater offensive burst, with Crimson outscoring Bear River 25-24 over the final eight minutes.

Jordan Eaton scored 23 points to lead the Mustangs, with teammate Hudson Hawes adding 22. Also getting double figures were Jackson McKone and Travis Mathews, who made 14 points apiece.

That foursome accounted for 73 of the Mustangs’ 80 points.

Bear River also had four scorers in double figures, led by Caleb Barfuss’ 17 points. The Bears finish their season with an overall record of 6-16.

Crimson Cliffs advances to play the fourth-seeded Sky View Bobcats in the first game of the day on Monday, as the 4A quarterfinals get under way at Dixie State University. Tipoff is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. To see the complete tournament bracket, click here.

To watch a replay of the game, courtesy of Cache Valley Daily, click here.

Hurricane 53, Pine View 49

The contest in Hurricane started 50 minutes late, as the referees were delayed in getting to the game because of traffic on I-15.

Once the game was finally underway, Hurricane led by five after the first quarter and was ahead by eight at halftime, then held on at home to survive a furious rally by the Panthers.

“Well, you know if you lose, we’re done and we got six seniors that definitely want to continue to play,” Tigers coach Todd Langston told St. George News. “Pine View is a great team and we were thankful to get the win.”

Seniors Carter Slack and Weston Larsen led the Tigers to victory, each scoring 14 points. Nathan Parker had eight points and Colten Lichfield scored six for the winners.

Hurricane hosts Pine View in a 4A state tournament boys basketball game, Hurricane, Utah, Feb. 18, 2022 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News

Kruz Gardner dominated the boards in the game for Hurricane, pulling down 12 rebounds. Owen Iloa and Slack each grabbed six rebounds. 

Nothing came easy for the Tigers as Pine View cut its deficit to four at 39-35 going into the final quarter of play.

Nash Schroeder made 2-of-2 free throws and Pine View trailed 44-40 with 4:42 remaining, then Bensen Shepherd made two free throws to get the score to 44-42.

Scott Fullmer’s steal led to an and-1 by Shepherd and suddenly the Panthers trailed just 48-47 with 2:14 left in the game.

The score stayed there until Parker’s two free throws put Hurricane ahead 50-47 with less than a minute left. 

Slack sank two more charity tosses, then Shepherd drove and scored to make it 52-49 before the Tigers made one more free throw to provide the final margin.

“The key was making 5-of-6 free throws in the last two minutes of the game,” Langston said. “Their press definitely hurt us and that got them back in the game.”

“We were able to beat Pine View both times this year and so the kids just had confidence that we could win,” he added. “We made the plays we had to late in the game.”

Hurricane advanced to Monday’s quarterfinal at Burns Arena, where the Tigers will face No. 1 seed Snow Canyon. That game is scheduled for 11:10 a.m. To see the complete tournament bracket, click here.

The Warriors beat the Tigers in both of their matchups this season, winning by 29 and 20 points.

– written by E. George Goold

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jeff Richards, a native of Salt Lake City with family roots in Panguitch, lived in Moab for 20 years before joining St. George News in 2017. Jeff is a longtime journalist and secondary school teacher. He and his wife Penny are the parents of five daughters. They also have three young grandsons. Jeff and his family enjoy swimming, camping, sightseeing, reading, and taking pictures.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @stgnews@moabjeff@stgnewssports

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