4A boys state basketball: Dixie to play for championship; Crimson Cliffs falls in semifinals

Dixie's Kyle Lemke drives to the basket against Layton Christian Academy in a 4A boys state semifinal game, Logan, Utah, Feb. 24, 2023 Photo by Robert K. Scott for Cache Valley Daily, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — The Dixie Flyers will get a chance to create a lifetime of memories in one basketball game on Saturday night.

The No. 2 Flyers soared to a 34-22 lead at halftime and held on to beat Layton Christian Academy, while Crimson Cliffs fell to No. 1 Sky View in Friday night’s semifinal games on the campus of Utah State University.

Dixie and the Bobcats will play for the 4A state championship Saturday at 6 p.m. in Logan.

Fans can watch the game via live stream at The Fan Sports Network, and St. George News will have coverage after the game ends.

Following are recaps of Friday night’s boys’ semifinal games.

Dixie 62, Layton Christian Academy 41

Dixie’s Kyle Lemke battles for a bucket against Layton Christian Academy in a 4A boys state semifinal game, Logan, Utah, Feb. 24, 2023 | Photo by Kaden Foremaster, St. George News

Dixie stuck to its script against the Eagles: Defense leads to offense, feed the ball to Kyle Lemke and get out to a big lead.

“We had a really good start, and that’s something we’ve been working on is getting off to a better start,” Dixie coach Tyler Roberts told St. George News via telephone after the win. “We played through Kyle. He came out and played today and set the tone immediately.”

Lemke scored eight quick points to open the first quarter. Grant Carter sank two free throws and Dixie took a lead it would never relinquish, 13-6.

Jordan Roberts and Breckon Robinson nailed 3-pointers and Dixie led 19-9 heading into the second.

“Breckon has put a lot of time in,” Coach Roberts said. “It’s fun watching him succeed and it’s fun watching the guys peaking at the right time.”

The Flyers kept the pedal down. Robinson found Jordan Roberts underneath for an easy score. Then Lemke followed with a rebound of his own miss and put it back, and Dixie lead 23-9.

Later Jordan Roberts would flush another 3 and Dixie rolled into halftime ahead 34-22.

Layton Christian had forged a comeback in its quarterfinal win over Ridgeline, but Dixie made sure history wouldn’t repeat itself and held the Eagles to just eight points in the third quarter and 11 in the fourth.

One adjustment Coach Roberts made was to have Grant Carter bring the ball up the floor, allowing Jordan Roberts to play the shooting guard position.

“The big thing we worried about coming in was their pressure,” Coach Roberts said. “Jordan and Grant did a great job handling it. We thought we’d mix it up a little with Jordan shooting the 3 really well. It was just a different look they weren’t expecting and we’ve been practicing it all year to use at state.”

Dixie’s Breckon Robinson brings the ball up the floor against Layton Christian Academy in a 4A boys state semifinal game, Logan, Utah, Feb. 24, 2023 | Photo by Kaden Foremaster, St. George News

Meanwhile, the Dixie offense was efficient and fast-paced, never missing an opportunity to run the floor or make full-length passes down the court.

Lemke was virtually unstoppable in the paint, scoring on a variety of post moves and throwing in a game-high 24 points in the win. He also grabbed eight rebounds. Robinson finished with 10 Dixie points including two 3-pointers.

Jordan Roberts finished with nine points and Grant Carter had eight. Five other Flyers recorded at least a point in the win.

Coach Roberts almost didn’t believe the rebounding stats.

“It says here on this sheet we outrebounded them 45 to 27,” he said. “That’s just incredible. A guy like John Southwick played out of his mind, grabbing nine rebounds. Twelve of those 45 rebounds came from our bench players. It’s just fun watching a total team effort.”

Layton Christian, playing in its first 4A tournament after winning the 3A state title last year, was led by Tyrese Lacey’s 12 points. Timmie Oluasi scored nine and Otavio Armani scored seven in the defeat.

The stage is set for a No. 1 versus No. 2 state final as Dixie will battle Sky View Saturday at 6 p.m. for the 4A championship.

“Obviously they’re the No. 1 team,” Coach Roberts said. “We’re just excited to have the opportunity to play them and we’ll be ready.”

Sky View 57, Crimson Cliffs 42

Drake Carroll grabs a rebound for Crimson Cliffs against Sky View in a 4A boys state basketball semifinal, Logan, Utah, Feb. 24, 2023 | Photo by Kaden Foremaster, St. George News

Crimson Cliffs was riding a wave of momentum after Thursday’s quarterfinal win over defending 4A champion Snow Canyon, but the Mustangs started off too cold to keep up against Sky View.

The Mustangs scored just six points in the first quarter and eight points in the second as Sky View’s speed, pressure defense and hot shooting were just too much for the Mustangs to overcome.

Meanwhile, the Bobcats scored from all over the floor and took an insurmountable 32-14 lead at halftime.

Crimson made some adjustments at halftime and won the third quarter 14-7 but still trailed by 11 going into the final frame.

Sky View’s Logan Deal did most of the damage for the Bobcats, scoring a game-high 20 points. Tanner Davis chipped in with 16 for the winners.

Senior Jordan Eaton led Crimson Cliffs with 15 points in his final game for the Mustangs. Scoop Johnson scored eight for the Mustangs including two 3-pointers. Drake Carroll came off the bench and scored eight points for Crimson in the setback.

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