It was business as usual during Wednesday's opening round of the 16-team 1A boys prep basketball state tournament at the USU Specturm.
In fact, the higher-seeded teams defeated their opponents in seven of the eight first-round games. The lone exception became quite an exception, too, as the sole upset was the day's most lopsided affair; Parowan romped over Rich 102-55.Five players scored in double figures for the Rams, who came in as the fourth-seeded team from Region 12. Parowan's David Topham led all scorers with a 24-point outing, while teammate Brandon Thornton contributed 17 points - including five 3-pointers.
The Rams raced out to a 29-11 lead after the first period and a 55-31 advantage at halftime. The injury-hampered Rebels, who finished third in Region 11, were led by Darin Pugmire's 16 points.
Panguitch 76, Altamont 55: Brayton Talbot, a 6-foot-6 senior, scored 21 points for the second-ranked Bobcats, while teammate Gary Leach tallied 18 - including 12 of 17 from the line - for Region 12 champion Panguitch. Blaine Tew had a team-high 13 for the Longhorns.
Dugway 52, Tabiona 48: In Wednesday's most closely contested affair, the Mustangs watched a seven-point advantage dwindle to just two points at the start of the final quarter before posting the four-point triumph. Stuart Sperry and Steve DeWitt led Dugway's balanced scoring with 13 and 12 points, respectively, while Jarrod Leffler led the Tigers with 19.
Piute 69, Mount Vernon 44: After leading by just six points after three quarters, the Thunderbirds exploded to outscore the Patriots 27-8 in the final period. Travis Fullmer scored a game-high 23 and teammate Klyn Gleave added 17 for Piute; Dan Lowe was the only Mount Vernon player in double figures with 10 points.
Green River 85, St. Joseph 45: Tommy Hughes had the top point-production performance of the opening round with an outing of 31, while Pirate 'mates Gary Quarnberg and Greg Parsons added 13 each as top-ranked and once-beaten Green River pushed its 42-33 halftime leads to 30- and 40-point margins after the final two periods. Bryan Jeffreys led the Jays with 15 points.
Enterprise 80, Whitehorse 43: The fourth-ranked Wolves had a relatively easy time with the Raiders, leading by multiples of 10s after each of the first three quarters - margins of 10, 20 and 30. Enterprise's Jared DeHart scored his game-high 20 points in part on 10-of-11 FT shooting, while Jimmy Clah led Whitehorse with a 14-point effort.
North Summit 69, Valley 58: The fifth-ranked Braves snapped a 22-all halftime tie by outscoring their opponents 47-36 in the second half. North Summit's Brandon Jones scored a team-high 16 points, while the trio of Nathan Sargent, Sam Garfield and Mark Calderwood scored 14 each. Travis Roundy led Valley with 14 points.
Duchesne 72, Wendover 47: The third-ranked and defending champion Eagles outscored the Wildcats 23-11 in the second quarter to take control. Russell Moon and Robbie Bench each had 15 points for Duchesne, while Jason Young added another 13. Mike Spillman finished with a Wendover-best 14 points.