Thanks to Pepto Bismol and its trademark pressure defense, top-ranked Alta parlayed a 19-2 third quarter run into a 64-42 5A state tournament victory over Bountiful Monday in the Huntsman Center.
"It may have looked easy, but it really wasn't for three quarters," said Alta coach Ron Carling. "It took a while to get the feel of it."Despite outscoring the Braves 8-2 in the first quarter en route to building a 16-4 advantage, the Hawks were unable to shake the pesky Braves until the decisive burst in the second half. Alta led 22-13 at halftime, but allowed Bountiful to pull within 27-23 midway through the third period.
"We were just kind of lingering. Then we got the pressure (defense) going and we started playing after that," said Hawkins, who battled nausea throughout the contest. "It was our ignition button."
And don't forget about the "pink stuff."
Hawkins doctored himself up at the intermission and answered Bountiful's challenge by scoring 14 points in the third quarter - 12 in the game-deciding three-minute span - to help give the Hawks a commanding 46-25 edge late in the quarter.
"I took Pepto Bismol at halftime," said Hawkins. "I guess I'll take it before every game."
He finished with 18 points to compliment Adam Sharp's game-high 19. Brett Allen had 10 for Bountiful.
"The pressure got to them a little bit," said Carling. "And I'm glad it did."
Alta led by as many as 25 points in the final eight minutes.
"They had an explosion that two timeouts couldn't stop," said Bountiful coach Mike Maxwell. "Every time they needed it, they hit two big shots."
The Hawks will face Bingham in the quarterfinals Wednesday.
In other first round action:
Bingham 59, Clearfield 44
Lance Barnes finished with 16 points and teammate Charlie Peterson contributed 15 points and 10 rebounds as the Miners grounded the Falcons. Bingham never trailed after overcoming a 9-8 deficit late in the first quarter. Brian Wilson led Clearfield with a game-high 17 points.
Orem 50, Viewmont 47
Ryan Bott scored 17 points and Blake Gardner added 16 as the Tigers surprised the Vikings. Jeremy Jeppesen paced Region 2's top seed with 14.
Orem opened with a 13-2 run and connected on 13 of its first 17 shots, but only led 30-28 at halftime. Viewmont garnered its first lead, at 38-37, when Jake Shoff scored with 7:41 remaining in the fourth period. Orem eventually pulled even and took the lead for good when Gardner connected on a three-pointer with 1:15 to play. Viewmont had two attempts to tie the score in the last five seconds, but both long-range shots missed the mark.
Orem will meet West Jordan in the quarterfinals Wednesday.
West Jordan 61, Fremont 57
Ben Curtis scored 16 points as the Jaguars outlasted the Silver Wolves in the tournament's lone opener between teams with losing overall records. Ryan Nemelka and Nate Christiansen added 14 and 10 points, respectively, to the winning effort. Corey Melaney topped Fremont, a first-year school making its initial appearance in the tournament, with 17.
West Jordan broke a 20-20 tie by outscoring the Silver Wolves 14-9 in the third period before holding on for the victory.
IN THE RANKS: Four of the five teams in the final Deseret News prep rankings take the floor Tuesday. No. 2 Taylorsville meets Weber (2:30 p.m.); No. 3 Mountain View faces Davis (4:10 p.m.); Highland tangles with No. 4 Brighton (6:30 p.m.); and No. 5 Layton plays Hunter (8:10 p.m.)