OREM — Coaches preach teamwork until they're blue in the face, but sometimes it takes a beating for the lesson to really sink in.
Well, not a literal beating, but one on the court like Timpview suffered on Tuesday to 5A's top-ranked team, Brighton.
"They did not feel good about that," said T-Bird coach Ray Scott after his team defeated 5A's second-ranked Skyline 51-45 in the Smith's Ragu Classic at UVSC. "One of the things we've been working on as a team is looking at our defense as a way to start our offense. The defensive team concept carries over to the offense."
The problem for Timpview isn't talent. It's loaded. In fact, that might have been part of the team's trouble.
"We were all wanting to do it on offense," said future Ute Stephanie Red, who finished with nine points. "We were making it way too easy on the other team."
Her sister Sarah added: "Tonight we didn't play as individuals. We ran the plays instead of trying to force things so we could score."
The team knew Skyline boasted some powerful offensive players, and the Reds said they knew they'd have to focus more on defense and helping each other out than their own stats. The team did a great job
double-teaming the Eagles' post players, an effort that was led by forward Lindsey Freeze. The senior's 18 points came from great passes from her teammates, especially point guard Jessica Harmon.
"I thought Jessica's defense was awesome," Scott said. "And on offense, she played under control."
Nikki Chadwick was a huge help in the key coming in off the bench. She added 10 points on offense but was even more critical in helping Freeze keep Skyline's post out of the paint.
Skyline was behind most of the game, but mistakes doomed an admirable effort.
"We know Timpview is a good team," said Eagle coach Deb Bennett. "The Reds are excellent. Freeze is just a phenomenal player, and they're just a real good challenge . . . But we had 10 turnovers in the second half alone. You can't give them the ball, or throw it away, and not lose. I liked the kids' effort; they didn't give up."
She said she would take the positives, and build on them as the team heads into some equally challenging games in the next few weeks.
"We have a lot of work to do," Bennett said.
The Eagles had good performances from junior forwards Joh-Teena Filipe and Nadia Bernard, who each finished with 11 points, and point guard Amy Young, who made some great passes and deflected quite a few of the T-Birds' throws.
Timpview has an equally tough schedule, starting with Taylorsville on Monday. As for whether this team will ride a roller coaster or find a rhythm, Scott is hoping for the latter.
"Hopefully this is the beginning of where they should be," he said.
In other games Friday:
BASKETBALL
REGION 16 N.
DUCHESNE 51, MANILA 38: The Eagles had nine different players score in their first region win.
NONREGION
ROY 45, BEAR RIVER 43: The Royals held off a Bears' rally in the fourth quarter. Abbi Call made two 3-pointers and finished with 10 points for the Royals.
AMERICAN FORK 44, LOGAN 34: American Fork outscored Logan 13-7 in the third to secure the victory.
HILLCREST 44, PARK CITY 39: Becca Paulsen tallied 10 points for the Huskies and teammate Lori Hall had 10 rebounds.
UINTAH 42, TOOELE 36: Uintah hit key free throws toward the end of the game to lift it past Tooele. Maggie Bartel scored a game-high 18 points for Uintah.
HURRICANE 47, SPRINGVILLE 28: Hurricane dominated the paint against Springville, outscoring the Red Devils 27-12 in the second half.
SOUTH SEVIER 48, VALLEY 39: Holli Forbush scored 17 points for South Sevier in its Cowgirl Classic win over Valley.
VIEWMONT 51, BOUNTIFUL 40: Airial Salvo poured in 15 points and Natalie Ellis added 14 as the Vikings cruised by the Braves.
PAROWAN 38, RICHFIELD 31: Sam Rogerson scored 13 points for Richfield, and the Wildcats earned a nonregion win over Parowan in the SUU Invitational.
PLEASANT GROVE 35, SKY VIEW 33: Danielle Sargent scored nine of her 17 points in a key third quarter for Pleasant Grove.
CARBON 80, SAN JUAN 30: Halee Rasmussen chipped in 15 points as 13 different players scored for the Dinos in their victory.
NORTH SEVIER 47, KANAB 37: A balanced North Sevier attack led to the Wolves to a win over Kanab in the Cowgirl Classic. North Sevier will play South Sevier tonight at 6:30 in the championship game.
TIMPANOGOS 93, GRANGER 38: Timpanogos started out hot and took control of the game. Kristen Louder led all scorers with 22 points, while Amber Nielson and Chelsey Brown had 14 points apiece.
NORTHRIDGE 48, WEST 42: The Knights got 12 points from Keeley Blickfeldt and capitalized on free-throw opportunities to defeat the Panthers.
LONE PEAK 63, SNOW CANYON 41: MaLese Moeller led all scorers with 19 points for Lone Peak.
MOUNTAIN VIEW 68, TAYLORSVILLE 40: Mountain View limited turnovers in a victory against Taylorsville. Ashley Cheesman led the Bruins with 21 points.
BINGHAM 54, COTTONWOOD 36: The Miners were led by Natalie Barney's nine points and nine rebounds.
COPPER HILLS 55, HUNTER 50: Jenn Guest had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Grizzlies. Taylor Richards had 24 points for Hunter.
MONTICELLO 44, MANTI 28: The Buckaroos ran away from the Templars in tournament play at Cedar City.
KEARNS 43, WEST JORDAN 41 (OT): Tammy Glade made four free throws for Kearns in overtime, giving the Cougars a nonregion win over West Jordan. Kearn's Renee Apadoca led all scorers with 18 points.
TIMPVIEW 52, SKYLINE 45:
PAGE, ARIZ. 41, PINE VIEW 33: Page pulled away from Pine View in the fourth quarter. For Pine View, Kensey Brooks and Tina Twigs both scored six points.
GRANITE 53, JUAB 43: Shannon Hurst poured in 28 points and Emma Sitake added a dozen as Granite cruised past Juab.
WASATCH 51, EAST 24: Wasatch used a balanced attack to beat East in a nonregion matchup. Libby Cannon had a double-double for the Panthers, scoring 13 points with 10 rebounds.
UNION 47, GRANTSVILLE 44: Abbey Mecham scored 12 points, including two 3-pointers, and Lindsay Heaton scored 13 as Union edged Grantsville.
BONNEVILLE 57, DAVIS 46: Karlie Garrett scored 29 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead Bonneville past Davis in the Burchell Classic.
CEDAR 53, OGDEN 42: Cedar's Tarah Williams scored 24 points in a nonregion win over Ogden. Cedar's defense held Katie Adams to only 15 points.
FREMONT 59, MURRAY 54:
BRYCE VALLEY 36, TABIONA 31: Cailee Johnson led Bryce Valley with nine points in its nonregion win over Tabiona.
WHITEHORSE 77, ROCK POINT, ARIZ. 14: The Raiders had 10 players score as they pounded the overmatched team from Arizona.
GREEN RIVER 56, MERIDIAN 38: Adriana Cordova scored 18 points as the Pirates beat Meridian.
PANGUITCH 50, RICH 48 (OT): Sisters Halie and Jenna Sawyer scored 30 points for Panguitch in an OT win against Rich. The Bobcats shot 8-of-11 at the line in OT.
E-MAIL: adonaldson@desnews.com