No. 1 San Juan edges No. 2 Parowan in 2A showdown
In a showdown between the top two teams in 2A, Enterprise’s Ryland Randall kissed a shot off the glass at the buzzer as the top-ranked Wolves eked out the 58-57 win at No. 2 San Juan in a thrilling and tight game throughout.
Randall finished with 12 points, with teammate Nash Palmer leading the way with 14 points.
“I thought we shared the ball well and didn’t get down when we got behind. Our players played hard for the full 32 minutes and we were lucky to hit a buzzer beating shot against an outstanding San Juan team,” said Enterprise coach Bud Randall.
San Juan’s Ladd Ivins led all scorers with 22 points in the loss.
Weber picks up key road win
Weber improved to 2-0 in Region 1 play as it went on the road and narrowly edged Syracuse 67-66.
The Warriors extended the lead to 67-64 with a pair of free throws with 20 seconds left, but Syracuse missed a 3-pointer and it was out of timeouts after the rebound putback as the final second ticked harmlessly off the clock.
“I thought our team did a good job of keeping their composure and having a “next play” mentality. Syracuse is well coached and we were fortunate to make enough plays to come out with a road win,” said Weber coach Landon Cosby, whose team joins Davis as the only 2-0 teams in Region 1.
Hunter Schenck led the Warriors with 21 points with Cannon DeVries adding 17 points and eight assists.
Skyridge tops American Fork in overtime
Trailing by as many as 13 points, Skyridge showed great resiliency to rally back and beat American Fork 59-56 in overtime.
Nick Holland put the Falcons ahead 57-56 with 16 seconds remaining with a pair of free throws and then Collin Sheffield helped seal the win by taking a charge at the other end.
Holland was the hero for Skyridge as he finished with 24 points and seven assists, with Colby Carter and Kenyon Snoddy also scoring in double figures
“Overcoming a 13-point deficit against a very good American Fork team on the road was a great accomplishment,” said Skyridge coach Jeff Gardner. “Credit to our guys for locking up defensively in the fourth quarter and OT and hitting some clutch shots when we needed them.”
Snow Canyon rolls to improve to 14-0
Snow Canyon dominated both ends of the court to roll past Desert Hills 53-28 for the region win as the top-ranked team in 4A improved to 14-0.
Bowen Hammer led the way offensively with 17 points on five 3-pointers (four of which came in the first quarter), while teammate Lyman Simmons added a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
“This is a special group of guys that enjoy the defensive side as much as the offensive side of the floor. Lyman Simmons was in early foul trouble the first quarter and Bowen Hammer helped us maintain an advantage with some great shooting,” said Snow Canyon coach Doug Mecham. “They are enjoying the challenge of practice and prep with the goal to keep learning from every game so that we are playing our best in late February.”
Defensively, Snow Canyon held Desert Hills to a season-low 28 points.
Juan Diego rallies past Maple Mountain
Juan Diego coach Drew Trost called his team’s 54-53 victory over Maple Mountain on Friday a “gritty come-from-behind win.” Indeed it was.
Trailing by nine points at the half and seven heading into the fourth quarter, Juan Diego held Maple Mountain to just eight points in the fourth quarter as it rallied for the win.
Big man Malick Diallo had a monster game with 32 points, including two free throws with 15 seconds left in the game to put the Soaring Eagle ahead.
At the other end, Colby Bryant blocked Maple Mountain’s 3-pointer attempt at the buzzer to preserve the win.
Bingham pulls out another OT win
For the second time this week, Bingham let a fourth quarter lead slip away. And also for the second time this week, it dominated overtime to still pull out the win.
After beating Cyprus on Tuesday in OT, Bingham did it again in Friday’s showdown against Pleasant Grove between two of the top teams in 6A as it pulled away in overtime for the 71-62 win.
Bingham led by 10 after three quarters, but the Vikings came all the way back to tie it on a Tanner Hanks lay-up in the final seconds and force overtime.
It was a familiar position for the Miners, who quickly regained focus in overtime.
“We showed a lot of poise in overtime as we got some big stops and slowly added to our lead in overtime by making clutch free throws. Two really good teams put on a show tonight for everyone in attendance,” said Bingham coach Kyle Straatman. “Our crowd was huge for us tonight and the environment was crazy fun.”
Luke Leatherwood scored 21 points on five 3-pointers to lead the Miners, with Devin Carlson adding 17 points.
Carlson added some heroics in the third quarter in one of the best sequences Straatman said he’s seen in a long time.
“The third quarter was highlighted by a Carlson block on a PG dunk attempt and then he sprinted down the court to catch an and-one alley-pop dunk. That play really got our crowd into it,” said Straatman.