Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY - With six weeks of the season in the books and the holidays behind us, it's time to get serious.
The top two teams in Region 9 will go head-to-head in the 1st of two meetings this season.No. 3 Bingham at No. 1 Syracuse (Girls) Thursday 7pm
Brittney Martin and the undefeated Syracuse girls' basketball team will face their biggest challenge of the season when they host Bingham.Wasatch at No. 5 Park City Friday 7pm
Region 10 will be very competitive this year and this game between two rivals should be a great way to start region play.East at Skyline Friday 7pm
Parker Van Dyke is one of the best point guards in the state. He leads the leopards against a very good Skyline team that has been ranked for much of the season.Weber at Box Elder Friday 7pm
Weber is off to an 8-1 start and just on the outside looking in when it comes to the top five. Box Elder is led by high scoring Shad Watson who averages 20 points per game. The two teams meet in a rematch from early December that Weber won 67-55.
Region play begins for many teams across the state, which means the games now take on more meaning.
The exception is in 5A where region play begins on Friday the 13th. The West Jordan Jaguars suffered their first loss of the season over the holidays when they fell to Riverton on December 20th. The loss wasn't enough to knock them from the top spot in 5A.
The Lone Peak Knights represented Utah well in the prestigious Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. They reached the title game before falling to Milton, Ga. They are back at No. 2 this week followed by American Fork, Alta and Riverton.
Emery was unstoppable for Lone Peak at the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. In the tournament opener he scored 37 points, made 6 three pointers and nabbed 4 steals in an 86-48 win over Myrtle Beach SC. He had 32 points, 7 rebounds and 5 three pointers against St. Augustine, La. and scored 29 points and pulled down 7 rebounds. He led the Knights to the championship game of the tournament where he made this unbelievable lay up.Shad Watson, Box Elder
Watson scored 32 points, pulled down 6 rebounds, made 5 three-pointers and had 3 steals in an 82-43 win over Bear River.TJ Haws, Lone Peak
Emery wasn't the only Knight who put up big numbers at the Beach Ball Classic. Haws scored 26 points, pulled down 7 rebounds, grabbed 3 steals and made 5 three pointers in 72-67 double overtime win over Whitney Young from Chicago.Clay Banks, Spanish Fork
Banks led the Dons with 33 points in a 59-47 road win over 5A Hunter.Seth Monson, Waterford
Monson had a double double with 26 points and 12 rebounds in a 66-59 win over Rich.
Orem remains No. 1 in 4A. The Tigers have not played a game since December 17th when they lost a close game to West Jordan. They host Provo on Friday. The Tigers are followed in the top five by Bountiful, Sky View, Logan and Springville.
Desert Hills also dropped their first game of the season over the holidays losing in overtime to Timpview 56-55. They bounced back to defeat Viewmont and Wasatch in the Dixie Great 8 tourney in St. George. The Thunder still maintain the top spot in 3A followed by Region 9 rivals Hurricane and Cedar as well as Payson at No. 4 and Park City at No. 5.
South Sevier moves up to No. 1 in 2A. The Rams dominated the Cowboy Classic in Kanab over the holidays. Wasatch Academy drops to No. 2 after losing their first game of the season to a very good Weber team in the SLCC tourney. They are followed by Richfield, Waterford and Gunnison.
Piute is the new No. 1 in 1A after defeating previously top ranked Bryce Valley who drops down to No. 2. They are followed by Panguitch, Duchesne and Manila.
Email: jjensen@ksl.com; Twitter: @jjsportsbeat
