OGDEN — A monster game from Isaac Monson led the Olympus Titans to a dominating 79-49 victory over the Box Elder Bees on Monday night at the Dee Events Center.

Monson was in mid-tournament form, racking up a double-double with 32 points and 12 rebounds. Box Elder had no answer for Monson, as he scored at will from multiple areas of the floor.

Olympus jumped out to an 8-0 lead in the opening minutes of the first period. Box elder fought back to within four shortly after, only to have Olympus hit back-to-back 3-pointers to extend the lead to 10 late in the first period.

"We did a great job early and jumped them," said head coach Matt Barnes. "I was just very proud of how we handled things and how we came out and really executed."

In the second period, the Titans took full control of the game with a barrage of 3-point shots. Olympus shot a blistering 46 percent from beyond the 3-point line in the first half.

Box Elder struggled to find its rhythm offensively as the Olympus defense held it to 34 percent shooting in the first half. The Bees scored just 22 points in the first two periods of basketball.

Monson did his damage early in the first half, scoring 22 points on 8 of 11 shooting while pulling down seven rebounds. Monson also shot 3 of 4 from 3-point range in the first half to round out his impressive first-half performance. Olympus went into the locker room at halftime firmly in control, leading Box Elder by a score of 42-22.

In the second half, Olympus quickly built on its lead, opening up the third period on a 12-4 run. The Titans outscored the Bees 21-11 in the third period and held on to a double-digit lead throughout the rest of the second half.

Box Elder played well in the fourth period, matching up Olympus scoring in the period with 16, but it would not be enough to overcome the sizable Olympus lead.

Monson was unstoppable for Olympus in this game, coming just one point shy of his career scoring record. Barnes was complimentary of his senior forward after the game.

"Isaac was phenomenal," said Barnes. "He was in rhythm and shot it well. He played both ends of the floor, and he was really great."

Olympus guard Matt Lindsay added a nice performance alongside his teammate Monson, putting up 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists.

The Titans' offense was operating on all cylinders, shooting 57 percent from the field in the game and 40 percent from 3-point range. Olympus also won the battle of the boards, outrebounding Box Elder by a wide margin, 39-16.

Box Elder had strong showings from sophomore forward Max Watson and senior guard Darius McFarland, who scored 16 points and 15 points respectively. Box Elder finishes its season with a record of 14-10.

Olympus moves to 21-3 on the season and advances to the quarterfinals, where it will face the No. 3 Orem Tigers on Wednesday.

OREM 58, WASATCH 50

OGDEN — Orem senior Noah Johnson posted a massive double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Tigers to a first-round win in the 5A tournament.

Johnson did damage down low and was able to score with ease on Wasatch down in the paint. Johnson had a nose for the ball and put himself in a great position to control the paint. Orem came into the tournament with a sub-.500 record, and head coach Golden Holt emphasized the importance of getting off to a good start.

"Our record doesn't bode for a lot of confidence," Holt said. "So it was important that we got off to a good start so our boys would believe that we really are pretty good."

Orem found success in the paint in the early minutes of the game, scoring three consecutive buckets under the rim. Orem outrebounded Wasatch early in the game and secured several timely offensive rebounds to give it the edge.

Johnson was battling for every rebound, and Wasatch had difficulty keeping him off of the boards. Johnson scored 11 points in the half, most coming off rebounds and put-backs. Orem went into the locker room at the half up 28-15.

In the second half, Wasatch started off better offensively, trading baskets with Orem throughout the third period, but could not get the lead below eight.

Wasatch cut the lead to single digits again at the three-minute mark in the fourth by forcing key turnovers and converting on the other end. The Wasps scored 20 points off Orem turnovers in the game, bringing themselves back within striking distance.

Even with the multitude of turnovers in the late portion of the fourth, the Tigers were able to hang on to the big lead they had built in the previous quarters to secure the victory.

Orem relied on its inside game to get the win as it shot just 27 percent from 3-point range on the night. The Tigers shot 50 percent overall in the game.

Along with Johnson, Orem had great contributions from freshman guard Puka Nacua, who posted a nice stat line of eight points, nine rebounds and five assists.

"He's special," said Holt. "He turns 15 next month. He has such a command with the ball and his strength is pretty special."

Wasatch showed great toughness to fight back into the game in the second half. The Wasps were tenacious defensively, forcing several key turnovers and making life hard on the Tigers.

Junior forward Eli Ballstaedt was an animal, scoring 20 points in the game including several tough shots at the end of the game to keep Wasatch alive. Wasatch fell just short as time expired and its season ends with a record of 11-13.

Mark Douglas covers Weber State football and basketball for KSL.com. Contact him at markdouglasmail@gmail.com or on Twitter @marktweetsports.

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