5A basketball tourney blog: Quarterfinal matchups set

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OGDEN — The boys opened up the 5A state basketball tournament at the Dee Events Center in Ogden on Tuesday. The tournament will go through the week, with a champion being named Saturday.

Corner Canyon topped Wasatch 75-64 to move into Thursday’s quarterfinals against Highland, which stunned Bountiful 71-60.

Skyridge and East will open the quarterfinals at 2:30 p.m. Thursday, followed by Murray and Jordan at 4:10 p.m., and Olympus and Timpanogos at 5:50 p.m.

Watch the livestream of the tournament and read through the game recaps below.

Tuesday, 10:54pm

First Round: Kok Daw 'looked like Rudy Gobert' in East's win over Viewmont, 54-42

OGDEN — If East was sleepy during its 9 p.m. tipoff in the opening round of the Class 5A state basketball tournament, it showed early. Fortunately for the Leopards, Kok Daw helped them wake up by the second quarter. Daw had 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Taylor Zwick added 14 points, nine rebounds, three assists and three steals to help East overturn an 11-5 first-quarter deficit and pull away from Viewmont, 54-42, at Weber State. “Kok Daw was a monster today,” East coach Mitch Smith said. “No one wanted to go inside on him. He looked like Rudy Gobert.” Andre Mulibea had a team-high 15 points and three assists for the Leopards, who finished off the game shooting 62 percent in the fourth quarter. Parker Kearns had a game-high 18 points, five rebounds and three steals for Viewmont (7-15), and Gavin Chowen supplied 14 points and five rebounds. Viewmont cruised to an 11-5 lead after the first quarter, but the Leopards opened the second with back-to-back threes and took a 13-11 lead on Kok Daw’s putback with 5:25 left in the half. East held the Vikings without a field goal until Parker Kearns hit a trey with 21 seconds left in the half — while out-rebounding Viewmont 18-16 before the break. The 6-foot-8 center had eight points, eight rebounds and two blocks at halftime, leading the Leopards to a 19-14 lead at the break. “We’re trying to make a deep playoff run and we’ve got to click,” said Daw, who credited his team’s defense to the spurt. “This is a good way to start it off.” It only got worse in the second half. Zwick’s bucket in the final minute of the third gave the Leopards their first double-digit lead of the game, 32-22, going into the fourth quarter. The Vikings couldn’t cut much further into the lead, thanks to a tenacious defense that held Viewmont to 35 percent from the field. “We played tough defense, the big came out and dominated on the boards, and then Dre and Taylor took over,” Smith said. “And we had two kids hit some big shots in the third quarter to give us some situation.” The Leopards (15-10) advanced to face Region 8 champion Skyridge in Thursday’s quarterfinals. Tipoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. in Ogden.

Tuesday, 09:24pm

First Round: Skyridge hangs on for first tourney win in school history, 50-48 over Alta

OGDEN — Skyridge’s tournament life flashed before the eyes of head coach Jeff Gardner. The former Brighton coach could only watch as Alta launched a desperation heave — a clean look, too — from 3-point range that would’ve sent the Hawks into the Class 5A state quarterfinals. And then Gardner breathed a sigh of relief as the Falcons held on for the first tournament win in the three-year-old school’s brief history. Duncan Reid and Trevon Snoddy each scored 16 points, and Skyridge made 12-of-16 free throws to hold off the Hawks, 50-48, Tuesday in the opening round of the 5A state tournament at Weber State. But it was anything but easy for the Falcons, the Region 8 champions at 19-5 who faced the Hawks, who were led by Indy Hanson’s 18 points and eight rebounds. “That’s a good team, player for player,” Gardner said. “We have seen them a lot and they come from a tough region. They’re extremely well coached, disciplined and they guard you hard. “It was what we thought it would be.” Hunter Humphreys added 12 points and six assists for Alta (9-15), and teammate Daniel Thomason scored seven. But the Falcons survived thanks in large part to their team captains of Braden Allfrey (7 points, 9 rebounds), Rylan Van Komen (5 rebounds) and Joe White (6 assists, 4 rebounds). That, and a dozen free throws, each one more crucial than the last. “It’s not a perfect science; we had our ups and downs,” Gardner said. “But we’ve got a confident group with good leadership, and I think that’s the biggest thing. Snoddy and Allfrey did a really good job of getting the points for us.” Skyridge shot just 40 percent from the field in the first half, clinging to a 26-22 lead behind eight points from Duncan Reid and six from Trevon Snoddy. The Falcons made just 3-of-9 threes, which was just one triple better than Alta before the break. The Hawks tied the game at 36-36 with 1:24 left in the third, but Skyridge took a two-point edge into the fourth quarter. The two teams exchanged blows until Reid drained a 3-pointer with five minutes left. But Alta didn’t go away. Hanson took the inbounds pass after his own made free throw and converted for two. He then drained a triple with 1:42 on the clock to give the Hawks a 46-45 lead. But the Falcons made 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch — and Alta missed a potential game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer — to hold on for the win. “I played with that kid when I was younger,” Allfrey said. “He’s been a shooter his whole life. When I saw it go out … well, I was just grateful.” — Sean Walker, KSL.com

Tuesday, 07:56pm

First Round: Jordan hangs on for OT win over Maple Mountain, 56-55

OGDEN — Jordan’s Nate Maiava didn’t have his best game in Tuesday’s Class 5A state tournament opener. Neither did most of the Beetdiggers, and they’ll fully admit it. But at tournament time, the key to any game is the result — and Maiava and the Beetdiggers did just enough to get that. Dyson Koehler had a game-high 27 points and nine rebounds, and Maiava had 10 points, six rebounds and four assists as the Beetdiggers rallied to hold off Maple Mountain, 56-55, in overtime Tuesday at Weber State. Survive and advance; Maiava could feel it with the ball in his hands and standing at the free-throw line with the fate of the Beetdiggers (17-8) in his hands and 0.5 seconds on the clock. “I did not want to go into a second overtime,” said Maiava, who missed the first and made the second. “Momentum wasn’t going our way. But we shoot hundreds of free throws every day at practice, and I knew I had to make the second one.” Tyler Nelson led Maple Mountain (11-12) with 13 points, Logan Green added 12 points, six assists and three steals, and teammate Braxton Tanner supplied 11 points for the Golden Eagles. “I thought they outplayed us for most of the game. We just got lucky,” Jordan coach Trace Bevell said. “We get the steal at the end, make the free throw at the end, and won the game. They outplayed us — but we struggled, and we were resilient and came back. Survive and advance. Win by 20 or win by one; they were a tough draw for us because they run stuff that we struggled with.” Maple Mountain out-played the Beetdiggers in the first half, taking a 34-27 lead at the break, behind a balanced scoring effort led by Nelson’s eight. The Golden Eagles shot 57 percent from the field, made 4-of-9 3-pointers, and assisted on eight of 15 made baskets while holding Jordan to just 37.5 percent shooting. But the Beetdiggers flipped it around in the second half, defending with more intensity and forcing a style that didn’t suit the Eagles as well as their 50-possession first half. Jordan used a 17-11 run through the third quarter to retake the lead, then slowed down the game in the fourth. The Beetdiggers took a 53-46 edge on Micah Ashman’s with 3:46 left in regulation. But Maple Mountain wasn’t done yet, finishing the half on a 6-0 run to force overtime. Both teams combined for five possessions in the extra period. But when Maiava stole the ball and raced down court in the final minute, his last-second shot was fouled. That sent him to the free-throw line with a tie game, 55-55 and the chance to be the hero. All he needed was one free throw. ‘Cling’ went the first off the front iron. ‘Swish’ dropped the second. The Beetdiggers breathed a collective sigh of relief. “The ball was in his hands, and you’ve got to make free throws,” Bevell said. “He’s inconsistent at times, but he made the one that he had to have. He missed the first, put more pressure on him, but he stepped up and did what he had to do.”

Tuesday, 06:24pm

OGDEN — Murray coach Jason Workman has felt a little snakebit at state tournaments. To him, the ball just hasn’t often bounced his team’s way. Like in 2015, when his team lost to Bountiful in the first round on a game-winning 30-foot 3-pointer — after leading by 13 points, no less. But maybe Murray’s luck is starting to change, Just before the first quarter buzzer, Murray’s Eric Anaafi launched a shot from past halfcourt — it went in. “We all just turned to each other and said, ‘Hey, the basketball gods don’t hate us,’” Workman said. At least not on Tuesday. Murray topped Farmington 63-49 at Dee Events Center in the 5A first round. Anaafi’s long-range shot was part of a larger Murray run that helped the Spartans erase an early nine-point Phoenix lead. “They were able to shut down a lot of our stuff and we got impatient early,” Workman said. “First game jitters.” And to cure those, the Spartans just needed to see the ball go in the hoop. “To be honest, we hit a couple of difficult shots that helped," Workman said. “I wasn't 100 percent pleased with our execution. But I things we made some difficult shots and got some confidence and then we started playing well. There was a little bit of luck involved.” Once the confidence came, Murray looked pretty good. The Spartans took a 27-22 lead into halftime after holding Farmington to just five points in the second quarter and then closed out the game by outscoring the Phoenix by 10 in the fourth quarter to pull away for the win. Murray shot 48.9 percent from the field and 38.9 percent from 3-point range. Jalen Thompson scored 20 points on 6-of-12 shooting, Ajak Arok had 12 points and eight rebounds and Shida Aho finished with nine points for Murray in the win. It was the Spartans’ first playoff win since 2011 — part of the reason Workman might not feel the luckiest in tournament games. But, as Anaafi showed, that luck might be changing. “Those are always fun,” he said of the buzzer beater. “I was just glad it happened for us, instead of against us. It couldn't have happened to a better kid, too.” — Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Tuesday, 05:16pm

First Round: Timpanogos overcomes sluggish first quarter to beat Timpview

OGDEN — No one can question Timpanogos head coach Izzy Ingle’s passion – or his workout routine — following his team’s first-round game Tuesday. Ingle exploded off his bench, outraged over a missed call. When he returned, his left sleeve from his button-down shirt was practically game. A long tear, stretching from cuffs to nearly the shoulder had appeared. "He’s been lifting too much weights," Colin Christensen said. “Did you see how coat came back on?” Ingle said. “Sadly, that’s not the first time that’s happened.” Whatever works, coach. And it worked on Tuesday. Timpanogos overcame a sluggish start on its way to a 61-57 win over Timpview in the first round of the 5A basketball tournament. With four minutes remaining, Christensen cut around teammate Matt Norman and saw the lane open up. He drove, jumped and delivered powerful slam that sent the Timberwolves bench into a mass celebration. The team was celebrating the dunk, yes, but also what it meant. It gave Timpanogos a nine-point lead and with the way the game had gone since the second quarter, it felt like it had just clinched the victory for the Timberwolves. “He was kind of overplaying me so I cut away from where I was supposed to go,” Christensen said of the play. “I cut around … and I just saw the lane open up, And then I saw the rim and it just happened.” It wasn’t Christensen’s only big play of the night. He scored 17 points and was 4-for-7 in the second half — rebounding from a poor shooting first two quarters. In the third quarter, Christensen hit back-to-back buckets, the second being a deep 3-pointer, to give the Timberwolves a 37-32 lead. After he hit the 3-point shot, Christensen went down the court screaming and flexing. That shot marked a complete turnaround for the Timberwolves, who found themselves down by as many as 13 in the first half. “That’s our guys,” Ingle said. “Our guys fight through adversity all the time. That’s a good thing about them. We didn’t even shoot good and we came back. Usually, we’ll fight back in a game because we get hot and we hit a couple 3s. We didn’t shoot good all day. … Our guys just kept battling and finding different ways.” Timpanogas outscored Timpview by 10 in the paint, helping overcome a 4-of-20 night. Norman had 13 points and eight rebounds and Trey Anderson scored 11 points for Timpanogas in the win. The Timberwolves will play Olympus in the quarterfinals Thursday at 5:50 p.m. — Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Tuesday, 03:42pm

First Round: Rylan Jones leads Olympus over Woods Cross

OGDEN — Olympus guard Rylan Jones experienced something new on Tuesday: He had to pick up a paper airplane after it had flown onto the court. “That was kind of new for me,” Jones said. “It happens at the state tournament. A bunch of random new stuff.” Something that isn't new? Jones being the best player on the court, which he was once again on Tuesday. The senior scored 27 points on 10-of-13 shooting along with eight rebounds and seven assists in Olympus’s 77-57 win over Woods Cross in the first round of the 5A state tournament. In the fourth quarter, Jones drove hard into the lane before halting and examining his options. He dribbled low to the ground, observed the court before dribbling back out. He then exploded into the paint and laid it up for two. It was a masterclass of controlling a dribble, controlling the tempo and controlling the game — just what he has been doing for most of his four-year career. And while it took a little longer than some expected, Olympus did just what it did during last year’s state-championship run: win in blowout fashion. The Titans outscored Woods Cross 42-28 in the second half to break open the game. “The first round is always hard,” Olympus coach Matt Barnes said. “It’s always a war, a battle. … I’m happy with the way we handled it.” Olympus jumped out an early 15-point lead in the first half, but Woods Cross went on a 14-5 run before halftime to cut the lead to just 35-29 at the break. “We kind of had things going,” Barnes said. “We took a couple crappy shots, missed a couple layups. ... And next thing you know it's back to six.” But it didn’t stay there for long. Despite a spirited effort by the Wildcats defensively — especially holding Jeremy Dowdell to 6-for-16 shooting — the Titans just were too much. Noah Bennee had 14 points and six rebounds and Dowdell still finished with 18 points despite his off-night from the perimeter. Barnes said it was performances like the ones the Titans got from Bennee that will keep them going in the tournament. “He’s a warrior, he battles hard, he’s just physical and tough — tremendous athletes, great football player,” Barnes said. “He just comes in and does the dirty work — rebounds, runs the floor. He’s a special kid. He doesn’t get a lot of credit because Rylan and Jeremy do a lot of the scoring but the little things that he does really help us out.” Olympus will play in the quarterfinals Thursday at 5:50 p.m. MST at the Dee Events Center in Ogden. — Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Tuesday, 02:01pm

First Round: Highland upset No. 1 seed Bountiful

OGDEN — Highland big man Jackson Hawes has a good reason for firing up an early 3-point shot. “I was hitting everything in warmups,” Hawes said. On that shot, though, he didn’t hit anything. Not the rim; not the net; nothing. But if you thought the airball would serve as a bad omen for the Rams in their first-round game against Bountiful, think again. Hawes shook off the airball and the Rams shook off a rough start to upset No. 1 seed Bountiful, 71-60, in the 5A first round Tuesday at the Dee Events Center. “Sometimes that happens, you drain everything in warmup and that first one is just an airball,” Hawes said. “I watched the second one go in and I felt pretty good after that.” That second shot was a big one, too. Hawes got the ball inside, put his body into Bountiful big man Robert Whaley and put a soft hook shot in over him. It wasn’t just a sign that Hawes had shaken off the early airball, but that the Braves, despite jumping out to a 9-0 lead in the first minutes of the game, were in for a fight from the No. 4 Rams. “We’ve had starts like that in the past and we’ve overcome them before,” Highland coach Jack Whiteurs said. “At this point in the season, just let them play. Let them find their way out of it. And usually, we do.” And they did again on Tuesday. By the end of the first half, the Rams had already taken their first lead of the game and then used a strong fourth quarter to pull away for the upset. Highland outscored Bountiful 26-16 in the final quarter. Hawes finished with 17 points and seven rebounds, Bronson Olevao had 15 points and Christian Rich had a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double. “Going into the state tournament, if you don’t believe you are going to win, you might as well not show up,” Whiteurs said. “I think we are going to win. Guys believed we were going to win and had confidence going in.” The Rams showed up. They won, and then they celebrated accordingly. “It was crazy, it was chaotic,” guard Liki Makaui said. “I almost got a concussion getting knocked over. It was loud in that locker room.” — Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Tuesday, 12:12pm

First Round: Corner Canyon knocks off Wasatch with second-half run

OGDEN – Corner Canyon coach Dan Lunt knows what it will take for his Chargers to make a deep run in the tournament. And he knows what will lead to a quick exit. “If we defend and rebound, we have a great shot,” Lunt said. “If we don't guard and rebound and just live by our offense, who knows?” Watching the first two-plus quarters of his team’s first-round game probably gave Lunt a pretty good idea of the answer — and it wasn’t good for the Chargers. Despite having shot over 50 percent from the field, Corner Canyon found itself down 7 points to Wasatch. That’s when the Chargers started to defend. That’s when they started to rebound. And that’s when they won the game. Corner Canyon went on a 21-4 run between the third and fourth quarters on its way to a 75-64 win over Wasatch Tuesday at the Dee Events Center. “I’m extremely proud of our guys in the fourth quarter for taking control of the game,” Lunt said. “But I know moving forward we have to be a lot better.” Some of what his team needs to be better at is defending the 3-point line. Wasatch opened the game hitting nine of its first 16 3-pointers. That hot shooting — which included 3-point buzzer beaters at the end of both the first and second quarters — allowed Wasatch to overcome a 10-point first-half deficit to take a 52-45 lead in the third quarter. “In the first three quarters, we didn’t get our hands on any balls,” Lunt said. “Players were coming off screens for wide open looks.” And when that changed, the game changed, too. Corner Canyon’s defensive energy picked up. The Chargers jumped on the floor for loose balls, closed out hard on shooters and pressured Wasatch’s uptempo attack into mistakes. Soon, what was once a 7-point deficit was a double-digit lead. Wasatch hit just one of its last eight 3-point attempts. Corner Canyon's Hayden Welling had 25 points and seven rebounds and Gabe Toombs added 20 points and six rebounds for the Chargers in the win. Corner Canyon shot 56.3 percent in the game and was 58.3 percent from the 3-point line. The Chargers will play in the quarterfinals Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Dee Events Center. — Ryan Miller, KSL.com

5A basketball tourney blog: Quarterfinal matchups set

Updated - Feb. 26, 2019 at 10:50 p.m. | Posted - Feb. 26, 2019 at 6:24 p.m.

First Round: Kok Daw 'looked like Rudy Gobert' in East's win over Viewmont, 54-42

First Round: Skyridge hangs on for first tourney win in school history, 50-48 over Alta

First Round: Jordan hangs on for OT win over Maple Mountain, 56-55

First Round: Timpanogos overcomes sluggish first quarter to beat Timpview

First Round: Rylan Jones leads Olympus over Woods Cross

First Round: Highland upset No. 1 seed Bountiful

First Round: Corner Canyon knocks off Wasatch with second-half run

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5A basketball tourney blog: Quarterfinal matchups set

Updated - Feb. 26, 2019 at 10:50 p.m. | Posted - Feb. 26, 2019 at 6:24 p.m.

First Round: Kok Daw 'looked like Rudy Gobert' in East's win over Viewmont, 54-42

First Round: Skyridge hangs on for first tourney win in school history, 50-48 over Alta

First Round: Jordan hangs on for OT win over Maple Mountain, 56-55

First Round: Timpanogos overcomes sluggish first quarter to beat Timpview

First Round: Rylan Jones leads Olympus over Woods Cross

First Round: Highland upset No. 1 seed Bountiful

First Round: Corner Canyon knocks off Wasatch with second-half run

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