Larson, Mosteller lift Skyridge to stunning upset win over No. 1 Lehi

LEHI — Skyridge head coach Jeff Gardner had a difficult time finding words to describe how special an upset victory over the top-ranked Lehi Pioneers felt Friday night.

"It's a really good win, for sure," he said.

It came on a night when senior guard Tate Larson had 24 points with six 3-pointers, including the dagger with under a minute to go, and Jackson Mosteller made timely plays down the stretch as the Falcons stunned crosstown rival Lehi 77-66 Friday night in front of a deafening, standing-room only crowd at Skyridge High.

"Those two were awesome; they're tremendous kids and great teammates," Gardner said of his two players. "They let the game come to them. They did a really good job making big plays for us."

Those big plays and many others were orchestrated by senior point guard Dane Housley, who had his way slashing through the normally stout Lehi defense. Housley finished with 10 points and eight assists.

"We're not going to back down," Housley said. "That's just the kind of team we're going to be the rest of the season."

Neither did the top-ranked Pioneers. Down 50-24 early in the third quarter, Lehi went on a 16-5 run to cut the lead to as low as 13 points.

The run was fueled by Lehi guard Cooper Lewis, who scored 18 of his 26 points in the third quarter alone, including four of his six 3-pointers. Lewis, who scored 47 against American Fork and 37 against Westlake, was held to just 4 points in the first half on 2-of-7 shooting, including 0 points in the second quarter.

"You knew Cooper was going to get on a roll at some point," Gardner said. "That's why he's one of the best in the state."

Lewis said the goal is to keep moving forward.

"I have great teammates that make it happen for me," Lewis said. "Obviously, we weren't at the level we needed to be, but it feels great to continue playing at this level."

Lehi head coach Quincy Lewis said he was proud of the effort his team showed in fighting back from 26 points down in the second half.

"We showed some heart to get back in the game, but give Skyridge credit," he said.

He pointed to the red-hot 3-point shooting of Skyridge as a key to the game. Of the 27 made field goals for the Falcons, 12 of them came from beyond the arc. "They played great and they shot great," Lewis said.

Half of the 3-pointers came from Larson, who hit his first five 3-pointers to start the game, in addition to starting the game 6-for-6 from the field.

The Falcons rode that red-hot streak to surge to a 20-10 lead after the first quarter. The second quarter was more of the same, as Skyridge opened up a 44-22 halftime lead on the Pioneers.

But Lehi kept coming, eventually getting the deficit to nine, 61-52, with five minutes left in the game, forcing Gardner to use a timeout.

That's where the senior forward Mosteller stepped up. He finished with 13 points, but made no bigger impact than late in the fourth quarter. Mosteller kept a key offensive possession alive with a rebound leading to a Ryder Gentry 3-pointer, scored on an offensive putback, and came up with a steal, all in a 90-second span following the timeout.

It was what happened during the timeout, however, that made the difference in the game.

"We just decided to stick together as a team, and we knew we were going to win," Larson said.

Housley said that even though Lehi was hitting their shots, there was still time to respond. "We just needed to stay positive, and I thought we did a really good job of that tonight."

The response was capped off with Larson's sixth 3-pointer of the night, giving Skyridge a 71-61 lead with under a minute to play, sending the packed home gym into a frenzy.

"I'm really proud of Tate," Housley said. "That's just the kind of player he is, and he's just going to keep playing that way if teams don't guard him."

Larson, like most of his teammates, said he played with a chip on his shoulder, using the team's rocky start as motivation.

"I think we just played really well as a team," he said. "We've been overlooked a lot."

Not anymore.

Related topics