Region 9 boys basketball: Local superstars make plays as Crimson Cliffs, Dixie, Pine View all win

ST. GEORGE — Two road teams and one host earned Region 9 boys basketball wins Wednesday night.

Pine View (11-4, 3-1) traveled north to face Cedar (3-13, 1-4), taking down the Reds 67-55, while Crimson Cliffs (8-7, 3-2) took its game to Hurricane (5-10, 0-4) and defeated the Tigers 76-64.

Meanwhile, Dixie (13-3, 4-0) continues to control its own destiny and remains unbeaten in Region 9 by way of a 70-54 win over Snow Canyon (8-6, 2-2).

Desert Hills (9-6, 2-2) had a bye.

Crimson Cliffs 76, Hurricane 64

Sean Felts had it wall working Wednesday night in the Tiger’s Den.

Crimson Cliffs senior Sean Felts skies for two of his 39 points against Hurricane in a Region 9 boys basketball game, Hurricane, Utah, Jan. 17, 2023 | Photo by E. George Goold, St. George News

The 6-foot-11 senior at Crimson Cliffs got scorching hot in the third quarter then went on to score a career-best 39 points in the blowout win.

“That was crazy,” Felts told St. George News outside the locker room after the win. “We had a lot of good looks. It’s easy when the guards can get the ball inside and it was just flowing tonight. Things went well.”

Felts scored from the paint in a variety of ways, backing his man down, going off glass. Also rebounding misses and putting them back. And working pick-and-rolls. And hitting mid-range jumpers.  

The Mustangs big man took over after halftime, scoring on five consecutive possessions as the visitors ran away from the Tigers early in the third quarter.

“I feel like our defense wasn’t to our standard in the first half,” Felts said. “So we came out with a little more energy and intensity and it led to us playing better offense, getting better shots.”

Both teams made shots early and Crimson took a 19-16 lead after the first quarter, upping that advantage to 36-30 at halftime.

Felts led the way to a 25-point Mustangs burst in the third session, putting the game out of reach.

McKay Lindquist was the second-leading scorer in the Crimson win, hitting three 3-pointers as part of his 13 points.

Drake Carroll and Steele Barben contributed seven points apiece to the winning cause.

“I think for us it all depends on defense. We have to have energy on the defensive end,” Felts said. “When we have a bad defensive possession that leads to us playing a little sloppier on offense.”

Hurricane was led by Tag Gubler’s 19 points and RJ Hurst’s 17. Calan Hughes scored nine points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the home team.

Dixie 70, Snow Canyon 54

Dixie did just enough to contain Owen Mackay, and the Flyers recorded a solid home win.

Dixie’s Logan Wideauer (14) scores against Snow Canyon in a Region 9 boys basketball game, St. George, Utah, Jan. 17, 2023 | Photo by Aaron Crane, St. George News

“You can never stop an amazing player such as Owen Mackay,” Dixie coach Tyler Roberts told St. George News after the game. “You can only hope to contain him. He hit some very tough shots.”

Mackay would pour in a game-high 27 points including five 3-pointers for the Warriors, but it was not enough against the Region 9-leading Flyers and their veteran, balanced offense.

“Credit Jordan (Roberts), Kyle (Lemke) and Logan (Weidauer) for being aggressive offensively tonight,” Coach Roberts said.

Lemke led Dixie’s effort with 23 points and Jordan Roberts scored 20 for the Flyers in the win.

Snow Canyon battled in a close first half that saw Dixie take a 35-31 lead into intermission.

Then the Flyers took over with an 18-9 third quarter and held off the Warriors in the final frame.

“The biggest thing was defense,” Coach Roberts said. “Five consecutive stops in the third quarter. We focused in our our defense and rebounding, that leads to scoring in transition, which is what we’re best at.”

And the Dixie juggernaut rolls on, complete with fancy new golden Nike’s for every player.

Pine View 67, Cedar 55

At Cedar, Pine View built a double-digit lead in the first half and held on for a 12-point victory over the Cedar Reds.

Pine View’s Nash Schroeder (13) passes over Cedar defenders in a Region 9 boys basketball game, Cedar City, Utah, Jan. 17, 2023 | Photo by Jeff Richards, Cedar City News / St. George News

After Cedar took an early 6-3 lead, Pine View went on a 10-0 run and the Panthers went on to lead 19-10 after one quarter.

Cedar then scored the first seven points of the second quarter before Pine View went on an 11-0 run to extend its lead. Senior guard Nash Schroeder drilled back-to-back 3-pointers to push the Panthers’ lead to 36-19.

After trailing 38-21 at halftime, Cedar outscored Pine View 17-14 during the third period, with three Reds players each hitting a 3-pointer, namely Easton Albrecht, JT Jeter and Landon Kreitzer.

During the fourth, the Reds got within eight points on multiple occasions but could get no closer as the Panthers hit 7-of-7 free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.

Schroeder finished with 29 points to lead all scorers, while backcourt partner Griffen Shepherd added 13.

Cedar was led by Kreitzer’s 17 points, while Albrecht added 11.

After the game, Pine View head coach Patrick Amico credited Cedar coach Tyler Monks for having his players well-prepared.

“Every time we’d build a lead, he would kind of move those puzzle pieces around,” Amico said of Monks. “I have to tip my hat to him. He’s an unbelievable coach.

“I know things in the win column haven’t gone their way, but we’re talking about a guy that’s just working so hard on film. He knows what we’re doing. He has those boys so prepared. They’re really lucky to have coach Monks.”

Amico said his team enjoys the opportunity to prove its doubters wrong.

“The disrespect … all the time we hear it, it must be a lucky win,” he said. “And sometimes we’re really believing that and playing that underdog role.”

Amico says he tells his players during timeouts, “You guys are made for this. This isn’t too big … just have fun.”

Added Amico, “You know, they come back out of that timeout after they’ve made a run at us, and we go have some fun again, move the ball and play the right way.”

– written by Jeff Richards

Region 9 boys basketball games, Friday, Jan. 19:

Hurricane at Snow Canyon, 7 p.m.
Desert Hills at Dixie, 7 p.m.
Pine View at Crimson Cliffs, 7 p.m.

Current standings:

Dixie (13-3, 4-0)
Pine View (11-4, 3-1)
Crimson Cliffs (8-7, 3-2)
Desert Hills (9-6, 2-2)
Snow Canyon (8-6, 2-2)
Cedar (3-13, 1-4)
Hurricane (5-10, 0-4)

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