Lehi Sports
Falcon boys post four straight wins
Beky Beaton / Lehi Free Press
The Skyridge High School boys basketball team has gathered some serious momentum as the regular season draws to a close by earning four consecutive victories in the past two weeks, including two over Region 3 foes. The Falcons have improved their overall record to 14-7.
Jan. 27: Skyridge 64, Weber 53
The Falcons started hot and led bell-to-bell against the Wildcats on the road. They raced out to a 21-12 lead in the first quarter, and while Weber dueled basically even after that, they weren’t able to overcome the early deficit.
Senior forward Ryder Gentry scored a team-high 19 points and also pulled in five rebounds. Senior forward Carson Mosteller sank three triples and finished with 17 points plus five boards.
Senior guard Joel Gardner added 12 points while senior guard Zach Gagon had a nice all-around floor outing with 11 points, three rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots. Senior guard Hunter Sheffield provided five points plus four boards and senior guard Davis Fyans dished out five assists.
“I was really pleased with our focus and effort,” said Coach Jeff Gardner. “We got off to a great start and were able to hold off a pesky Weber team. We shot 52 percent from the field and only turned the ball over nine times.
“Ryder Gentry was very good but had some foul trouble and Rip Roberts did a great job coming in and playing big second-half minutes,” he continued. “Davis Fyans did a good job at the point running the offense and made big assists.
“Joel and Carson both hit big shots in the second half when the lead was shrinking,” the coach said. “Hunter had a really good game on both ends.”
Jan. 30: Skyridge 67, Summit Academy 48
The Falcons outdistanced the overmatched Bears at home, building a 39-15 advantage by the break and pocketing the win on cruise control from there. Skyridge emptied the bench and got points from 13 players and some type of contribution from the other five as well.
Gentry led the charge with 12 points and six rebounds while Mosteller netted 10 points. Senior guard Beck Melling added eight points, sophomore guard Koa Wallwork scored seven with three rebounds and senior forward Ripken Roberts had six points. Fyans made five assists and three steals.
“We did a good job getting off to a great start which allowed us to play all of our dressed players,” Coach Gardner said. “Beck Melling had a big night scoring the ball, playing great defense and making hustle plays for us. He is a guy that doesn’t get a lot of credit but is so important to us as a team.
“We ended up having 13 guys score and it was a good game to stay sharp on the bye week,” the coach said.
Feb. 3: Skyridge 52, Lehi 46
The Falcons jumped ahead early once again on the road against the Pioneers, pulling ahead 15-6 in the first quarter. The margin didn’t stay that comfortable and Lehi closed the gap to two points with six minutes remaining, but Skyridge prevailed with solid execution down the stretch.
Gentry had a great night with 21 points and eight rebounds. Gardner had an outstanding all-around game with 18 points, three boards, three assists and two steals.
Mosteller posted 10 points including a pair of triples with four rebounds and two steals. Gagon collected seven boards and a block, Sheffield made three assists and a block, and Wallwork got three rebounds.
“Again, we got off to a great start and we led the entire game,” Coach Gardner said. “Ryder and Joel had really good offensive games. They were efficient and did a great job making timely plays for us.
“Zach did an incredible job on Shewell, who is a tremendous player,” he went on. “He didn’t allow him a 3-pointer and made him work for everything. His defense was a huge key.
“Koa came off the bench and played huge minutes for us at the point. He did a great job controlling tempo and commanding the offense,” the coach said.
“I have so much respect for Coach Bromley and how he runs his program,” Coach Gardner added. “He is a tremendous coach and his team has been playing really good basketball, and so we were very happy to get out of there with a win.”
Feb. 6: Skyridge 64, Lone Peak 50
The Falcons kept the good times rolling when they entertained the Knights. The teams played fairly even for three of the four periods, but Skyridge doubled up the visitors 20-10 in the second quarter and that gave them enough cushion to secure the victory.
The team leaders sparked the effort as they customarily do, with Gentry scoring 21 points and Mosteller 20, including four treys. Both of them also captured eight rebounds apiece.
Gagon was a key contributor as well with 10 points, seven boards and six assists. Wallwork contributed seven points and five assists while Joel Gardner tallied four assists and two steals.
“I was proud of our guys against a tough Lone Peak team,” Coach Gardner said. “We started fast and built a 14-point lead in the second quarter. In the second half we did a good job maintaining the lead and finishing against pressure.
“Ryder had an exclamation-point dunk that brought the entire Skyridge crowd to its feet,” he said. “He had a great game leading us. Carson hit some big shots against the zone and Zach had a huge game as well. Koa Wallwork also had a big game off the bench.”
The Falcons conclude the regular season this week with two critical Region 3 contests. They will visit Corner Canyon on Tuesday (Feb. 10) and welcome American Fork for Senior Night on Friday (Feb. 13). Double-header games times are 6 p.m. for varsity girls followed by the varsity boys at 7:30 p.m.
The 6A state tournament bracket reveal show is scheduled for Saturday (Feb. 14) beginning at 10 a.m. at KSLSports.com/stream.
