by Bruce Tippets
BTippets@cherryroad.com
The Uintah girls basketball team is starting to turn the corner at the time of the season.
The Lady Utes completed the series sweep with a 47-27 win over Orem in Vernal.
“It’s nice to sweep a team and it was great to do it at home,” Uintah coach Hollie Ottley said. “You always question how we are going to do the second time around in region play. You never know how they are going to come back.”
Uintah is fighting for a spot to host an opening-round Class 4A state tournament game.
The top 16 teams host a state tournament contest.
“We are working to be one of those teams,” said Ottley. “We are close.”
Payson and Provo are the top teams from Uintah’s region. Payson is ranked No. 3, while the Lady Bulldogs are No. 4.
“Those teams are just where we planned they would be,” Ottley said. “Payson is a great team.”
Against Orem, the Lady Utes had a positive start to set the table for the rest of the contest.
Uintah was ahead 14-6 after the first eight minutes.
“It was great to get off to a good start,” Ottley said. “It was perfect. Last time we played them we got off to a 10-0 run. We just told them that we wanted to do it again. We didn’t make the 10-0 run but it was nice to get a little cushion.”
The Lady Utes went into halftime with a 20-10 lead.
Uintah pulled away for good in the third quarter, outscoring the Lady Tigers 12-6.
“It was nice for me because I was able to sit back a little bit,” said Ottley. “They played level-headed, which was great. A lot of teams when we get up like that they start making mental mistakes.”
Uintah played the fourth quarter with some younger players on the roster.
“We got everyone on the bench into the game,” said Ottley. “We had two freshmen get into the game and score. That was fun. That is the future of the Utes right there.”
Uintah’s Kenadie Maughan had a game-high 22 points. Emily Bake chipped in with six.
“They have improved on just being poised,” Ottley said. “We have talked a lot about that.”
Orem’s Liv Rasmussen led her team with 18 points, including four 3-pointers.
Boys
Uintah knew it had its hands full with Layton Christian Academy in the second game of the doubleheader.
The Eagles played an uptempo style all night for a 71-42 victory.
LCA is playing an independent schedule this year. The game counted in the record books but not in the 4A Rating Percentage Index standings.
The Eagles came into Vernal with a massive team with several players listed over 6-foot.
Uintah put up a good fight early on against LCA.
The Eagles did make the scoreboard read 22-11 after the first quarter.
LCA outscored the Utes 14-7 in the second stanza.
The Eagles were on cruise control in the third and fourth quarters.
Uintah’s JJ Jenson paced his team with 17 points and Dausen Gardiner netted 13.
