Box Elder

Timp Sports Weekly

March 9, 2010

Publisher's Message

For this week's issue, we look at a state 4-A boys' octafinal game the Lehi Pioners won at home at the Box Elder Bees, AKA the Drones, March 2. That game gave Lehi fans something to croak about about as they watched their home team flood away the Bees. Let's get to that story.

Dean Von Memmott

Publisher

deanmemmott@hotmail.com

Lehi Boy Hoopters Hand Box Elder Drones a Stinging Loss in State 4-A Octafinal Play

By Dean Von Memmott

Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

AKA the Drones, the Box Elder Bees' season ended on a stinging note during a state 4-A boys' basketball octafinal at Lehi March 2. The Lehi Pioneers stomped on the Drones by a score of 62-37.

At first, Box Elder controlled the floor. After a Drone had pulled down a defensive rebound, Box Elder's Justus Brown sank an inside shot to put the Bees on the board first. Lehi's Willie Walker evened the game at two, but the Drones did not let the Pioneers hop ahead immediately. Cody Eyre hit an inside, set shot, and then he pumped a three-pointer to create a 7-2 lead for Box Elder. 

The buzz, which the Drones got from the five-lead, lasted only a short time. Aided by two Ryan Christofferson foul shots, Pioneer Zach Stanley hit a trey, and then he sank a go-ahead layup. A baseline shot from Pioneer Josh Scott provided Lehi with enough cushion to survive a hard blow dealt to the Pioneers Eyre.

Fouled right after sinking a three-pointer, Eyre swished in a foul shot to complete a four-point play that put the Drones within 11-10. Before the Bees could swarm back ahead, Josh Scott and Cody Hauver each hit a set shot that eventually proved to be poisonous to Box Elder. Just before the quarter break, Stanley hit a three-pointer that left Lehi leading 18-10.

"At halftime, we went over what adjustments we had to make on our offense," said Lehi Coach Craig Gladwell. "I thought our defense was good, but our offense was what we needed to adjust. Cody Hauver gave us some great minutes, especially in the second half. In the first quarter, our kids were scared. Scott and Stanley stepped up to give us the boards and shots we needed to turn the momentum to our favor. We played much better offensively in the second half than we did in the first. In the second half , we were a littlie more patient on our offense."

The next quarter opened with Brent Mecham hitting trey for the Drones. Mecham's scoring kept the Pioneer lead in single digits for most of the second quarter. Rebounds from Brad Munns and Brown permitted Mecham to keep Lehi from flooding Box Elder out during the second period.

After Eyre had sent the Drones flying within 24-19, Walker sank a three-foot shot that sent Lehi on a 9-5 scoring run in the half's final two minutes. When a Stanley trey put the score at 29-19, Lehi demonstrated that it could very well create a huge double-digit lead in the next half. A Munns jumper and a Mecham trey managed to move Box Elder within 33-24 at halftime. 

"In the second half, Walker did much better inside than he did in the first half. When they weren't paying to him, he would sneak in for his shots," Gladwell said.

In the early second half, a Brown layup prodded the Drones to buzz 33-26 and 35-28. Lehi wouldn't let Box Elder move in any closer than seven points. Midway through the third quarer, a Hauver trey put the score at 38-28, and Scott dropped a shot back in to give Lehi the momentum to turn the game into a washout.

"Cody's three-pointer was the thing that gave us the momentum to carry us through to the end of the fourth quarter," said Lehi Coach Craig Gladwell. 

In the fourth quarter, Walker finally became white hot inside the key. No matter how many times the Drones used to the Box-and-One defense to contain him, he kept slipping through to sink shots that sent Lehi rowing far ahead of the Drones. When a Christofferson bucket put the score at 53-32, Box Elder's season found itself doomed to lasting for only several more minutes. With Lehi staying more than 20 points ahead, second-stringers like Brendon Memmott and Ryan Pittard got to see a lot of game time in the final quarter.

Walker led Lehi with 18 points while Stanley added another 16 and Scott 14. Mecham led the Drones with 14 points while Eyre poured in another 13.

The Pioneers' season ended on a baad note March 4 when the Highland Rams, AKA the Lambs, butted them out of the playoffs during quarterfinal action at Weber State University's Dee Events Center.