ST. GEORGE – Canyon View won its first game in four tries against Region 9 foes with a road win at Snow Canyon Thursday night. Meanwhile, Pine View and Hurricane played in the NGC Invitational in Page, Ariz., with differing results. The Panthers won big in the first round, while the Tigers dropped a close one. Here’s the rundown:

Canyon View 65, Snow Canyon 58

Brantzen Blackner opened the game with a defensive rebound and a coast-to-coast drive for two, then followed that up less than a minute later with a 3-pointer. It was the start of a big night for the senior guard, and a bad sign for the Warriors.

“He’s a terrific athlete, a great player and a great scorer,” Snow Canyon coach Jamison Sorenson said. “He went off tonight. And we threw a lot of things at him, a lot of different defenses, including a box-and-1. But they were patient and waited for their shot.”

The Warriors kept it close on the first quarter, despite eight points from Blackner and a pair of 3-pointers by Joey Lambeth. It was tied at 16-16 after one period.

Early in the second, Snow Canyon took a brief lead when Braden Baker hit a pair of free throws to make it 20-19. But Cash Christensen scored at the other end and Blackner hit his second trey of the game to quickly put the Falcons up 24-20. By halftime, the lead had increased to 29-23.

Kameron Webster and Braden Baker hit treys to start the third quarter that tied the game at 29-29, but Blackner scored 10 points in the quarter’s final six minutes to help Canyon View go on a 17-5 run and earn a 46-34 lead at the quarter break.

A 13-4 run helped Snow Canyon get within 50-47 as Bryson Childs hit a 3-pointer to cap the run. But Blackner answered with a shot in the lane and also hit a pair of free throws to push the lead out and the Warriors would get no closer than five the rest of the game.

“We still had way too many turnovers,” Sorenson said. “Baker and Webster found their rhythm tonight, but not much else good happened. We need to do a better job of getting the ball into the post to our big sophomore (Joey Robertson).”

Blackner had a phenomenal line with 27 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and five assists. Lambeth had 13 points and made three 3-pointers. Abe Huxford finished with 10 points and Porter Miller had six points and 12 rebounds.

Baker had 19 points and seven boards and Webster had 18 and five for SC. Each made three 3-pointers.

Canyon View, 3-5, outrebounded Snow Canyon 38-29. The Falcons play at Pine View on Tuesday.

Snow Canyon, 3-3, is off until Dec. 16 and will face Ridgeline in the Coach Walker Memorial Holiday Classic at 9:30 p.m. that night.

Stats: Canyon View 65, Snow Canyon 58

NGC Invitational
Pine View 74, Tuba City (Ariz.) 51

Preseason first-team all-region pick Trey Farrer was a man among boys in this one. The senior center made an astounding 16 of 17 shots from the floor in his best game to date, a 38-point, 11-rebound performance.

“Every game, when we go into him, it just opens things up for everyone,” Panther coach Ryan Eves said. “Sometimes we forget how big and strong and skilled he is. I hope we’re smart enough to realize that we need to ride him to the end.”

Pine View started slow on Wednesday against Enterprise, but Farrer and the Panthers didn’t let that happen again, racing out to a nine-point lead in the first quarter and expanding the advantage to 42-29 at halftime.

“We got a lot of easy buckets and rebounded the ball well, too,” Eves said. “It wasn’t our best defensive performance, but we moved the ball well on offense. This team can score, for sure.”

McKay Lambert had four 3-pointers and Dylan Hendrickson recorded a smooth line with 11 points, 12 rebounds and six assists as Pine View increased the lead to 53-36 after three and coasted to the end.

“This senior team, led by Trey, put in a lot of work in the off-season, a lot of work,” Eves said. “They were all there when we won the championship two years ago and they know what it takes to get to the top.”

The Panthers owned the glass with a huge 40-21 advantage and Pine View had an assist on 25 of 28 made shots.

PV, 4-0, moves on to the semifinals of the NGC with a Friday night game against the hometown Page Sand Devils. The semi will tipoff at 8 p.m. at Page High School. The winner plays in the NGC final at 3:30 p.m. Saturday with the loser playing the third-place game at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Stats: box-scores-for-pine-view-male-tuba-city-male

NGC Invitational
Arbor View (Nev.) 64, Hurricane 57

Nate Ben had eight first-quarter points and Josh Parker tossed in five in the opening period as the Tigers ran out to a 21-13 advantage after eight minutes of play.

Hurricane even pushed the lead out to nine at 27-18 two minutes into the second, but unfortunately it was all downhill after that for HHS.

Led by sharp shooter Comillion Smith, the Aggies went on a 14-7 run to close the first half and pull within 34-32. And after the break, Arbor View scored seven quick points, sparked by a Smith 3-pointer, before Regan Marshall could stop the bleeding with a basket inside.

Parker and Graden Cahoon made big buckets near the end of the third to pull Hurricane within 48-45.

A Parker free throw cut it to 48-46 with under seven minutes to play, but Smith buried back-to-back 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to push it to 54-46 and the Tigers never got closer than six the rest of the game.

Smith made four 3-pointers and had 13 points for Arbor View, which forced Hurricane into 23 turnovers.

The Tigers owned the glass with a 48-31 advantage, but shot a poor 1 for 15 from deep.

Cahoon led Hurricane with 15 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Ben had 15 points and eight boards and Parker also scored 15, with six rebounds.

The Tigers, 3-1, will drop to the consolation bracket of the NGC tourney, playing at 3:30 p.m. against Bradshaw Mountain, Ariz.

Stats: Arbor View 64, Hurricane 57

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