ST. GEORGE — The race for the Region 10 boys high school basketball championship took a dramatic turn Friday night as teams battled in three close, low-scoring games around St. George.

Dixie went to Snow Canyon and handed the Warriors only their second loss in the region, moving the Flyers a half-game behind first place. 

Elsewhere, Hurricane hung on for a one-point win at home and Pine View edged Crimson Cliffs in the final seconds.

Following are recaps of Friday night’s games:

Dixie 49, Snow Canyon 44

In a hard-fought, tightly contested game, Dixie smothered Snow Canyon in the third quarter, limiting the Warriors to just six points in the frame.

Then Dixie held on to win after making foul shots and continuing to contest every Snow Canyon possession in the final quarter.

“Our big focus was, play defense,” Dixie coach Tyler Roberts said after the win. “Play defense like we know how to play defense and get stops.”

Points were hard to come by as both squads defended well right from the opening tip.

Grant Carter got open for Dixie a couple of times in the first quarter and ended up sinking three 3-pointers in the frame.

Lyman Simmons responded for Snow Canyon with two buckets and a 3-pointer, pacing the Warriors to a 14-12 advantage after one quarter of play.

And then it was Snow Canyon’s turn to ratchet up the defense as the Flyers managed just five points in the second quarter and trailed 27-17 at halftime.

“We weren’t patient in the first half offensively, and I challenged them to just run what we’ve been running,” Roberts said. “It’s simple. It’s an easy game. Sometimes we make it too hard.”

Carter stayed hot in the third, sinking three buckets to help Dixie get back in the game.

Both Bronsen Barben and Kyle Lemke scored four points in the frame for Dixie and Snow Canyon went into the fourth quarter clinging to a slim 33-31 advantage. 

And then Cam Dyer exploded for Dixie. The 6-foot-5, 210-pound senior scored all of his nine points in the final quarter, including a 4-of-4 showing from the free throw line to help the Flyers pull away.

Barben shot 5-of-6 from the stripe down the stretch to finish with 12 points in the contest. Carter led all scorers with 18 points.

Jordan Roberts chipped in with six points for Dixie and Lemke’s four points rounded out the Flyers offense in the win.

Coach Roberts said that Dixie learned valuable lessons earlier in the season in close games that went down to the wire against region opponents.

“If we wouldn’t have had those games, we probably wouldn’t have won this game,” he said. “By us going through that, they’ve never had that experience before. Those experiences led us to what we did tonight.”

Owen Mackay led the Warriors with 14 points while Simmons ended up with 13. Bowen Hammer sank two 3-pointers and finished with eight points in the defeat.

Dixie improved its Region 10 record to 7-2 after the win and now sits in second place behind Snow Canyon, which slipped to 8-2 after the loss.

Hurricane 45, Desert Hills 44

The game came down to the final possession as the Tigers survived the Thunder’s challenge in Hurricane.

Down by two with six seconds left, Desert Hills senior Lincoln Holmes was fouled during a 3-point attempt. He made all three foul shots and the Thunder led 43-42.

Hurricane senior Weston Larsen was fouled on the ensuing inbounds play and he made both free throws, setting the final margin with three seconds remaining.

Desert Hills had a good look at a buzzer-beater that would have won the game, but the shot fell short.

The Thunder led 10-8 after the first quarter and upped that advantage to 21-15 at halftime.

But Hurricane cut the lead to one at 30-29 going into the final quarter and then scored just enough points to win it in regulation.

The Tigers were led to victory by senior Kruz Gardner, who scored 16 points. Fellow senior Nathan Parker netted 11 for Hurricane, including two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. 

Holmes led all scorers in the contest with 21 points. Eric Olsen was next for the Thunder with 10 points. Desert Hills sank 19-of-27 free throws in the setback.

Pine View 46, Crimson Cliffs 43

In a closely fought game at Pine View, the Panthers hit a couple clutch free throws in the final seconds to upset the Crimson Cliffs Mustangs.

Down 44-42 and at the free throw line with 5.5 seconds left, Crimson Cliffs made the first foul shot but missed the second, forcing the Mustangs to quickly foul Pine View’s Griffen Shepherd on the ensuing inbounds pass.

With three seconds left on the clock, Shepherd made both free throws at the other end to give the Panthers a three-point cushion, which proved to be the final margin as Crimson’s last-second shot missed the mark.

“Honestly, it was just a great effort from the guys tonight,” said Pine View head coach Ryan Eves. “We really did a nice job of executing in the second half. When we needed a bucket, we found a way to score.”

Shepherd led all scorers with 17 points, 12 of those coming in the second half. His brother Bensen Shepherd was the Panthers’ next high score man, with eight points.

Meanwhile, Jackson McKone led the Mustangs with 13 points, while Travis Mathews added 11.

— written by Jeff Richards

Region 10 boys basketball standings (as of Feb. 5)

1. Snow Canyon, 8-2 (18-2).
2. Dixie, 7-2 (15-4).
3. Crimson Cliffs, 6-3 (12-6).
4. Cedar, 4-5 (9-9).
5. Hurricane, 4-6 (11-9).
6. Pine View, 3-6 (8-10).
7. Desert Hills, 1-9 (8-14).

Next Wednesday’s games

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

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