Boys basketball: Desert Hills edges Canyon View with clutch 3-point play in final seconds

Written by Jeff Richards
December 9, 2022

CEDAR CITY — For the second Wednesday in a row, the Canyon View High School boys basketball played a tightly matched home game against a Region 10 opponent, with the game being decided by 3 points in the final seconds.

Desert Hills at Canyon View in boys basketball action, Cedar City, Utah, Dec. 7, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

But unlike last week’s contest, when the Falcons edged Hurricane 55-52, Canyon View fell to the Desert Hills Thunder on Wednesday night, 59-56.

Desert Hills senior Lincoln Holmes’s conventional 3-point play with five seconds left accounted for the final margin as Canyon View’s final shot attempt at the buzzer fell short.

The teams had played evenly throughout the opening two quarters, with Canyon View holding a slight 17-16 edge after one period. Near the end of the second quarter, Canyon View had pulled ahead by two, 30-28. However, Chomp Jones of Desert Hills then drained a 3-pointer with 1.9 seconds left, after which the Thunder deflected the inbounds pass to Ty Attig, who laid it in at the buzzer for a 33-30 halftime lead.

The Falcons then outscored Desert Hills 16-3 during the third period to take a 46-36 lead heading into the final quarter.

It took just under three minutes for the Thunder to rally back with a 10-0 run to tie the game again. The game stayed close the rest of the way.

With about 40 seconds left and the score tied 56-56, Canyon View stole the ball and drove to the other end, only to be whistled for an offensive foul. That gave Desert Hills another chance at the go-ahead basket. After dribbling out by the 3-point line for several seconds Holmes made his move down the right side of the key and hit the shot, picking up a foul in the process. He swished the plus-one free throw for what proved to be the final margin.

Desert Hills at Canyon View in boys basketball action, Cedar City, Utah, Dec. 7, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

“Canyon View played well and made a lot of shots,” Desert Hills head coach Chris Allred said afterward. “We had a rough third quarter and didn’t execute offensively and had some poor shot selection.”

Allred said his players then stepped up their game in the fourth quarter.

“We played with more urgency and moved and executed better,” he added. “We hope to gain better movement and execution on the offensive end and continue to play better team defense.”

Eli Allred led Desert Hills with 24 points, while Boston Holbrook added 15 and Jones and Holmes finished with 9 points apiece.

Canyon View was led by Chad Hartmann’s 14 points, with Jace Farrow adding 13.

Desert Hills improved to 2-2 in preseason play with the victory, while Canyon View’s record now stands at 3-2.

Both teams are scheduled to play again on Friday at 7 p.m., with the Thunder playing at Richfield and Canyon View hosting the Pine View Panthers.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jeff Richards, a native of Salt Lake City with family roots in Panguitch, lived in Moab for 20 years before joining St. George News in 2017. Jeff is a longtime journalist and secondary school teacher. He and his wife Penny are the parents of five daughters. They also have three young grandsons. Jeff and his family enjoy swimming, camping, sightseeing, reading, and taking pictures.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @stgnews@moabjeff@stgnewssports

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