Layton players celebrated their semifinal win in this photo. They got to celebrate even more after winning a state title.
File photo by Dave Argyle
understands exactly what a sixth man is supposed to do.
Layton faced a double-digit deficit against
Brighton (Salt Lake City) when Cragun came off the bench in the second half. He looked around, saw the Lancers offense struggling, and quickly put it all on his shoulders to make some big plays.
"I just felt like I needed to take over," Cragun said. "No one was taking over. I just stepped up, tried to be a leader and take over the game."
Cragun scored all 13 of his points in the second half, including a game-winning layup with 2.3 seconds left, to power Layton to a 48-46 victory over Brighton in the UHSAA Class 5A boys basketball championship game at Weber State University on Saturday. It was the first state title for the Lancers since winning the Class 4A crown in 1988.
The senior guard made several huge baskets and grabbed key rebounds to rally the Lancers (18-7) from a 13 point second-half deficit. Cragun scored seven of the game's final eight points himself to complete the comeback. Senior forward
Jarriesse Blackmon led the Lancers with 14 points and seven rebounds.
Jakoby Kemp added 11 points for Layton.
"Those are the types of games we've been in all season long," Layton coach Kelby Miller said. "I trust these guys to pull these games out and that's what we did."
John Gremillion scored 15 points and collected 15 rebounds to lead Brighton.
Brock Miller added 14 and
Derek Devashrayee added 12 for the Bengals (16-10), who fell short of winning their first state title since 1996.
Brighton opened the third quarter with six straight points – punctuated by
Simi Fehoko's putback layup – to carve out a 33-20 lead. The Lancers answered that run with a much bigger one.
Layton scored nine unanswered points and ripped off a 16-2 run, taking a 36-35 lead on a pair of free throws from Kemp early in the fourth quarter. Cragun fueled the fun by converting back-to-back 3-point plays.
With the score knotted at 40, Miller made a pair of baskets to help Brighton go up 46-40. Then Cragun went to work again. He hit the team's first 3-pointer of the game and, a short time later, made a pair of free throws to tie it again.
Cragun saved his best play for last – rebounding a missed shot by
Julian Blackmon and putting it back in for the winning layup in the final seconds.
"Their pressure man-to-man hurt us," Brighton coach Jeff Gardner said. "They took us a little out of rhythm. They've got really good quickness and, frankly, just took us a little out of our comfort zone in running our (offense) and getting catches where we needed to get catches."
After trading baskets with Layton early in the first quarter, Brighton ripped off a 15-4 run that carried over into the second quarter. Miller fueled the run when he turned a steal into a pull-up 3-pointer. Then the senior capped it with his second 3-pointer, giving the Bengals a 23-10 lead.
Layton rallied before halftime behind disruptive defensive play. The Lancers got into Brighton passing lanes and forced turnovers. It helped the Lancers close the quarter on a 6-0 run, culminating in Julian Blackmon's buzzer-beating jumper, and trimmed the Bengals' lead to 27-20 at halftime.
Bountiful 66, Kearns 54In Ogden, defending Class 4A champion Bountiful faced little resistance in rolling to a second-consecutive state title. The Braves broke open the game behind explosive shooting in the second quarter and ran away for the win in the Class 4A championship game Saturday at Weber State University.
Jeff Pollard led the way with 22 points and five steals, plus
Zach Seljaas chipped in 14 points and had three blocked shots and a pair of steals before halftime.
Jake LaSalle and
Collin Parrish added 12 points apiece for Bountiful.
The Braves (22-6) became the first back-to-back Class 4A boys basketball champions since Provo won in 2007 and 2008.
Bountiful broke open a close game in the second quarter with a 17-3 run. Seljaas stole the ball and dunked it less than 30 seconds into the quarter to push the Braves' lead to 15-7. It sparked the run and set a dominant tone for the rest of the quarter.
LaSalle buried a 3-pointer to give Bountiful its first double-digit lead at 20-9. Back-to-back 3-pointers from LaSalle and Seljaas later in the quarter helped the Braves extend their lead to 30-10.
Kearns never seriously threatened Bountiful after the first quarter.
Bushmen Ebet scored 19 points and
Tayler Marteliz added 12 for the Cougars (19-8), who fell short of winning their first state basketball title since 1972.
Pine View (St. George) 46, Dixie (St. George) 43
At West Valley City, Pine View withstood a fourth-quarter rally by rival Dixie to hang on for the UHSAA Class 3A boys basketball championship at the Maverik Center on Saturday. The Panthers (23-2) won their third state title overall and first since 2007.
Chaz Petersen led Pine View with 18 points.
Kody Wilstead dominated around the basket, adding 15 points and 14 rebounds for the Panthers.
Tyler Bennett finished with 14 points and five rebounds to lead Dixie.
Jake Hawes totaled seven points and nine boards for the Flyers. Dixie (20-6) was seeking its first state title in boys basketball since winning the Class A title in 1970.
Late in the third quarter, Bennett hit several big shots to fuel a 12-0 run for Dixie by himself. He helped give the Flyers their first lead at 36-35 early in the fourth quarter. Pine View regained a 45-43 lead in the final minute and iced the win when
Garrett Bowker stole the ball and hit a free throw with 10 seconds left.
Petersen provided the early spark for Pine View. He scored 16 of his points before halftime to help the Panthers carve out a 30-19 lead. Pine View pushed its lead to 35-24 with two minutes remaining in the third quarter before Bennett brought Dixie back.
Manti 60, Emery (Castle Dale) 51 At Richfield, Manti overcame a nine-point deficit in the final three minutes to defeat Emery in the UHSAA Class 2A championship game on Saturday at the Sevier Valley Center. It gave the Templars their first state title since 2008.
Stuart Lott led Manti with 19 points,
Derek Wright added 18 and
Trevor Alder chipped in 12 rebounds.
Dillon Wilstead scored 20 points to pace Emery and
Tyson Roper added 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Down nine with just under three minutes to play, Manti (20-6) used a full-court press to force turnovers on four consecutive possessions. The Templars scored off each turnover to get back into the game. They tied it at 49 on a 3-pointer from Lott and took a 51-49 lead when Lott stole the inbound pass on the next play and fed Wright for a layup.
Emery (16-9) finished with 15 turnovers, with the majority coming late in the fourth quarter to fuel Manti's improbable rally. It denied the Spartans a chance at claiming their first state title since winning back-to-back championships in 1989 and 1990.
John Coon covers Utah high school sports. You can contact him at john_coon@hotmail.com and follow him on Twitter at @johncoonsports
