The Salem Hills Skyhawks had to endure a four-game losing streak, but that streak is no more. They escaped with a win on Friday against Spanish Fork by the margin of a single free throw, 64-63. Having run the score up that high, both teams probably have some extra defensive drills coming up.
Chase Degraffenried continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, dropping a double-double on 24 points and ten rebounds. That makes it three consecutive games in which he has scored at least a third of Salem Hills' points. The team also got some help courtesy of Aaron Hable, who scored ten points along with six rebounds and four blocks.
Spanish Fork lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Landon Leatherwood, who scored 23 points. As a matter of fact, that's the most points Leatherwood has scored all season. Ethan Beckstead was another key contributor, scoring 16 points along with six rebounds.
Spanish Fork struggled to work together and finished the game with only three assists. They were crushed by their opponents in that department as Salem Hills racked up 13 assists.
Salem Hills' win bumped their record up to 7-12. As for Spanish Fork, their defeat was their eighth straight on the road, which dropped their record down to 4-15.
Salem Hills will challenge the Thunderbirds at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Timpview presents a significant challenge as they come into the match much higher ranked than the Skyhawks in Utah (the Thunderbirds are ranked 16th, while the Skyhawks are ranked 66th). As for Spanish Fork, they will be playing in front of their home fans against the Red Devils at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Springville will be looking to extend their current four-game winning streak.
