Broncos improve to 6-1 in Region

With two important Region 15 road games this past weekend, the San Juan Broncos boys basketball team needed to come out victorious to keep pace with the league-leading Emery Spartans.
Those fans who traveled to Gunnison and Salina to watch the Broncos play were not disappointed as San Juan not only won both games, but did so with style.
On Friday the 27th, the Broncos defeated the Gunnison Valley Bulldogs by 19, 66-47. San Juan torched the net from beyond the three point line in the game, hitting 10 triples on the night, led by Seth Pugh’s four from downtown.
Jaden Torgerson and Jordan Blake accounted for the other six three pointers with each drilling three from behind the arc.
Torgerson led San Juan with a game high 18 points with Blake close behind him, finishing with 14 points in the game. Pugh was the third Broncos to finish with double digit points with 12.
Jaxon Lee had six and Zach Brown finished with five points. Landon Pemberton added four points to San Juan’s bottom line while Dylan Ivins chipped in three points and Lyle Palmer rounded things out with two points for the Broncos.
After just edging out the North Sevier Wolves in the first meeting this season, the Broncos routed their hosts on Saturday afternoon, as Blake and Torgerson torched the nets once again from deep.
The duo again combined for six treys, with each hitting three just as they had against Gunnison.
San Juan jumped out to a seven point lead after the first quarter, 17-10, before leaving North Sevier in the dust, outscoring them 19-5 in the second quarter to take a 36-15 lead into the locker room at halftime.
The Broncos didn’t rest on the big lead in the second half, though, as they kept the hammer down in the third quarter, adding another five points to their lead by outscoring the Wolves 16-11 in the period.
The 26 point lead only got bigger in the fourth as San Juan dropped another 20 points on North Sevier and held the Wolves to 14 points in the quarter to seal the win, 72-40.
Blake led all scorers in the game with 23 points, he also had six rebounds. Torgerson finished the night with 11 points and five rebounds.
Brown was right behind Torgerson with 10 points and a game high seven rebounds. Pemberton had seven points in the game, while Pugh added a couple of threes and finished with six points.
Ivins was next in the scoring column with four points and Trez Perkins and Kyler Johnson came off the bench and added two and one points respectively.
The Broncos host Monticello on Wednesday, February 1 before welcoming Grand to town on Friday, February 3. Both games tip off at 7 p.m.
Girls Basketball
While the boys team was on the road, the Lady Broncos held down the fort at home and split a pair of Region 15 games, defeating Gunnison on Friday, 54-34, and losing to North Sevier on Saturday, 79-39.
On Friday, the Broncos started the game off by taking a seven point lead after one quarter of play, 13-6 over the Bulldogs. In the second quarter, San Juan built the lead to ten, outscoring Gunnison 16-13 in the period to take a 29-19 lead at the half.
Both teams started out the second half a bit sluggish with each scoring a meager six points in the third quarter. San Juan shook the sluggishness off in the fourth, though, as they exploded for 19 points.
The Broncos also held the Bulldogs to just nine points over the final eight minutes of the game to notch their fourth Region win of the season, 54-34.
Delaney Palmer led San Juan with a game high 13 points, followed by Madison Palmer’s nine points. Jordyn Moon added seven points and Megan Grover finished with six points.
Nizhonii Begaye finished with five points, just ahead of Krystelle Noyes’ four points. Ryann Shumway had three points while Alexis James, Kelesha Gray and Tasiah Little pitched in two points each. Bodell Nielson rounded out the scoring for San Juan with one point in the win.
Saturday night the game didn’t go quite as well for San Juan, as they faced off against one of the top teams in 2A, the North Sevier Wolves.
The Broncos managed to keep within striking distance until partway through the third quarter when the Wolves took over on the way to a lopsided victory, 79-39, over the Broncos.
In spite of playing well, San Juan fell behind almost right away in the first quarter, as North Sevier outscored the Broncos 23-14 in the first.
The Broncos fell behind even further in the second quarter, as they gave up 16 points to the Wolves and scored just nine points themselves to fall behind by 16 at the half, 39-23.
The Broncos started off the third quarter by scoring the first six points of the second half and cutting the Wolves’ lead to 10 points.
Just as it looked like San Juan was going to make a ball game out of it, North Sevier went on a crushing offensive and defensive run, scoring 23 points and holding San Juan to six third quarter points.
When the buzzer rang at the end of the third, the Wolves had all but put the game away and led by 33 points, 62-29. In the fourth quarter, San Juan continued to play hard, scoring 10 points but gave up 17, bringing about the Broncos third Region 15 loss of the season, 79-39.
Nielson paced the Broncos with 11 points and Delaney Palmer scored seven. Madison Palmer and Shumway each had six points, while Moon and Noyes combined for six points with three points apiece. Begaye finished the game with two points and Grover had one point in the loss.
The Broncos next game will be in Moab, UT where they’ll take on the Grand County Red Devils on Thursday, February 2 before traveling to Castle Dale, UT on Tuesday, February 7 to take on the Emery Spartans. Both games are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
Wrestling
The San Juan wrestling team competed in a four-way match on Thursday, January 26 with Monticello, Monument Valley and Whitehorse hosted by Monticello.
Five wrestlers competed, including J.C. Clinger, Joshua Lacy, Yakeisin Tso, Grange Simpson and DJ Howell. Tso picked up the lone win against the Buckaroos, defeating Wyatt Fulmer 9-4.
Instead of heading to the North Sanpete Tournament as was scheduled, the Broncos instead headed to Ignacio, CO to participate in the Butch Melton Invitational Tournament.
Clinger wrestled at 132 lbs and went 0-4; Tso competed in the 138 lbs division and went 4-1. Lacy and Simpson both went 2-2, and Cynthia Joe went 0-3.
San Juan will head to the Region 15 Tournament this coming weekend, February 3 and 4, held in Richfield, UT.

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