San Juan boys basketball team picks up two wins, heads into final weeks of regular season

by Rhett Sifford
Sports Editor
The San Juan High School boys basketball team picked up two big Region 15 wins at home this past week, improving to 9-11 on the season. The Broncos cracked the top-ten of the 2A RPI standings for the first time this season with the wins.
On Thursday, January 25 the boys welcomed the North Sevier Wolves to Blanding. The visitors controlled the first quarter 17-14 but the Broncos exploded in the second quarter to score 23 points and seize a 37-26 halftime lead.
San Juan scored 20 to stretch the lead to 57-42 at the end of three, then held off a Wolf rally in the fourth to win 64-57. Anthony Done led scoring for the Broncos with 20 points including a three-point bucket.
Weston Jones came off the bench to score ten in the win, Keaton Ivins poured in nine, and Jake Ivins and Brigham Nielson added six each.
On Friday, January 26 San Juan faced Gunnison Valley. In the teams’ previous meeting January 6 the Broncos were flat from start to finish in a 62-50 loss.
But this time they turned the tables, leading nearly from start to finish. An outstanding third quarter in which San Juan outscored the Bulldogs 21-8 was key in the 63-55 victory.
Done again led the way with 18 points, but RJ Dalley rallied to score 16. Dalley hit a trio of three-pointers in the first quarter and finished the game with four.
Tripp Palmer had an outstanding game, scoring 11 points for the Broncos off the bench. Jones added seven and Jake Ivins and Justice Black both got four apiece.
San Juan continues to get strong contribution from their non-starters. They scored 44 points off the bench on the weekend, 20 against North Sevier and 24 against Gunnison Valley.
It’s a trend that began just before the Christmas break and has continued into the new year. It’s a key factor for the Broncos to be competitive in the swiftly-approaching postseason.
San Juan embarks on their final road trip of the regular season when they head to Duchesne this Friday, February 2 to take on the Eagles and Coalville on Saturday, February 3 to face the North Summit Braves.
Tip time is set for 7 p.m. Friday night and 2 p.m. on Saturday. Catch both games live on Redrock 92 Radio with video on streamutah.live. The broadcasts begin approximately 30 minutes before tip time.