The Summit Academy Bears traveled to the Spartan Center on Saturday for the second round matchup of the 3A Boy’ Basketball State Tournament against the Emery Spartans.
Starting off the game, Wade Stilson would find Creek Sharp for a quick play to the basket for two. On the next possession, Sharp scored another, this time with a mid-range jumper. Zack Tuttle then would get the defensive rebound, run the length of the floor and be rewarded on the other end with an assisted layup from Mason Stilson.
With an early 8-0 lead, Wade Stilson would get the next Spartan score with a tough move in the paint for two. A few possessions later, Wade Stilson secured the defensive rebound and threw the ball the length of the court to Luke Justice, who brought it in for a nice layup for Emery.
Justice would score again after a steal by Tuttle, picked up by Sharp, getting a solid assist. The Bears would catch a little momentum at the end of the quarter, with Emery still leading, 16-13.
With a couple minutes remaining in the half, the score was 25-18. After a drive into the basket, Wade Stilson found Jace Fransden at the top of the key, making a nice three-point shot. With less than a minute on the clock, Justice would take the ball to the paint, where he drew the defender’s attention, finding Tuttle for an easy two. The half would come to end with a score of 30-20, with the Spartans controlling the lead.
With the second half underway, Tuttle was in the right place at the right time as the ball had a gracious bounce to him that he put up for two points. Moments later, after a tussle for the ball in the paint, the ball was knocked loose, rolling to the three-point line. Creek Sharp would pick it at and knock down a shot for three.
With a little under three minutes remaining in the quarter, Mason Stilson had a quick drive to the basket for two. Wade Stilson then had a block, starting a fast break, where Tuttle would score the points on the other end. After getting his own rebound, Sharp had a tough move, scoring two more for the Spartans.
The lead was now 20 for Emery with a minute left in the third quarter. Another fast break play brought a great assist from Luke Justice with Mason Stilson scoring the alley-oop layup. Emery would end up outscoring Summit Academy in the last quarter as well, bringing the score to a final 61-35.
Sharp had an excellent game, scoring 20 points, going eight for 14. He would add on nine rebounds, two assists and a steal. Tuttle was the next leading scorer for Emery with 12 points on the night. He was big on defense with six steals to go with six rebounds and three assists.
Wade Stilson was huge on the defensive end, finishing with seven steals, three blocks, nine rebounds and eight points for the big man. Justice would get eight points for the Spartans, along with three assists and a steal. Mason Stilson also had eight points, with four steals and a couple assists.
Next up, the Spartans will travel to the Sevier Valley Center in Richfield for the quarterfinals of the state tournament. Emery will face #10 Judge Memorial at 12:50 p.m. on Thursday. The game will be broadcast live on etvnews.com/livesports.