High school boys basketball: Sloppy Kearns grinds out playoff win over West Jordan

OGDEN — Regardless of the final score, Kearns coach Dan Cosby was not pleased with his team's effort in the first round of the 6A state tournament on Monday.

"The season is almost over and I still haven't figured out what turns on the light with these guys," said Cosby following his team's 51-42 victory over West Jordan at Weber State.

Kearns' athleticism eventually helped it pull away from West Jordan in the fourth quarter, but Cosby was baffled by his players' lack of enthusiasm for the playoff game.

"We just have to regroup. I'm kind of lost for words," said Cosby.

On paper Kearns played well as it shot 45 percent from the field, outrebounded West Jordan 31-28 and only had six turnovers. It only made one 3-pointer, however, and the lack of big shots early prevented it from manufacturing excitement that wasn't there at the opening tip.

Kearns made just one bucket in the first quarter — including going 0 of 6 from 3-point range — as West Jordan built a 12-3 lead after the first quarter.

Cosby's team opened the second quarter in a full-court press, which was instrumental in helping it climb back into the game.

After Tyler King opened the second quarter with a 3-pointer to push West Jordan's lead to 15-3, Kearns held the Jaguars scoreless over the next seven minutes while scoring 15 straight points of its own.

"Should've got into the press a little sooner. When it worked you saw in the second quarter that's what got us back in the game," said Cosby.

The game remained tight throughout the third quarter, but a similar run helped Kearns pull away in the fourth quarter. Trailing 32-31, it ripped off an 11-2 run over a five-minute stretch to put the game out of reach.

Majok Kuath finished the game with 15 points for Kearns, while Kwo Agwa added 14 points and Cole Lake chipped in with 12. Kuath and Lake have been Kearns' learning scorers all year, but in the first half they had just six combined points. In the second half they combined for 21 points.

With the win, Kearns advances to Wednesday's quarterfinals and will face Davis at 4:10 p.m.

"We've got a tough one against Davis, we'll see what they can do. Hopefully we can have our A game on Wednesday," said Cosby.

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