New Clearfield coaches get mixed results

New coaching regimes have some mixed results so far for the Clearfield High basketball teams.

While the girls appear primed for a run at the Region 1 championship and/or a high playoff seeding, the boys squad is still trying to find itself heading into league play.

BOYS: Coming off a successful 5A semifinal showing last year, the Falcons have a lot of work to do under new coach Curtis Hulse before flying that high again this season.

The encouraging news for Clearfield is that, aside from Davis, no Region 1 team has really made a name for itself in the preseason, so the league appears to be mostly wide open. Only the Darts sported a winning record heading into this week's games.

Statistically, the Falcons find themselves right in the middle of the 5A pack for point differential. Their strength has been defense, and they're fifth in 5A in points against, giving up 52.3 per outing. But they're only 15th in offensive production, scoring 54.3 points a game.

With a little bit more scoring, the Falcons could be a team to contend with. As expected, Mitch Scholer is leading the way for Clearfield. The 6-foot-4 guard/forward is fifth in 5A in scoring with a 16.4 per game clip. He's also a solid rebounder. Two other Falcons — senior guard Adam Anderson (10.5 ppg) and sophomore forward Cameron Evans (10.4 ppg) — are popping in double digits in scoring for Clearfield. Forward Trevor Scott is adding 7.5 ppg and junior guard Tanner Hansen is throwing in 5.6 ppg, but the production drops significantly after those five.

As Hulse sees it, Clearfield has good rebounding skills, good defensive tendencies and athletic post players, but the team needs to fine tune its bench production and guard play a bit to be more competitive.

The Falcons, who took third in region last year before making a good run in the playoffs, kick off region play tonight at Layton.

GIRLS: Things could have easily gone south for the Falcons this year after their coach unexpectedly quit shortly before the season. But Dorne Hall agreed to handle the steering wheel for a year, beginning in the fall. So far, so great.

It helps, of course, that Hall's daughter is on the team and she happens to be a high school hoops star. Midway through the 2005-06 campaign, Haley Hall is making her dad's new job much easier. The 5-foot-5 point guard, a starter since her freshman year who's already signed to play for BYU, is averaging a second-best-in-5A 20.6 points a game. She's led Clearfield to a 7-1 preseason record.