Bruins ruin Silverwolves

TAYLORSVILLE — Mountain View coach Laura Romo wasn't too worried when the second-ranked Bruins only managed eight points in the first quarter of their quarterfinal state tournament game against Riverton.

"It's basketball," she said with a shrug after the Bruins defeated the Silverwolves 49-39 Thursday night at Salt Lake Community College. "Coming out and missing layups, that'll happen. If you're getting good looks, don't worry because I know it's a matter of time. The ball will fall."

That's exactly what happened as the Bruins picked up the pace in the final three quarters to earn a berth into the 5A semifinals where they will face Brighton today at 7:45 p.m. For at least one of the Bruins, the win was historic.

"The quarterfinal jinx is finally over," senior Michelle Harrison said with a grin. The guard/forward, who signed with Stanford this fall and was named a McDonald's All-American Wednesday, played her first two years of high school basketball at Lehi, and then her junior year at Mountain View. All three years her team has been eliminated from the tournament in the quarterfinals.

Harrison got the offense going by scoring six consecutive points midway through the second quarter, which meant a seven-point lead at halftime. She was also a huge factor on defense, keeping Riverton from doing much in the paint. She finished with 21 points, eight rebounds, four assists, four blocks and two steals.

"Michelle is probably the best high school player I've seen in 30 years," said Silverwolves coach Ron Ence. "It wasn't one of our best games. It wasn't one of our worst, but you've got to play nearly perfect to beat Mountain View. We played hard, but we just couldn't get it done."

The Silverwolves had solid games from Amanda Hansen, who scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds, Kim Gamblin, who finished with 11 points and 14 rebounds, and Shannon Hildreth, who scored 11 points and had three assists.

Hildreth's hot hand in the fourth quarter forced the Bruins to switch from a zone defense to a man-to-man. It worked as she didn't make another 3-point shot the rest of the game. The change seemed to energize the Bruins, who were out-hustled by the Silverwolves at times.

"I thought there were times when we relaxed, but our defense really came through," said Romo. "We played very, very unselfish."

Bruins fans were treated to some great passing on the part of nearly all of the players wearing the Mountain View uniform Thursday. Like their coach, the players weren't overly concerned about the cold start.

"Sometimes it gets frustrating when your shots don't fall," said senior Natalie Hall, who finished with six points, two steals and three rebounds. "But we know we can always put it together."

As for playing with an athlete like Harrison, Hall said it isn't hard because she involves all of her teammates.

"She sees who's open and gets them the ball," Hall said. "She's amazing. She's so good offensively, rebounding and on defense, but she's also a really good passer. She's a team player."

---

E-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com