High school basketball: Timpview uses size advantage to beat Region 7 rival Lehi

LEHI —When the Timpview Thunderbirds started compiling their game plan for the matchup with Region 7 foe Lehi, they saw one obvious advantage: size, and lots of it.

The Thunderbirds knew immediately their ticket to success was getting the ball inside to their twin towers, 6-foot-8 Corbin Kaufusi and 6-foot-7 Colby Jorgensen, and the strategy cashed in, as Timpview (8-4, 3-0) defeated the Pioneers (9-2, 1-1), 59-56, on Friday night.

"We knew that (we had more size) coming in, so our coach said, 'If they don't crash down on you, just take it to the hole,'" Kaufusi said. "But they played hard, so it was a battle."

Kaufusi, who led Timpview with 13 points and 12 rebounds, and Jorgensen, who dumped in 10 more, helped the Thunderbirds jump out an early 18-11, first-quarter advantage by controlling the paint.

The Pioneers continued adjusting their defense throughout the game, resulting in a third-quarter rally to tie the game 32-32, but Timpview only returned to what had been working to regain control.

"They started crashing a lot more, they started having more guys come in to crash down whenever I got the ball," Kaufusi said. "So that was kind of hard, but whenever I kicked it out, we were alright."

Both Timpview big men did a good job of finding their open teammates along the 3-point line, and those guards used the rhythm of the inside-out game to nail seven treys and shoot 54.5 percent from the field.

Thunderbird coach Perry Wildeboer added that strong, disciplined defense by his team resulted in the third region win of the season.

"We played a good Lehi team that shoots the ball well," he said. "They keep you defending all the time. You relax and they've got shooters who will make you pay. And if you make mistakes, they do a good job of making you pay."

In a team effort anchored by the defensive prowess of senior Christian Covey, Timpview held leading Lehi scorer Dustin Draeger, who averages 15.9 points per game, to just six on the night.

Junior guard Ryan Christofferson took up the slack for the Pioneers however, scoring 22 points and keeping Lehi in within striking distance until the final buzzer.

With 18 seconds remaining, Christofferson drove the lane and put in a layup to bring Lehi within three points at 58-55. The Pioneers created multiple 3-point opportunities in the final seconds but couldn't convert.

With a Westlake loss across town, the Thunderbirds move into sole control of Region 7 with a lot of games left to play.

Covey added 11 points for Timpview and Zach Stanley and Colton College scored 16 and 14 points, respectively, in the loss for Lehi.

e-mail: sthomas@desnews.com