5A boys high school basketball: Gallegos propels Jaguars into semis

WEST VALLEY CITY — West Jordan forward Rayes Gallegos had one of his least productive scoring games in the last two years in the first round of the 5A state tournament on Monday.

But Gallegos didn't dwell on the fact that he scored just six points in that contest. Instead, he just used it as a learning tool and took this lesson from it: be aggressive.

He did just that, making four 3-pointers and scoring 16 points in the first half of the Jaguars' 47-37 win over Lehi in the 5A quarterfinals on Wednesday night. West Jordan next plays Region 1 champion Davis in the semifinals on Friday night.

Gallegos helped get the Jaguars off to a sizzling start against the Pioneers on Wednesday, and they would need every point he scored to hold up later in the contest. Gallegos scored six points during a 12-2 run to close the second quarter, which he capped with a steal and an acrobatic layup to give West Jordan a 28-21 lead heading into the break.

"I've always felt like, and this team especially, playing with a lead is so much easier," said West Jordan coach Scott Briggs. "To have him come out there and have him shoot the way he's capable of shooting, obviously it made the rest of the game go easier for us. And I think it made him feel better."

Things came fairly easily offensively for Gallegos and the rest of the Jaguars in the first half, as they shot 58 percent from the field. The second half, however, was a completely different ballgame, and one that typified a playoff slugfest.

West Jordan made just four baskets and shot 27 percent from the field in the second half. The Jaguars led by as many as 10 points in the second half, but had it whittled down to 34-31 when Lehi's Josh Scott made a basket early in the fourth quarter.

"It was a playoff-type game where your shooting goes away a little bit and you got to find ways to pull one out," Briggs said. "I thought we defended well and rebounded well. Hopefully, our shooting will come back. We did everything we could to hold on there at the end."

What the Jaguars did — besides defend and rebound — was put the game in Mason Sawyer's hands. The point guard made two free throws following Scott's basket, and then made a sweet turnaround jumper in the paint to stretch West Jordan's lead back to 38-31.

Lehi never threatened again.

"Lehi has a heck of a defensive team," Sawyer said. "They gave us trouble all game. Toward the end of the game, I had to pick my moments. I drove and dished to my teammates."

Sawyer scored 15 points and Jordan Weirick had 12. The Jaguars, despite a noticeable disadvantage in size, were able to hold a 28-24 rebounding edge over the Pioneers. Tyson Holt, Tyson Udy, Weirick and D.J. Tialavea all deserve credit for keeping the Jaguars from getting hammered on the boards.

William Walker's 10 points and six rebounds led Lehi.

E-mail: aaragon@desnews.com