High school basketball: Davis defense smothers Viewmont in Region 1

BOUNTIFUL — Faced with a challenging week of two league road games against quality teams, the Davis Darts got off to a great start on Tuesday.

Davis held Viewmont to 29 percent shooting in the second half to pull away to a 53-38 victory over the Vikings. The Darts improved to 4-0 in Region 1 play and 8-1 overall. Viewmont fell to 1-2 and 4-4.

Davis' defense was the key to its victory. The Darts held the Vikings scoreless for a stretch that lasted nearly 7 minutes in the first half and forced a total of 16 turnovers.

"That's where we want to put our focus is defensively," said Davis coach Jay Welk. "We know we got guys that are capable of scoring. When we do good things on the defensive end, usually good things happen on the offensive end."

That had to be the case for the Darts, who started out cold as ice from the field. The Darts didn't make their first field goal until Landon Horne — who scored a season-high 18 points — drained a 3-pointer with 1:15 left in the first quarter.

"We just played good 'D' the whole game," said Davis guard Trevor Webb, who filled up the stat sheet with 13 points, five assists and three steals. "We didn't shoot at the beginning, but as long as we played good 'D' that's all that matters."

The Darts never really found their stroke from the field, but they generated points by getting to the free-throw line. Davis had a 32-10 advantage in foul shot attempts, and Welk said that didn't happen by accident. He wanted his guys to play aggressively on offense, drive to the basket and draw fouls.

"That's something we talked about before we came out," Welk said. "We couldn't come out and be passive. You can never do that on the road."

The Darts are becoming experts on playing on the road. Six of their first eight league games are away from home. They play Fremont in a showdown for first place in Region 1 on Friday.

After leading 21-16 at halftime, the Darts gradually pulled away. The closest the Vikings got in the second half was 26-22, but Horne made a shot and Webb sank a 3-pointer to put Davis in control at 31-22. The Darts led by double digits throughout the fourth quarter.

"We're happy to have some success on the road," Welk said. "I thought we took a step forward."

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