High school boys basketball: Timpview upsets Orem with buzzer beater

PROVO — Timpview's Leo Roese hadn't hit much of anything for most of the night, but he didn't let it discourage him. The senior guard calmly sank a shot from the top of the key as time expired, giving his team a hard-fought 52-50 win over 4A favorite Orem.

"I got a wide-open look and even though I hadn't made a shot all night I just knew I had to make it," Roese said. "The play was run perfectly and yeah, I was a bit nervous, but to hit a shot like that with so much on the line just feels great."

After Orem's Dalton Nixon tied the game at 50 with 16 seconds left, Timpview coach Perry Wildeboer elected to go without a timeout and let his team run what he calls his "bread and butter play." The play was run perfectly, and Roese was set up with a wide-open look.

"I didn't want (the players) to set up and think about it. I wanted them to do it on the fly because we've rehearsed this," Wildeboer explained. "They know this well enough that I didn't want to call a timeout in that situation, and sure enough it worked out for the best."

The game was hard fought throughout with neither team enjoying more than a five-point lead. Timpview trailed 42-40 entering the final quarter, but quickly took the lead and found itself ahead 48-43 with just under three minutes remaining after consecutive layups by Brittain Covey.

At that point, Orem's Zach Hunsaker went to work, hitting two straight 3-pointers from the top of the key to bring his team within a single point with 1:16 remaining. After a Timpview turnover, Orem ran the clock down to 16 seconds when Nixon was fouled and converted one of his two foul shots to tie the game, which was answered by Roese's game-winning shot.

"Leo (Roese) is just a gym rat, and he's earned it," Wildeboer said. "He's earned those opportunities because he's put in as much time as anyone on the team and probably more so. When you have guys like that … you don't have doubt in him because he's paid the price, and when you do that, (game-winning shots) are supposed to happen."

Roese's heroics aside, it was a team effort on both ends of the court that stymied the prolific Orem attack. Holding the Tigers to just 50 points is no small chore, but it's largely what Wildeboer expects from his team.

"I think we did a good job trying to defend some of the places they like to get the ball," he said. "We made them ad lib a bit, and it was just a classic good game of two good teams making adjustments throughout, and I'm just glad we got that last possession."

The home crowd stormed the floor at the conclusion to celebrate their team's upset win over the defending 4A state champion.

"This was a big win for us, but we knew we could do it," said Roese. "We knew we could play with Orem, and this just feels amazing right now."

Timpview was led Tuesday night by Covey and Taylor Roy, who each contributed 13 points. Orem was led by Jordan Darger and Nixon, who each scored 12.

With the win, Timpview moves to 10-1 for the season and 3-1 in region play. Orem drops to 10-3 for the season and 3-1 in region play.

Email: bgurney@desnews.com

Twitter: @BrandonCGurney