Preseason exceeds expectations for Skyline boys basketball

Skyline boys basketball coach Derek Bunting is back at Skyline after a two-year absence, and is impressed at how well his team is adapting to a new situation.

“It’s a whole new program for these guys,” Bunting said. “Usually you expect that seniors have three years of experience with the same system under their belts and they can automatically deal with each situation that comes up. Our seniors are now having to think their way through everything, and the learning curve is steep. Yet they have performed beyond my expectations for the first month of the season.”

The Eagles were 7-2 at the end of winter break, including a three-game sweep of the Steve Hodson Cancer Classic tournament, played in Cedar City. Skyline defeated Canyon View 58-45, Dec. 23, Dixie 59-47, Dec. 29 and Cedar 49-46, in overtime Dec. 30.

“The strength of our team is balance,” Bunting said. “We want a number of guys scoring each game, and for the most part, we have had five players in double digits. Of course, that depends on having five quality guys on the floor at all times.”

The Eagles began the season strong with a four-game winning streak, which included a 46-44 victory over Syracuse Nov. 22, a 55-53 win against Park City Nov 29, a 49-43 win over Bonneville Dec. 2 and a 57-53 victory against Hunter Dec. 13.

The streak was broken with a pair of losses to Highland (50-42) Dec. 16 and Lone Peak (64-20) Dec. 20.

“We have won a lot of close games, including three buzzer beaters,” Bunting said. “We are building momentum as we are going into the regular season.”

Starting for the Eagles this season are senior point guard DeSean Miller, who averaged over 11 points per game in the preseason and whose speed benefits the team on fast breaks and half court offense; senior off guard Scott Anderson, who racked up 11 three-pointers in preseason and excels in zone defense; and junior small forward Garrett England, who scored 20 points in the game against Cedar and had three buzzer-beater game winning baskets in the first nine games of the season. England averaged 10 points per game in preseason and led the team with 17 three-pointers.

Also starting for Skyline is senior power forward Mike Staes, who leads the team in rebounding, averaged 9.6 points and is an excellent inside post player; and senior center Patrick Nielson, whose 6-foot-4, 190 pound frame brings a lot of energy to the team. Contributing off the bench for the Eagles are senior Clint Berhow and junior Jasek Hacking.

The Eagles defeated Wasatch 69-65 in overtime Jan. 3 and East Jan. 6 Update before beginning their regular season at home against Murray Jan. 13, at Hillcrest Jan. 20 and at home against Westlake Jan. 24. The first half of the season will conclude with a match up at Olympus Jan. 27 and at home against Herriman Jan. 31.

“We have a tough region,” Bunting said. “We play some of the most talented teams in 4A—we have our work cut out for us.”