With just three games left to play in the regular season, the Farmington boys basketball team is closing in on a Region 5 title. 

More importantly, the team is working on securing a high seed and first-round state playoff bye. 

The Phoenix won twice last week, improving its region record to 6-1. Farmington began this week 12-7 overall. At press time, Farmington was two games ahead of Bonneville and fellow Davis County school Viewmont, each sitting at 4-3 in league action. 

Farmington used a dominant second quarter on Feb. 3 to comfortably defeat Woods Cross 65-50 at home. The Phoenix turned a 21-17 first-quarter deficit into a 38-32 halftime lead thanks to a 21-9 second-quarter edge. Farmington then outpaced the Wildcats 27-20 in the second half to secure the win. To their credit, the Wildcats played a closer game than the last time these two teams met – a 76-47 Farmington rout on Jan. 13. 

The Phoenix shot better than 50% and got 17 points and eight rebounds from Collin Chandler. Caleb Mordue added 15 points, but the biggest star of the night might have been Truman Hendry. The 6-foot-7-inch senior had 12 points and a game-high 14 rebounds. Woods Cross had three players with 10 points each: Jaxon Smith, Keegan Phung and Zach Delange. 

Two days later, Farmington once again had an impressive second quarter, helping immensely in the team’s comeback victory against Bountiful, 67-57. Things were looking dicey for the Phoenix after one quarter, as the team was down 19-11. But a 21-6 spurt turned the game around, and Farmington never looked back. A big difference in the game was at the free throw line where the Phoenix made 18 of 23 attempts, but the Braves were just 8 of 17. 

Farmington’s win overshadowed a big night from Bountiful’s Robert Whaley. The 6-foot-6-inch senior had 27 points, six rebounds and four assists. Teammate Henry Smith had 13 points and nine rebounds. Meanwhile, for Farmington, four players reached doubles figures in scoring, led by Chandler, who had 21 points. Hendry had 16 points and nine rebounds, while Mordue chipped in 13 points. Michael Rawson added 12 points. 

The Phoenix host Box Elder on Friday for their only game of the week. A victory would seal no worse than a co-region title. 

Viewmont

The Vikings are 11-9 overall to go along with their 4-3 league mark. Viewmont won twice last week to stay in striking distance of first place in Region 5. 

Viewmont first toppled Box Elder on Feb. 3, 53-48. The Vikings overcame a 24-19 halftime deficit and outscored the Bees 34-24 in the second half. Viewmont was 19-45 from the field but kept Box Elder to 40% shooting. Brash Emery had 16 points, four rebounds and five assists to pace the team. Luke Jacobs had 10 points and six rebounds. 

On Feb. 5, the Vikings got by Bonneville 34-29 in a low-scoring affair. Viewmont held the Lakers to just eight points in the second half and to only 11 of 38 shooting for the game. Jacobs, Emery and Scott Noel each had eight points to lead the team. 

Viewmont plays at Bountiful on Friday. 

Davis

In Region 1, it’s still the Layton and Davis show, with the Darts just a game behind the undefeated Lancers at 9-1 (14-4) overall. 

Like it has done much of the season, Davis won both of these contests in lopsided fashion. First came a 58-26 win at Fremont on Feb. 2. Davis had 22 points (to eight for Fremont) in the first quarter alone. The Darts never let Fremont score more than eight points in any quarter. Chance Trujillo had 21 points (including five three-pointers) and added three rebounds and three assists. Eight other Dart players got on the scoreboard. 

On Feb. 5, Davis blew out Roy 73-51 on the road. Davis had built a 63-27 lead after three quarters. The Darts made all three of their free throws and shot a blistering 28-48 from the field. Trujillo and Max Painter each had 13 points. Rex Sunderland had 10 points and five rebounds. Eleven Darts got into the game and into the scoring column. 

Davis hosted Syracuse on Tuesday before playing at Layton on Friday in a huge matchup. A win in that game could vault the Darts back into the Region 1 top spot.