Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
OGDEN — To paraphrase Bingham boys basketball coach Jake Schroeder, Kyle Gearig knows how to game.
The quarterback of the school’s state champion football team proved it Monday night.
Gearig scored 13 points off the bench, and Bingham held off a late rally by a rival to advance to the 5A quarterfinals with a 65-58 victory over Riverton on Monday at Weber State’s Dee Events Center.
“Coming into this week, we had four games, and we all knew we had to step it up,” Gearig said. “It’s just next man up; we all stepped it up, and we were all able to score. He got on the boards, and that was huge for us.”
The win showcased the depth of the Miners (20-3), who got 13 points from Mike Green, 12 points and 10 rebounds from Jared Holman and 10 points from Josh Newbold.
“We take pride on our depth. We had some guys step up,” Schroeder said. “We just keep trying to preach to our team that Yoeli (Childs) is going to get a lot of double teams, so if we have other guys step up, it makes us tough to guard at times.
“We about let it go in the fourth, too, but managed to finish where we wanted to.”
The Silver Wolves (14-10) packed the paint to stop Bingham standout center Yoeli Childs, who averages 16.5 points and 11.0 rebounds during the regular season. Childs finished with only eight points, though he also added 12 rebounds and five blocks to help Bingham move on to face Layton on Wednesday.
We take pride on our depth. We had some guys step up. We just keep trying to preach to our team that Yoeli (Childs) is going to get a lot of double teams, so if we have other guys step up, it makes us tough to guard at times.
–Bingham coach Jake Schroeder
With the Miners’ leading scorer so far below his average, Gearig knew what he had to do. The 6-foot senior relished his role in coming off the bench, pumping in his team-high points on a cool 6-of-12 shooting and adding four rebounds.
“Kyle’s a gamer. It’s not pretty sometimes; I didn’t realize he had 14. But with all his football stuff, he’ll always play well. I don’t know how he does it, but he just gets it done.
“He can fill it up, and he’s good at battling other teams,” Schroeder said.
Riverton, however, didn’t make it easy for its neighbor school separated by only a few miles that plays in another region. The Silver Wolves lost to Bingham by 24 points on Dec. 5, but this time the team looked far from overmatched.
“Our length can be good for us and bad for us at times,” Schroeder said. “Sometimes we rely on it too much … but tonight seemed to be pretty good. We weren’t active enough to be very good, but for the most part, I was proud of our defense.”
Riverton almost pulled off a comeback of its own, too.
Gearig’s two-point drive to the basket gave the Miners an eight-point lead 2:15 before the end of regulation, but Jeff Arens drove to the rim to bring Riverton within 54-48 with 2:03 left in the game.
Still managing to stay ahead primarily on its free-throw shooting, Bingham gave Arens too much space in the final minute, and the senior guard knocked down a triple with 26 seconds left to put the Silver Wolves within four, 62-58, but could get no closer.
Though he didn’t start, Gearig played nearly every second down the stretch as the game got closer. It’s a role he’s been able to enjoy, even after struggling with his non-starter role early in the season.
“I love those tight situations,” Gearig said. “I saw a lot of them in football, and now in basketball. I love to have the ball in my hands at the end.”
Bingham used a 17-9 second-quarter push to build a 31-20 halftime lead in a game that featured 10 first-half 3-pointers between the two teams.
Childs stumbled at the end of the third quarter, falling hard and gingerly applying pressure on his ankle as he limped off the court. But the junior returned briefly later in the fourth, and Schroeder said he suffered only a minor sprain and should be fine by Wednesday.
Jaron Jones led Riverton with 21 points, five rebounds and two steals, and Arens finished with 17 points, four rebounds and eight assists.
