Utah No. 2 Westlake riding depth, experience to 16-game winning streak
SARATOGA SPRINGS, Utah (BVM) – The Westlake High School boys basketball team was riding a 10-game winning streak when it appeared its luck had run out. Hunter Phillips, the Thunder’s leading scorer and rebounder, landed the wrong way after a breakaway dunk vs. Corner Canyon on Jan. 22.
The 6-foot-9 Phillips suffered an ACL injury, and Westlake suffered a massive loss in the midst of region play.
“It was awful, it was emotional,” head coach Nate Carling said. “He (Phillips) had a great junior year where he was all-state and he was having a great start to this year. He expanded his game and could shoot it better from range.
“He was a real valuable weapon and everything we did was build around him because he was such a force.”
Phillips’ injury occurred just two minutes into the game, which left Carling and the Thunder little time to sulk. Facing a Corner Canyon team again that had just beat them a month prior, the Thunder honored their injured teammate the best way they knew how: with a dominating 70-54 victory to win their 11th consecutive game.
Carling said had Phillips’ injury occurred during practice, there might have been much more uncertainty heading into the next contest. But the seismic shift happened in the flow of the game, something Carling believes turned into a confidence-booster for his squad.
“We just played really well after that (Phillips’ injury) and obviously we didn’t have Hunter,” Carling said. “We were highly-motivated because we saw him go down, but I think at that point, we kind of proved to ourselves that we’re going to be alright.”
It’s been nearly a month since Phillips’ injury and not much has changed for Westlake. The Thunder won their 16th consecutive game on Friday to improve to 18-1 on the season and remain the No. 2-ranked team in Utah (6A No. 1).
This team’s ability to adapt and succeed without its best player stems from experience gained last year, Carling said. The Thunder won just 15 games last season, but they lost seven games by single digits, including three overtime losses.
“We were just in a lot of really close games (last season), we didn’t win them all, but we were in a lot of battles,” Carling said. “We just really grew up as a team and we learned a lot so that experience really carried over into this year.
“It’s probably more important to have that experience this year than in a normal year.”
Carling admits his squad has had to do things a bit differently since Phillips’ absence, but the Thunder’s depth has shined. On any given night, Noah McCord, Noah Madsen, Kaleb Furey or Keilan Torkornoo can lead Westlake in scoring.
This was evident in the Thunder’s 76-66 win over Skyridge on Friday where McCord led all scorers with a game-high 21 points, but Madsen, Furey and Oakley Slade each scored in double-figures.
“We’re not a team that you can just take away option A or option B and you’ll be alright,” Carling said.
As great as this team’s depth is, its only rival is its basketball IQ. Without the Division I talent that other programs across the state have, Carling said his team’s ability to process information quickly and play the game intelligently makes up for a lack of athleticism.
“I walk in at halftime and they’re talking to each other, bouncing ideas off each other and figuring it out,” Carling said. “I come into huddles, they’re talking and all I have to do is say ‘What do you guys think?’ and they’re right.
“It’s just a real special group with great leadership and communication. Playing the game with intelligence and teamwork has really proven to be the secret to our success. Hopefully that can continue to take us through as far as it’ll take us.”
Westlake (18-1) will take on American Fork (14-5) on Tuesday in hopes of protecting its perfect 8-0 region record.
