Wolves basketball finishes season at Regional Tournament

Going into the 4A West Regional Basketball Tournament last weekend, the Green River High School Boys Basketball team was ready to play hard and keep the competition close as they did in their recent games. While they unfortunately came up short with two losses, eliminating them from the tournament and ending their season, the Wolves still persevered and fought hard to the end.

Green River's first opponent last Thursday was the Rock Springs Tigers, whom the Wolves had beaten just a week before and defeated earlier in the season as well.

"Our game against RS in the Regional Tournament was very similar to our games against them during the season," Green River's Head Coach Laurie Ivie explained. "We were tied at the end of the third quarter. However, we only managed to score two points in the fourth quarter, and that was the deciding factor in the outcome of the game."

Pulling ahead at the end, Rock Springs managed to secure a victory against the Wolves, ending with a final score of 47-34.

Most of the Wolves' team members contributed to the score against Rock Springs, with Adrian Ruiz leading with eight points, Chris Wilson scoring seven, Hunter Lake and Bryson Birch each adding six, Theran Archibald scoring five, and Daxton Taylor scoring two. Wilson led the team for rebounds with seven, and had one assist and one steal. Archibald had four rebounds and three assists, Ruiz had four rebounds and two steals, and A.J. Keelin had four rebounds, three assists, and one steal. Lake had three rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Both Taylor and Birch also had two rebounds each, and Birch added two steals and one assist.

For their second game of Regionals, Green River took on the Cody Broncs on Friday. The Wolves played a strong, intense game, ultimately going into overtime.

"It was a hard fought game by both teams," Coach Ivie said. "They hit a three-pointer at the end of OT, and won the game with that shot."

With their last-minute three-pointer, Cody secured their 54-51 victory.

In the fight against Cody, Archibald once again led the Wolves for points, as he has for most of the season, scoring 22 points. He also contributed an impressive 11 rebounds, along with four assists and one steal. Lake also significantly helped the team with 15 points, four rebounds, two steals, and one assist. Ruiz scored eight points and had one steal and one assist. Birch scored four points and had two rebounds, and Keelin scored two points and had three rebounds and two assists. Wilson also had four assists, three rebounds, and one steal.

While the season ended earlier than the Wolves had hoped, Coach Ivie was still happy with their performance and their hard work throughout the year.

"In reflection on our season, I am immensely proud of the growth and determination displayed by our team," Ivie said. "Our overall record might not fully reflect the team's performance, especially considering we experienced two losses in overtime, one in double overtime, and numerous games that were decided by just 1-2 possessions. Our journey on the court has been a testament to the character and dedication of our players."

Although the season has ended, the Wolves will keep working hard to learn and grow.

"We have a very busy off-season regimen," Coach Ivie explained. "We attend camps and tournaments, and play between 40-50 games. We have a fantastic strength and conditioning staff that the boys will work out with four times a week throughout the summer, and we have open gyms two to three times a week from May to November."

The Wolves Basketball team will keep working to gain experience and come back even stronger next year.