Rebels Take State

By Amy Donaldson, Reporter

Deseret News

Reprinted with permission

RICHFIELD – His eyes wet with tears he couldn't explain or stop, Lincoln Huefner stood at center court and pressed his lips against the back of the 1A state championship trophy.
This was a moment he and his teammates had worked for all their lives, and a moment the community they represent has yearned for even longer.

“I don’t know,” Huefner said after the Rich Rebels earned the school's first boys basketball state championship with a 65-45 win over Green River Saturday night at the Sevier Valley Center. “I’m just so happy.”

Saturday wasn’t Huefner’s turn to start for the top-ranked Rebels. But it was certainly his night to shine.

“We rotate,” the senior said. “Tonight wasn’t my night, but that’s not what matters. That trophy is what matters. It doesn’t really matter who is on the floor if we win, so we just had to stay focused as a team.”

Huefner followed up his huge semifinal performance with a team-high 18 points and eight rebounds in Saturday’s championship win.

“Those are probably Lincoln’s two best games of the year,” said Rich head coach Ashley Brown. “He really stepped up. …All the kids stepped up, and I’m just really proud of all of them.”

1A Tournament MVP Wyatt Muirbrook didn’t even play two full minutes at the start of the game before he was whistled for his second foul. He headed for the bench and Huefner took his place. Muirbrook only managed about two minutes in the game in the second quarter before he was called for his third foul and headed to the bench again.

The senior said it was frustrating to watch much of his final prep game from the bench, but he was grateful for the effort of his teammates.

“It was a total team effort,” Muirbrook said. “I’m just proud of our guys. Lincoln Huefner had a way, way good game; he did a good job this week, really stepped it up a lot. It was frustrating, but luckily we were in a position where it wasn’t critical for me to be (a factor). I’m just glad we got the win. That’s what it’s about.”

Huefner laughed when asked if he thought the team would win with Muirbrook confined to the bench for much of the game.

“I would have told you that you were crazy,” he said. “We were really focused as a team, and we just played together. And we got the job done.”

For Rich, the beauty of this year’s championship team was how seamlessly the Rebels played regardless of who was on the floor. Some of that chemistry may come from the fact that all of the players were also on the football team.

Rich becomes the first 1A school to win both football and boys basketball championships in the same year since North Summit did it in 1991-1992. Like the Braves, the Rebels basketball and football teams are coached by the same man. But Brown wasn’t taking any of the credit for either team’s accomplishment.

“It’s the kids,” he said smiling. “It’s not about me. It’s about them.”

The Pirates started the game aggressively and jumped to a 4-0 lead. But with 3:34 left in the first quarter, the Rebels took a lead they’d never relinquish.

“It’s been a long season and a great season for us,” said Green River head coach Thomas Hughes. “It didn’t quite end on the best note. I’m very proud of this small school and these kids with big hearts to play that whole tournament like they did.”