Region 6 sees a huge amount of talent leave including back to back Mr Basketball in Utah, Gavin Lowe. There’s a ton of unknowns but a few seasoned players coming back including one of the best 2027 players in the state in Woods Cross, Madden Johnson. Special thanks to my stupid AI research helper for the image and some research and editing. If I get something wrong, blame the robots :)
Region 6 isn’t starting over. It just lost the guy who made everyone else look late.
Olympus went 25-2 and 13-1 and cut down the nets. Highland was right there at 22-4 and 12-2. Bountiful and Woods Cross both finished 9-5. Then the gym emptied. Gavin Lowe walked out of Olympus averaging 24.4 points, 5.6 assists and 3.4 steals. Highland’s whole first unit left as well. If you only look at last year’s box scores, Region 6 looks gutted. If you actually sit in these gyms in November, it still feels like Region 6.
Olympus
Matt Barnes has been doing this for 33 years. He does not panic when the leading scorer leaves. He just hands the keys to whoever already knows the standard.
Lowe is gone. So are Caden Jackson, Adam Bywater and Oliver Clarke. What Barnes kept is the piece that made the Titans hard to play even when Lowe sat: Davian Lazarus, a 6-9 2027 who already averaged 9.2 points and 5.6 rebounds and blocked a shot a night. You do not replace 24 a night but Coach Barnes always finds a way.
The kids who barely got in last year are the ones people will ask about in January. James Jackson and Kirabo Nadauld are promising 2028 players. PrepHoops.com already has both on the class board but you’ll have to pay to see where. Hawkins Bowerman is a 6-7 2027. Track Arrington is a 6-4 2027. None of them have Lowe’s usage yet. They don’t need it on night one. They need to keep Olympus looking like Olympus on a Tuesday in January when Highland and Woods Cross come in thinking the window opened.
Highland
This one is going to feel different for a while. Oberholtzer ran the show. Ries was the 6-9 problem. Dodge and Lee could get buckets and the teams engine, Isaiah Drisdom, is gone too .That group took Olympus to the wire in region and then we all know what happened the last 2 years at state.
Chris Jones is not starting from zero. Hobson Romney is a 6-8 2027. Clinton Lillie is a solid 2028 player. Hudson Manville and Cortland Angstman are 2027s with size. And then there is the name you write in the margin before you leave the gym: Harry Hendrix. He’s a 6-4 2029 who already got varsity run as a freshman. Must-watch player who has the size and strength and skill to make a difference night in and night out. Not because Highland needs him to be Ries tomorrow. Because the Rams just lost a lot of featured pieces and the kid who plays like he belongs in that gym is still in it. The program is still Highland. The minutes are new. Hendrix and Coach Jones are why you don’t bury the Rams in September.
Woods Cross
If you want the cleanest returning line in the region, start here. Elliot Bendinger, Bryson Watson and Nate Smith-Mecham graduated. Madden Johnsen did not. The 6-5 2027 averaged 12.0 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists on a 17-9 team that already knew how to win close region games. Teiyon Halbasch is back and is a big time defener. Leo Smith is a 6-6 big who might average a double double. Elijah Dankwa makes the transfer from Clearfield giving them 3 lock down point of attack defenders. Coach Josh Margetts needs Johnsen to take the next step as a solid D1 prospect and carry the load if they want to make noise in a wide open 5A.
Viewmont
Carson Tovey (13.8) and Tyson Bromley (13.1) graduated. Lukus Toner graduated. That is a lot of usage leaving Bountiful. Brett Tovey, a 2028, already scored 3.6 as a sophomore and should take a big leap this year. Nash Johnson, Wyatt Hyde and Braden Bredthauer are seniors with some experience. Drake Darnell’s name keeps coming up around Viewmont basketball for a reason — the Vikings develop. Last year’s 5-9 region record was a fight. Ethan Schultz and Corbin Brown might be the players that takes them into the top of the league
Bountiful
Lincoln Smith scored 17.7. Davey Howe and Wyatt Crane were right behind him. All three are 2026 graduates. Brett Hewlett’s first year as head coach ended in the state championship game. Year two is a rebuild with some interesting names: Beckett Tueller and Parker Hoffman are 2027s, Gabe Doxey is a 6-5 2028, Davis Poulton is a 6-4 2029 who already got varsity run. The Redhawks were good enough last year to make you forget they were in a region with Olympus. They will not sneak up on anybody this time. They also will not be easy outs if the young wings grow up fast.
Alta
Dash Reiser put up 23.4 and 6.7 assists. That is first-team production in any region. Travis Ohrn’s Hawks finished 5-9 in this meat grinder and still went 14-12 overall. Krew Eckman returns after one of the most memorable performances and upsets in recent memory. The 2027 G dropped 28/10 to knock off the 5A favorite, Timpview, last year in the state playoffs. Krew and 2028 G Nash Lundberg both got a ton of experience last year with injuries to Dash and Zak Paepke. Alta can score and they’ll defend you at a high level.
Brighton
Five wins. Two region wins. And yet this is the roster that makes you linger on the depth chart. Dax Matheson is a 2027 who already averaged 8.1 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.7 assists. That is a point guard doing dirty work on a team that lost a lot of nights but those losses turn into learnings going into a new year. Cruz Cowan, a 2028 player, scored 8.5 ppg as well and Knox Westenskow is a 2028 player with size and skill to be a difference maker. Another name I’m hearing a lot of buzz about is 2029 Cooper Anderson who had a great summer with Utah Gold. The young Bengals are going to surprise some people this year.
Skyline
One region win. Three wins all year. Shane Mulvey graduated. Thomas Sunderland, a 2027, was putting up numbers that would start for half the teams in 5A — MaxPreps had him around 14.8 a night. Luke Sanchez is a 6-5 2028. Miles Mercer is a 6-6 2027. Marcus Frazier’s Eagles were young in a region that does not wait. If Sunderland is the first option from opening night, Skyline stops being a scheduled win.
How I see it finishing
Olympus — Lazarus is a 6-9 2027 who already started on a state title team. Barnes does not rebuild. He reloads and the Titans stay at the top until someone knocks them off
Woods Cross — Johnsen has the best returning stat line in the region. Is this year he takes Woods Cross on a deep run?
Viewmont — Tovey and Ethan Schultz might be nightmares to gameplan against
Alta — Dash hands the keys to a new Krew
Brighton — Matheson is solid. Can Knox stay healthy and the other young players step up?
Highland — There aren’t many better coaches in Utah than Coach Jones
Bountiful — never an easy game against the Redhawks
Skyline — Sunderland can go!
First-team Preseason
Davian Lazarus, Olympus (2027)
Madden Johnsen, Woods Cross (2027)
Dax Matheson, Brighton (2027)
Krew Eckman, Alta (2027)
Fifth: Cruz Cowan, Brighton (2028), Brett Tovey, Viewmont (2028), Kirabo Nadauld / James Jackson, Olympus (2028) or Harry Hendrix, Highland (2029).
Josh Carter is slept on for Olympus. Knock down 6'2 shooter who can also guard. Williams twins transferred to Bountiful from Northridge will help Bountiful. Cruz from Brighton had a great summer with Utah Gold.