Highland 59, Skyline 53

IDAHO FALLS - Taysom Hill and Avery Manu were in foul trouble early and didn't play but for four minutes in the first half against Skyline on Friday, but it didn't matter. The Rams still built an early lead and won 59-53.

When Hill and Manu came in during the second half, they were ready to go and scored a combined 32 points. Hill put in 14 and Manu 18.

"They came in fresh in the second half and were great," Highland coach Chris Frost said. "It worked out for us."

But the Rams' bench is what gave them an early 15-7 lead. Frost said he was most proud of the way his reserve players performed.

With the win, Highland improved to 8-8 on the season and 3-3 in district play. It next plays Idaho Falls on Wednesday.

Pocatello 54, Preston 46

PRESTON - Pocatello stayed alive in the race for the 4A Fifth District title when it captured a 54-46 win at Preston on Friday.

With the help of a 16-8 advantage in the second quarter, Pocatello took a 26-19 lead into halftime and held on for the win. Backup Johnny Hancock scored five of his seven points in the period and contributed a pair of steals.

"I thought we had a good second quarter," Pocatello coach Lee Ralphs said. "We got out and got the lead going into halftime."

Michael Decker scored a game-high 16 points. Zac Korrell hit 9-of-10 free throws in the fourth quarter to seal the win and finished with 13.

Brayden Shepherd paced Preston with 11 points.

Pocatello (6-9, 1-2) next travels to play Minico tonight and plays at Century on Feb. 6.

Marsh Valley 49, Bear lake 42

MONTPELIER - The Marsh Valley boys' basketball team picked up an important district win on the road 49-42 against Bear lake on Friday.

The Eagles built a nine-point halftime lead and never looked back.

Jordan Crane scored 14 points for the Bears in the loss, and Bailey Thomas added 13. The defeat dropped Bear Lake to 8-9 overall and 1-3 in 3A Fifth District play. It next plays at Malad on Wednesday. Marsh Valley improved to 12-4, 3-1.

"We just could not get the ball to go in the basket tonight," Bear Lake coach Brandon Carlsen said. "We had a lot of good shots, they just didn't go in. And they shot the ball really well."

Raft River 67, North Gem 50

MALDA - Colton Davids scored 27 points for North Gem on Friday, but his career day wasn't enough. The Cowboys lost to Raft River 67-50.

Still, North Gem coach Ken Christensen was proud of the way his team played. In particular, he was happy with Davids, who also snared 11 rebounds.

"We played really well," he said. "We were right with them until the last couple minutes of the second half. They couldn't miss a shot, and started the second half 9-for-10. We couldn't keep up."

With the loss, North Gem dropped to 5-10 overall and 3-2 in conference play. It next plays at Leadore today.

Soda Springs 64, Malad 49

SODA SPRINGS - The Soda Springs boys' basketball team won its first district game of the season on Friday by defeating Malad 64-49.

"We've been in a lot of games, and played well but today we got a good early lead and held on," Soda Springs coach Greg Bergholm said. "The kids deserved it. They played hard."

The Cardinals built a 20-point lead during the first half behind 17 points from Tyson Cooper and 15 from Cody Scheierman.

With the win, Soda Springs improved to 3-13 overall and 1-3 in conference play. It next plays Grace on Wednesday.

Rockland 51, Leadore 36

LEADORE - Rockland got off to a quick start on its way to a 51-36 win at Leadore on Friday.

Jake Spillett scored nine of his 11 points in the first half to help Rockland capture a 23-17 lead at intermission. The Bulldogs then pulled away thanks to Tyrel Turley's game-high 17 points and Jordan O'Brien's 13 points.

"We came out and got up quick," Rockland coach Dan Ralphs said. "We played well and stayed on top of them and got it done."

Rockland (5-7, 3-2 1A Division II Rocky Mountain Conference). The Bulldogs next host Clark County on Friday.

Aberdeen 50, Grace 47

GRACE - Aberdeen trailed for most of the game before hitting a 3-pointer in the final minute to overtake Grace and claim a 50-47 win Friday at Grace.

Aberdeen trailed 39-32 entering the fourth quarter before outscoring Grace 18-8 in the final period.

"It was a heart-breaking loss," Grace coach Rory Lloyd said. "A couple of possessions didn't go our way."

Wade Wahlen led Aberdeen with 16 points, while Steven Elliott chipped in 11. Todd Lloyd and Alex Harrison paced Grace with 13 and 11 points, respectively.

Grace (7-8, 2-3 2A Fifth District) next travels to play Soda Springs on Wednesday.