West Valley » After running all over Cottonwood in the Class 4A tournament Tuesday, Bountiful players jogged off the floor and past a couple dozen Provo cheerleaders before running by the Bulldogs' locker room.

Getting by Provo, the top-ranked and unbeaten 4A powerhouse, in a potential semifinal won't be so easy.

But the Braves made everything look rudimentary in their 70-44 dismantling of Cottonwood in the first round Tuesday. Bountiful was up 22-4 after the first quarter and didn't struggle with the Colts. None of which would be interesting if it weren't for the fact that Cottonwood almost beat Bountiful when they played in December.

Then, Bountiful won 61-59. Now, the Braves are significantly better.

"It's nice to have that kind of game," Bountiful coach Mike Maxwell said. "You get to rest. We'll be prepared to go in our next game because the other guys are out there getting worn down and we'll be able to be a little better, a little more effective."

Bountiful was plenty effective against the Colts. Jeff Moncur had five steals to fire up the Bountiful offense, and Sean Carey scored 17 points in just 19 minutes of action.

Provo ground out an opening-round win Tuesday. The Bulldogs led by just six points going into the fourth quarter before finally converting on free throws and clamping down on Murray's offense. Brandon Davies scored 19 points, most of which came in the fourth quarter, to lead Provo to its 57-39 win.

There's reason to think Bountiful is the team that can take Provo down in the 4A brackets. For starters, only one 4A team has beaten Bountiful this season. More importantly, the Braves appear to be firing on all cylinders now.

Maxwell turned his attention to Bountiful's quarterfinal opponent, Mountain View, after dispatching Cottonwood.

"Mountain View is a terrific team," Maxwell said. "That's a formidable team. … That's a scary team."

Mountain View 69, Dixie 49 » Taylor Dalrymple scored 15 points off five three-pointers as the Bruins pulled ahead in the third quarter.