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Orem • Hillcrest senior Stockton Ashby wasn't nervous when he got the ball in the waning seconds of the Tuesday's playoff contest against Salem Hills.

Sure, he'd missed a free throw 38 seconds earlier that would have tied the Class 4A boys' basketball opening-round game. But he responded to that challenge by making the next two to give his team a one-point lead.

This time, it was live action, and his team trailed by one gain.

Ashby received the pass, worked his way into the paint and made an underhanded, quasi-layup with 5 seconds left, and Hillcrest survived with a 59-58 win against the Skyhawks.

"We've had a lot of close games. This is my fourth year, and we haven't won a game in the state tournament," Ashby said. "I had kind of a rough game. They took away everything I wanted to do.

"I wasn't nervous. I just knew that, if I could just get it, it would go. That's about as good as it's gonna get."

Salem Hills (14-10) had a final shot, but an inbounds pass to James Nelson at midcourt went off Nelson's hands as the last 3 seconds expired. Nelson finished with 24 points, while Bean DeGraffenried added 13.

Bassel Tekarli led the Huskies (16-6) with 16. Ashby had 13, but his younger brothers McKay (6 points) and freshman Brox (9 points) also had big roles. In fact, the ninth-grader Ashby scored seven of his points through the first six minutes of the second quarter to help Hillcrest grab a 23-18 lead.

"We had a lot of young kids contribute tonight. It was fun to watch all three Ashby brothers," Hillcrest coach Samuel Richins said. "In fact, I think the freshman was our MVP tonight."

The Skyhawks trailed 42-33 late in the third before a 17-3 run that lasted well into the final period. Salem Hills went up 50-45 when Nelson hit a shot with 4:30 left.

Salem Hills took its final lead when Kale DeGraffenried slipped into the lane for a bucket and a 58-57 lead with 18 seconds remaining to set up Stockton Ashby's winning shot.

"The ball bounced crazy both ways," Salem Hills coach Jimmy DeBraffenried said. "I felt we got some breaks at times, and they got some breaks at times. They got the last break."

While Olympus went undefeated in Region 6, Hillcrest fought tooth-and-nail with the rest of the pack and eventually grabbed the second seed entering the state tournament.

"These kids have been in close game after close game this year. With the exception of one, we've come out on top," Richins said. "I think this our seventh game that's come down to a last-second shot. Even though it got scary, no doubt, these kids find a way to win." —

Hillcrest 59, Salem Hills 58

• A shot by Stockton Ashby with 5 seconds left gives Hillcrest the lead, which holds up as Salem Hills is unable to launch a last-second try.

• Bassel Tekarli scores 16 points to lead the Huskies while the Skyhawks get 24 points from junior James Nelson.

• The lead trades hands three times in the last 39 seconds. Hillcrest earlier led by 10 before Salem Hills fights back for a five-point advantage in the fourth.