Northern Utah High School Basketball Players of the Week – Week 1
Dec 8, 2024, 9:34 PM | Updated: Jan 10, 2025, 10:27 am
SALT LAKE CITY – The John Watson Northern Utah High School Player of the Week is celebrating the best high school basketball players in Northern Utah. Presented by John Watson Chevrolet in Ogden, each week we honor athletes for their exceptional performance on the gridiron. Our winners for week one of the season were Sam Romer from Layton High School and Eva Birkeland from Morgan High School.
Northern Utah Players of the Week – Sam Romer, Layton & Eva Birkeland, Morgan
Romer and the Layton Lancers opened the season at Viewmont High School. They raced out to a 20-11 lead at the end of the first quarter and ensured it would be a one-sided affair on thir way to a dominant 86-52 win. Romer finished the contest with 18 points, three rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block.
The Lancers returned home to host Clearfield High School and followed a similar script to their season-opener. After opening a 24-6 first quarter advantage, Layton ensured it would be smooth sailing as they posted an 87-33 rout of the Falcons. Romer tallied 20 points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal in the blowout.
Birkeland and the Morgan Trojans opened their season with a cross-division matchup with Skyridge High School. Morgan hung tough in the first quarter, but a 25-5 second quarter put the Falcons in control of the contest. Despite their best effort Morgan lost 84-62, but Birkeland shined with a game-high 31 points in the loss to go along with two assists and one rebound.
The Trojans next faced Ridgeline High School looking to bounce back. The Riverhawks used a strong second quarter to once again seize control of the contest as they went on to a 63-36 victory. Birkeland shined once again as she made four three-pointers en route to a 17 point outing in the loss while also adding one rebound and one assist to the box score.
Player of the Week Selection
The selection committee for the John Watson Northern Utah Players of the Week award consists of Matt George from POW! Creative and Jake Hatch. Jake is the Executive Producer for The KSL Sports Zone. Jake attended Brigham Young University and is a proud native of Orem, UT. He is an alumnus of Mountain View High School, where he was part of the Bruins football program as an offensive and defensive lineman from 2001-04.
