3A boys basketball playoffs: Ogden defense stifles Manti in second half of 61-45 win
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- Ogden High’s Tayson Porter, left, scoops in a basket past the outstretched arms of Manti’s Adam Thomas (12) in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Jackson Maw (1) pulls down a rebound against Manti’s Coby Rasmussen (10) in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Briggs Galbraith, right, and Manti’s Will Barton battle to control a loose ball in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Ryan Kirkland (21) attempts to block the shot of Manti’s Trever Christensen (1) in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Tayson Porter reacts after the Tigers defeated Manti in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High student Lucy Blodgett reaches to stop a loose ball in the stands as Ogden and Manti players give chase in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Ryan Kirkland, left, attempts to shoot against Manti’s Adam Thomas in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Tayson Porter is fouled on a shot by Manti’s Will Barton in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Manti High’s Coby Rasmussen, left, blocks the shot of Ogden’s Jackson Maw (1) in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Manti High’s Adam Thomas, left, and Ogden’s Blake Weston, right, battle for a rebound in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Manti High’s Coby Rasmussen (10) tries to drive around Ogden’s Ryan Kirkland in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Manti High’s Stone Mortensen, right, keeps the ball away from Ogden’s Tayson Porter in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Manti High’s Adam Thomas (12) tries to post up against Ogden’s Ryan Kirkland in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Tayson Porter dives past two Manti defenders in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Blake Weston, right, cradles the ball in a scramble with Manti’s Stone Mortensen in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Ryan Kirkland, center, lunges for a loose ball against Manti’s Adam Thomas, left, and Coby Rasmussen, right, in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Briggs Galbraith, left, reaches to steal the ball from Manti’s Will Barton in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Briggs Galbraith dives over Manti’s Will Barton in a battle for a loose ball in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Ogden High’s Tayson Porter (23) handles the basketball against Manti’s Carter Mason in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
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- Manti High’s Will Barton, left, defends Ogden’s Tayson Porter in a 3A first-round playoff game Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, in Ogden.
OGDEN — Ogden High’s boys basketball team had all the look of a team that was going to coast to a win in Friday’s 3A first-round playoff game against No. 10 Manti.
The No. 7 Tigers’ offense had what amounted to a cheat code in the first half: drive far enough into the paint to pull the Templars’ center away from the basket, sneak a cutter in behind for a layup, rinse and repeat.
Manti’s Stone Mortensen, a recent Weber State football signee, single-handedly kept the Templars within reach, scoring 12 of his 16 points in the first half to keep Ogden’s halftime lead at 31-30.
But on a damp night outside the gym in Ogden, the Tigers’ defense made things dry for Manti inside the gym, winning 61-45 to advance to the quarterfinals at Southern Utah University.
“Our fans were going crazy, our team, everyone’s going crazy. We’re just so happy and ready to move. And I think after that game, we can take down anybody in 3A,” senior Jackson Maw said.
The difference in halves boiled down to 3-pointers: Manti made seven 3s in the first half, and zero in the second, on considerably fewer chances.
Ogden (15-9) had two significant, prolonged defensive periods that contributed to the win. The Tigers kept Manti scoreless for 4:10 in the second quarter, immediately after going behind 24-23, then prevented the Templars from making a field goal for the first 5:44 of the third.
During the third-quarter run, Ogden pushed its 31-30 halftime lead to 45-31. Once the Tigers got a double-digit lead, they never gave it up.
“We bounced back and forth with a little zone coverage and a little man,” OHS coach Trent Porter said. “We just settled in with our man, and kind of understood their exchanges and their actions a little better in the second half, and the kids’ effort was locked in in the second half.”
Tayson Porter made a 3-pointer at the end of the shot clock to get Ogden ahead 50-37 going to the fourth.
Porter scored all of his game-high 24 points in the first three quarters, going 5 of 5 at the foul line as well. He had 17 of Ogden’s 31 points in the first half on a variety of drives and 3-pointers, none of which Manti could do much about.
Maw scored three straight buckets in the fourth quarter to put the game on ice as Manti tried to mount a comeback. The Tigers had plenty of outside shooting success on Friday, but layups were the real moneymaker against the Templars.
“We took them out of their main defense, they couldn’t guard us in that 3-2 (zone), so when they went to man, we kept on going. We got easy layups instead of 3s; we just kept going,” Maw said.
Maw ended with 16 points but really made his mark in rebounding, particularly with a handful of offensive boards. Ryan Kirkland scored 12 points for Ogden, with six in the first quarter.
“I’m excited for the boys. They have worked their tails off,” Trent Porter said. “Any time you can win a playoff game no matter who you play, what seed — this time of year, it’s really special.”
