‘Facilitator’ Laughter powers West Field boys over Fremont in first-ever boys hoop classic
West Field senior leads the floor with 26 points; Silverwolves drop to 2-10 on the season
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- West Field’s Daxton Laughter, middle, dribbles by Fremont’s Kourt Duft, left, during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- West Field’s Jaden Fowers, right, blocks a shot by Fremont’s Krew Hannum during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- West Field’s Maddox Purser looks for an open pass against Fremont’s Calvin Cooper during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- Fremont’s Easton Hansen defends a short-range jumper by West Field’s Cason Malan during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- West Field’s Drew Faddis puts up a 3-point try during a region boys basketball contest against Fremont on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- Fremont’s Kourt Duft steps up to defend an inbounds pass by West Field during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- West Field’s Drew Faddis stands in the way of a layup by Fremont’s Kourt Duft during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- West Field’s Cason Malan, left, and Fremont’s Zach Hancock battle it out during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- Zach Hancock heads down the floor after a layup against West Field during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- West Field’s Cason Malan, left, looks around the side of Fremont’s Cam Campbell during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- Fremont’s Easton Hansen, left, puts up a 3-point try in the face of West Field’s Jaden Fowers, right, during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- West Field’s Jaxxon Gerace, left, defends a driving Calvin Cooper of Fremont, right, during a region boys basketball on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- West Field coach Mike Russell pictured on the sideline during a region boys basketball contest against Fremont on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- Fremont coach Corey Melaney makes his case with an official during a region boys basketball contest at West Field on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- Fremont’s bench and student section erupt at a possession change during a region boys basketball contest at West Field on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- The Fremont student section roars in celebration of a turnover by West Field during a region boys basketball contest on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- West Field students negotiate with a crowd control attendant during a region boys basketball contest against Fremont on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
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- Fremont coach Corey Melaney directs from the sideline during a region boys basketball contest at West Field on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in Taylor.
TAYLOR — Daxton Laughter’s 26 points (including 15 in the second half) in West Field’s 79-65 win over Fremont in the program’s first-ever hardwood meeting Saturday is the kind of production his coach, Mike Russell, considers the best example of where his team draws the difference.
Laughter, Russell said, is conditioned to play all 32 minutes regardless of the foe, and the senior point guard’s season-high scoring made perhaps the biggest difference for the Longhorns (7-4, 2-0 Region 5).
Up five by halftime, Laughter surpassed his first-half output to finish 9 of 10 from the free-throw line — making three of those visits in fourth quarter — in padding crucial efforts by seniors Cason Malan (19 points) and Jaden Fowers (17 points).
Fremont (2-10, 0-2) went point-for-point with the Longhorns in the second quarter and even led briefly in a stretch before the break, but an encouraging end to the second quarter — which featured Easton Hansen going 4 of 4 from the 3-point line — soon rang hollow as West Field doubled its lead to 10 by the fourth quarter.
“It’s us going down and being able to fight back,” Malan said. “It’s our ability to bounce back that’s been the most impressive for me in these last few games.”
The constant through it all was Laughter.
“Dax knew coming in that he’d rarely come out of games,” Russell said. “I can’t remember the last time he did. He plays every minute of every game and he knows that’s how it has to be. I’d like him to do it more, put the team on your back and just lead us. He’s the epitome of what you want your program to be.”
“He just does it all,” Malan added. “Defense, offense; just a facilitator.”
By the third quarter, Drew Faddis (12 points) became the fourth Longhorn in double-figure scoring; juniors Karter Rich and Jaxxon Gerace, subsidizing minutes left by senior Jordan Harrison, no longer with the program, combined for five points off the bench.
Defensively, West Field denied Hansen any more than one 3-pointer, coming in the third quarter, and five fourth-quarter points the rest of the way; Hansen totaled 24. Junior Kourt Duft stepped up late for five fourth-quarter points (1o overall); Cam Campbell and Calvin Cooper combined for 10 points.
Having dropped now three games in a row, Fremont coach Corey Melaney isn’t letting his roster’s size do any of the talking as to why his side didn’t win the physical battle on Saturday. This loss comes after Fremont outrebounded Roy in a 58-47 home loss on Tuesday, Dec. 30.
“We’re not big, but we need to be tough,” Melaney said. “At some point, senior leadership has to take over. The guys have to take ownership and right that ship. I’ve got to do my part to, no doubt about that. They understand that we can get beat by anybody in this region and we can beat anybody in this region; that’s the way this thing goes, and there will be many close games.
“We’ve gotta win the close ones.”
Conversely, West Field’s second region win comes amid a well-attended rivalry contest that gives the team a bit of momentum heading into a two-game road stretch to Northridge and Bonneville.
The Longhorns and Silverwolves meet again in Plain City on Wednesday, Jan. 28.
“I think it’s going to be a great rivalry,” Russell added. “It’s the first time we’ve played since our schools opened. I felt like, honestly, I was a little bit disappointed defensively. We let (Hancock) and (Hansen) — they really hurt us in the first half and they played a solid game. We knew coming in what they can do.”
Official stats were not available immediately following Saturday’s game.
Connect with prep sports reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net and X @ctbecker.
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