After an impressive 21-7 record and a fourth-place finish at state last season, the Mountain View girls’ basketball team is picking up where it left off, finishing with a 4-0 record at last …
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After an impressive 21-7 record and a fourth-place finish at state last season, the Mountain View girls’ basketball team is picking up where it left off, finishing with a 4-0 record at last weekend’s Bridger Valley Invitational, co-hosted by MVHS and Lyman High School.
The Lady Buffalos opened the tournament Thursday with a 57-23 win over Farson-Eden, then followed that Friday with an impressive 43-37 win over Rich County. Mountain View opened play Saturday with a win over 1A powerhouse Cokeville 63-42, then closed out the tournament that evening against 2A Big Piney, winning 47-21.
McKinlee Covolo and Addison Hickey proved to be a scorebook Dynamic Duo over the four game stretch, with Covolo averaging a double-double (21.8 points, 10.0 rebounds per game) and Hickey scoring at a 14.3 points-per-game clip, while grabbing 7.3 boards and dishing off a team high 3.3 assists per game.
“It’s always kind of nice to start with the smaller schools, especially when you’re putting a new group together,” said MVHS head coach Jessica Moretti. “Even though we have a lot of seniors, we have some young kids that have to learn, and figure out where they mesh in, so it’s nice to start on a little bit lower tee. But man, Rich gave us a good game, and Cokeville’s first half was awesome, as well.”
The Lady Buffs hope to continue their winning ways this weekend on the road at the Flaming Gorge Classic, where they’ll square off against 4A Riverton and Green River, as well as defending 4A Idaho State Champion Bear Lake.
“We are going from the smaller schools to the bigger schools this weekend, so that will be a big change for us,” Moretti said. “We’ll be working on our offensive transitions — making sure we’re running organized, making sure we’re valuing possessions. And we’ve done a lot of defense stuff this week — defense in the half, as well as working on defending ball screens, working through those. We’ve also put a lot of time into some pretty tough drills of 1v1s and 2v1s, getting those younger guards confident and comfortable on the floor. And that will be a continued focus for us throughout the year, as well.”
Lady Buffs 57, Farson-Eden 23
Mountain View kicked off the 2024-25-20 season last Thursday against Class 1A Farson-Eden with a 57-23 win.
“Farson was a good game for us, just to kind of get going,” Moretti said. “But they were quick — and I felt like that was the theme all weekend. They had some really quick guards. I think it was a great game to start with, and a good reminder that — even if they’re a 1A school — they have some good players.”
McKinlee Covolo and Addison Hickey both recorded double-doubles for the contest, with Covolo netting 27 points and grabbing 10 rebounds; Hickey scored 14 points, and also finished with 10 boards.
Charlee Porter led the team in assists with four.
Lady Buffs 43, Rich 37
Mountain View carried the momentum from their opening-day win into Friday, holding off a determined Rich squad for the 43-37 win.
“Rich continues to be a great program, and is a team that we don’t ever overlook, by any means,” Moretti said. “Granted, we don’t overlook any team, but Rich is a team that’s always ready to go, they show up and play. And keeping in mind that the Idaho and Utah teams have already been playing for a few weeks, I feel like they’re already a step or two ahead of us, right off the bat.”
Rich jumped out to an early lead, and — despite the Lady Buffs battling back in the second quarter — still held the lead at the break.
“We started the first half getting caught on some of their screens, and those young players playing varsity for the first time, that was something they had to figure out,” Moretti said. “We were in a hole there after the first quarter 16-8, and had to work our way back out. But the Mountain View girls kept chipping away, and it worked out in our favor. By halftime, I think we were only down by a point.”
Lady Buffs 63, Cokeville 42
Mountain View opened play Saturday against Cokeville, the No. 3-ranked team in 1A. The Lady Panthers led after one quarter, but the Lady Buffs once again battled back.
“I told the girls, ‘I feel like Cokeville’s going to be the same as Rich,’” Moretti said. “They’re a great team. We had an excellent first half, but Cokeville was up 17-14 after the first quarter. But then we got our defense together in the second quarter, and only gave up five points, and we scored 15. Again, defensive transition was key in that game.”
McKinlee Covolo had the hot hand for the Lady Buffs in this contest, netting 24 points and pulling down 11 rebounds. Addison Hickey followed with 22 points and a team-high four assists.
“I felt really good about the second half against Cokeville — we scored 19 points in the third quarter, and held them to seven,” Moretti said. “Then we just maintained from there.”
Lady Buffs 47, Big Piney 21
Mountain View closed out the tournament Saturday evening with a 47-21 win over Class 2A Big Piney.
“We were able to hold Big Piney defensively really well,” Moretti said. “They only scored three or four points per quarter — never went over 10. It was kind of a slow game — they zoned the whole time, and we were able to pull away.”
McKinlee Covolo led the charge with her third double-double of the tournament, scoring 25 points, and grabbing 10 rebounds. Charlee Porter finished with a team-high four assists, while Ali Walker had three steals.