Bailey fills key two-way role for champion-hopeful Preston

PRESTON — Just a sophomore, Wayd Bailey plays a massive role for a Preston team with its sights set on a second consecutive state championship.

According to longtime head coach Tyler Jones, Preston’s offense, which features several standouts from last year’s championship-winning team, including seniors Kasen Bryce, Parker Galloway and Tripton Beckstead, does not run at max efficiency without the 5-foot-9 sophomore.

“He does so much for us,” Jones said after Preston’s win at Pocatello on Wednesday. “He handles the ball, he’s our playmaker, he gets us going. When he’s out there, our confidence, as a team — we’re a different team.”

Jones’ squad had an unfortunate opportunity to find that out in real-time, when Bailey missed three games after suffering a concussion during Preston’s win at Century on Jan. 14.

The third of those three Bailey-less games was a visit to Preston from conference foe Pocatello on Jan. 22. The Thunder won that game, 45-44, on a game-winning 3 in the closing minute — watch that play here.

Preston had scored 60-plus points in four of its five most recent games prior to Bailey’s injury. In three games without him, they averaged 49.6.

Bailey returned for the rematch with Century, helping his team bounce back from the home conference loss to Pocatello with a 62-47 victory. Three days later, Bailey and his team earned a road win over a Blackfoot Broncos squad they could see at next month’s state tournament.

Needing a win, Preston traveled to Pocatello on Wednesday to face the conference-leading Thunder.

Bailey made his pressence felt all night, but broke the open with a third-quarter 3-point barrage. He knocked down three triples in the period, during which he scored 11 of his game-high 27 points.

Preston walked off the court with a 56-36 victory and a very likely conference championship.

Despite his offense, which has been key to Preston’s success this season, Bailey said that, like his team, his game starts with defense. His impact has been felt on both ends. As he explained, Bailey made the varsity team as a freshman last year because of his defense, and though he has upped his offensive output, locking opposing guards up is still his primary function.

In 17 games with Bailey this season, Preston outscores its opponents by 10 an average of points. In three games without him, their average point differential drops to 4.

Preston and Bailey finished their regular season at Pocatello on Wednesday. Now, they wait for the Thunder and Diamondbacks to round out their schedules so a district tournament bracket can be built. The 5A District 5 tournament will produce just one state participant, meaning Preston will need to continue its three-game winning streak if is to book a trip to Nampa.