Team of the Year: Uber-athletic Preston was ‘a fun group’ all year, finishing a dominant season with a blue trophy
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PRESTON — Tyler Jones has been the head boys basketball coach at Preston High School for 15 years. He has taken seven teams to the state championship — five of those teams brought home the banner. But none, he said, were as physically imposing as the group that won the 5A championship this year.
“We’ve had some really successful teams, some state championship teams, but, by far, this is the most athletic group we’ve ever had,” Jones told EastIdahoSports.com
Preston returned three of its starter from a group that finished the 2023-24 season with an 18-6 record, but did not earn the lone 4A District 5 state berth after losing to eventual champion Pocatello in the district tourney.
According to Jones, this year’s squad used last year’s shortcomings as fuel all season long.
He knew coming into the season that he had “some pieces” in place for a potential title run, but it wasn’t until the emergence of juniors Kasen Bryce, Parker Galloway and Trip Beckstead, that he saw this unit as one that could win it all.
“As the season went on, they just started to gel and connect,” Jones said. “Our defense, the last month, month-and-a-half, went to another level and that really got us rolling down the stretch.”
This team, Jones continued, wasn’t just tall and long, it was explosive, quick and capable of jumping out of the gym.
The philosophy with Preston basketball has always been focused on defense leading to easy transition buckets.
“But this year, with our athleticism, that definitely was more of a focus,” the coach said. “We wanted to use that (athleticism) to an advantage, for sure.”
Not only did they use that athleticism as an advantage, they made those easy transition baskets must-see. Jones tabulated the number of dunks his team recorded this year at 103 — more than four per game.
There were seasons past, Jones said, when Preston had one or two dunks all year. High-flying was a part of the everyday show Preston put on this season.
Asked if there was a single play that he could recall representing the defense his team played this year, Jones described a play against Pocatello, during the district tournament, in which Bryce dove to the floor multiple times before eventually stealing the ball from the Thunder. Bryce’s efforts led to a layup on the other end.
“We were, kinda, bigger, faster, stronger than a lot of teams, with that athleticism,” Jones said.
Asked if there was a single play that typified his team, particularly its defense, this season, Preston head boys basketball coach Tyler Jones sent me this play.
Watch junior Kasen Bryce (red and green shoes) the whole video. pic.twitter.com/Ny9DMJwiHN— Kalama Hines (@HINESight_2020) March 25, 2025
Preston suffered its lone loss of the season, a one-point overtime defeat at the hands of 6A Timberline, in December. From that point, when, as Jones described, the defense started to roll, Preston rattled off 17 consecutive wins.
The winning streak included a perfect postseason run, in which Jones’ team outscored it opponents by an average of 26 points — including a 17-point victory over Hillcrest in the championship game.
After the game, Jones said, the team celebrated in the locker room, discussing amongst themselves what the season’s run meant.
“To see them celebrate — at the highest stage in high school, to see them reach their goal was special,” Jones said.
Then, they went out for dinner — at Applebee’s — before making the five-hour trek home. The following morning, the town of Preston was ready to celebrate with them. The team was paraded around town on a fire truck, escorted by police. That was “pretty cool” to see as well, Jones said.
The 2024-25 Preston boys basketball team was “a fun group,” Jones said. They were “exciting” and “a lot of fun to coach.”
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