This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Taylorsville • The way things started, it appeared as though Pleasant Grove and its twin towers, 6-foot-7 Sara Hamson and 6-foot-5 Mailli Valgardson, would give top-ranked and unbeaten Layton fits in the quarterfinals of the Class 5A girls basketball tournament.
That initial impression lasted about three minutes when the Vikings took an 8-2 lead.
Then Layton used its devastating press to fluster the Vikings. By the time the game ended, the Lancers had earned a surprisingly easy 54-37 victory Thursday at Salt Lake Community College.
That set up the long-awaited semifinal matchup between Layton and Copper Hills, both unbeaten, on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
"We are very excited," said Lancer star Hailey Bassett, who had 15 points and six rebounds. "It will be a great game. We are both 23-0. It is going to be fun."
Layton's Livia Borgess, who also scored 15 points, said going down early caused the Lancers to stop and analyze what was going on.
"This can't be happening right now," she said about the reaction. "Our defense is our strong point. That got our motivation going and going, that really helped the rest of the game."
The Lancers also got a nice game from Sunnie Martinez, who finished with 13 points and five rebounds.
Layton coach Van Price said it took his team a few moments to figure out how to deal with Hamson and Valgardson.
"It's tough to focus on those two big girls and how far you can play off them," he said. "We made a few mistakes at the beginning. But we sat back in the last little bit and they couldn't throw the ball over the top. And we were pressuring their guards so they were struggling to see the bigs inside."
Hamson did finish with 11 points and nine rebounds, while Valgardson had nine points and nine rebounds. But it was obvious that Layton's pressure bothered a Pleasant Grove team that turned the ball over 28 times.
Twitter @tribtomwharton —
Storylines
• After falling behind 8-2, Layton uses its press to force 28 turnovers and take control.
• Hailey Bassett and Livia Borges score 15 points each for top-ranked Layton.
• Layton meets Copper Hills Friday at 7:30 p.m. in a semifinal featuring teams with a combined 46-0 record.