High school girls basketball: Warriors whip Lancers in 5A girls play-in game

TAYLORSVILLE — Taylorsville used tough defense and team chemistry to eliminate Layton from the playoffs in Saturday's 5A girls play-in game, 47-32.

The Warriors came out playing man defense and were able to force the Lancers into taking low-percentage jump shots early in the game.

"This is the first time we've had the chance to play Layton," said Taylorsville head coach Jace Hymas. "We were a little nervous going into the game, and we didn't want to start the playoffs with a loss to send us home."

Alyssa Moncrief came out and had a big game for the Warriors, scoring 15 points in the win. Moncrief was also a huge presence in the paint, backing down opponents and getting to the foul line by attacking the basket.

"We wanted to work together as a team, and work the ball inside to get some easy baskets," said Moncrief.

The senior also finished with a game-high eight rebounds.

Taylorsville was able to contain the Lancers' Addi Moore, in what coach Hymas called their "game plan."

"We wanted to put a lot of pressure on Moore, and it obviously paid off in the end," the Warriors' coach said.

Moore, who is Layton's leading scorer, finished with 10 points, three of them coming in the fourth quarter.

Looking ahead to next week's matchup against Lone Peak, coach Hymas said his team is going in "blind."

"I've never relied on film," said Hymas referring to Lone Peak, "you can't tell size and speed, so we'll just be ready."

Lone Peak got the jump on scouting Taylorsville, as a majority of the Knights' team attended Saturday's game to get a preview for next week's showdown.

e-mail: cjohnson@desnews.com