5A girls basketball: Lone Peak earns shot at Riverton

TAYLORSVILLE — The Lone Peak Knights took care of business in the first round of the 5A state girls basketball tournament with a 52-38 victory over Taylorsville in the Warriors' backyard.

"I felt coming into this game that we had an advantage on the inside, and we took advantage of that," said Lone Peak coach Keith Flood. "Their guards penetrate well, and we knew we had to stop the penetration. We did that well. I'm happy with what we did against their perimeter players."

The start wasn't exactly what Flood wanted for his team as the Warriors hurried out to a 6-0 lead, but he noted that his team hadn't really done anything outside of his game plan in allowing the Warriors to grab the first six points. Taylorsville hit a couple of nice jumpers, but his team just had to keep playing its game.

The only complaint Flood had with his team heading into the second round against undefeated Riverton was giving up too many offensive rebounds, 16.

After the slow start, the rest of the first quarter belonged to the Knights as they went on a 17-2 run, led by the intensity of sophomore Marquelle Funk, who had five points in the first quarter and opened things up for her teammates by taking the ball to the basket. Anna Hubert's hustle plays also helped.

"We just have to work as a team so we can get our offense running," said Funk after hitting 8-of-15 shots and finishing with a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Sophomore Whitney Johnson also finished with a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds on 6-of-9 shooting.

The Knights are looking forward to two days off to prepare for the frightening task of taking on undefeated Riverton, but Flood is confident if his team plays its "A" game, it can pull off the upset.

"Obviously the next game is tough, but we know what to expect. We have to play 32 minutes of hard basketball and make sure we have no letup. We have to use everybody and get both our inside and outside games working. It's great to have a chance to play Riverton because you have to play them sometime if you want to win the title," said Flood.

"I'm excited," added Funk. "I think as long as we can play our game we can do well."

Saane Lo'amanu led the Warriors with 13 points and nine rebounds, and Athena Mauga added 10 points and nine rebounds.

E-mail: jolsen@desnews.com