The Layton Lancers have been one of the top teams in the state this season, and things only started to look better as the Lancers got back ESPN four-star prospect David Katoa from an ACL tear.
The Lancers had already built an 11-1 record before Katoa’s return, but it came at a perfect time as Layton faced a big test Tuesday evening. The Lancers passed with flying colors, defeating Region 1 foe Weber 82-70.
The test started early as Layton struggled to contain Weber’s Malachi Spencer, who scored 12 points to put the Warriors up 18-11 midway through the first quarter.
“Basketball is a game of runs and they’re a very good team,” said Layton head coach Kelby Miller. “We knew that they were going to give us a game. The main thing was just staying composed. I felt that in the second half we played better together.”
While Layton closed the gap before the end of the quarter, the game remained neck-and-neck, and Weber led 38-36 at halftime.
The Layton offense got going, however, and started the second half on a quick 11-2 run. The run was spearheaded by Makhi Martin, who went downhill, finished through contact and ended the third quarter with 11 points.
The Lancers scored 29 points in the third quarter and took a 65-61 lead.
“We attacked better,” Miller said. “We created and finished for ourselves and for others. We had a lot of kick out and drop off opportunities that we were able to capitalize on.
“I really feel like the way that we flowed in the second half was much better than what it was in the first half.”
Weber struggled to find buckets in the fourth and was held to just nine points. Meanwhile, Katoa kept the offense steady with 10 points in the frame, including a statement dunk in the final minutes.
Katoa ended the night with 32 points, including three 3-pointers.
“Really, it’s Dave’s IQ and his unselfishness. Even though he scored 32 points tonight, we’ve got dudes around him that that let Dave be Dave and I think that’s really the main key,” Miller said.
Martin also had a big night for the Lancers with 24 points, including three 3-pointers. Katoa stressed how important Martin and his other teammates are to the team’s success.
“It makes the game fun,” Katoa said. “Everyone can just play and have fun and do their thing, but it’s not on one person.
“Not one guy is trying to do too much, everyone just has a good role and we all just play together and have fun, and when you have so much talent on one team, you can really just have fun together. When you have fun you win games.”
The win puts Layton at the top of 6A at 16-1 and the top of Region 1 at 4-0.
“We’ve got very good players here,” Miller said. “We’ve got at least three guys right now that are going to want to play at the next level. Credit to our guys for being able to finish through the contact and really being able to kind of take control in the second half.”