High school girls basketball: Bingham wins 6A crown and snaps Lone Peak’s 4-year championship streak

Lone Peak has been dominant in 6A for five years now despite not getting particularly high seeds in the state tournament. On Friday, the Knights were attempting to become just the third school in state history to earn a fifth straight state championship.

Instead, Bingham crushed those dreams and held Lone Peak to just 16% shooting and a season-low 33 points in a 16-point title victory.

It’s the first time since 2021 that Lone Peak has lost a game in the postseason.

Bingham head coach Hector Marquez wasn’t fully sure what defensive scheme his team was going to run ahead of the championship game with Lone Peak, but right before tipoff he decided to start with a zone.

That decision turned out to be a game-winning one as the Miners dominated defensively and ran away with the win.

“They just did whatever I asked them to, and I’m so proud of them,” Marquez said.

Photo Gallery: 1 of 35

1 of 35

Photo Gallery: 2 of 35

2 of 35

Photo Gallery: 3 of 35

3 of 35

Photo Gallery: 4 of 35

4 of 35

Photo Gallery: 5 of 35

5 of 35

Photo Gallery: 6 of 35

6 of 35

Photo Gallery: 7 of 35

7 of 35

Photo Gallery: 8 of 35

8 of 35

Photo Gallery: 9 of 35

9 of 35

Photo Gallery: 10 of 35

10 of 35

Photo Gallery: 11 of 35

11 of 35

Photo Gallery: 12 of 35

12 of 35

Photo Gallery: 13 of 35

13 of 35

Photo Gallery: 14 of 35

14 of 35

Photo Gallery: 15 of 35

15 of 35

Photo Gallery: 16 of 35

16 of 35

Photo Gallery: 17 of 35

17 of 35

Photo Gallery: 18 of 35

18 of 35

Photo Gallery: 19 of 35

19 of 35

Photo Gallery: 20 of 35

20 of 35

Photo Gallery: 21 of 35

21 of 35

Photo Gallery: 22 of 35

22 of 35

Photo Gallery: 23 of 35

23 of 35

Photo Gallery: 24 of 35

24 of 35

Photo Gallery: 25 of 35

25 of 35

Photo Gallery: 26 of 35

26 of 35

Photo Gallery: 27 of 35

27 of 35

Photo Gallery: 28 of 35

28 of 35

Photo Gallery: 29 of 35

29 of 35

Photo Gallery: 30 of 35

30 of 35

Photo Gallery: 31 of 35

31 of 35

Photo Gallery: 32 of 35

32 of 35

Photo Gallery: 33 of 35

33 of 35

Photo Gallery: 34 of 35

34 of 35

Photo Gallery: 35 of 35

35 of 35

While the final result when in Bingham’s favor, Lone Peak was the team that quickly earned a lead. The Knights broke the zone with drives and kicked it out for back-to-back corner 3-pointers from Charli Warner for an 8-4 advantage early, but that was short-lived.

Bingham adjusted its zone with better closeouts on the perimeter while its offense feasted in the paint. It started with offensive put-backs from Veanna Pau’u and drives from Stacia Peoples as the Miners went on a 13-0 run through the rest of the first quarter and into the second for a 17-8 lead.

Bingham briefly lost the rebounding battle in the second quarter, which allowed Lone Peak to close the gap, but the Miners kept making quick adjustments when problems came up and ended with a win in the rebounding battle.

“Rebounding was one of the things we wanted to work on,” Pau’u said. “At the beginning, I’m not going to lie, we didn’t do the best, but in the second half, we promised to do much better at the rebounding.”

Bingham’s dominant defense lasted through the remainder of the game, and Lone Peak was held to just 18 second-half points. The Miners took full control of the game in the third quarter, outscoring the Knights 17-9.

Bingham’s offense was led by Peoples, who had 14 points on 5 of 8 shooting, while Pau’u had 10 points with six rebounds.

“We were just encouraging each other,” Peoples said. “We were calling each other and kept pushing through and not give up. We were just telling each other we got this.”

Bingham also took advantage of the few turnovers it generated. Of the Miners’ 49 total points, 39 were scored either off turnovers or in the paint.

“It’s about time that we capitalize on turnovers,” Marquez joked. “Usually, teams capitalize on our turnovers. I just think we grew up. We were able to be a little bit more patient and find the open players, and it worked, and we were able to get the dub.”

Peyton Warner led Lone Peak with 16 points, but Bingham made her take 14 shots to get there. After allowing early back-to-back 3-pointers in the first quarter, the Miners held the Knights to 16% shooting from distance.

Despite finishing just 6-6 in Region 2 and coming into the state tournament as the No. 6 seed, the Miners have won their first state title since 2020.

“It has been a roller coaster of a season, but we’ve just been chipping away at practice,” Marquez said. “Practices have been fun. We’ve just been super positive, and it’s a learning curve.

“With a young group with only two or three seniors, we were able to click at the right time, and at the end of the day, that’s all that matters.”

Deseret News 6A All-Tournament Team

MVP — Veanna Pau’u, Bingham

Stacia Peoples, Bingham

Evy Roberts, Bingham

Peyton Warner, Lone Peak

Charli Warner, Lone Peak

Avery Thompson, Westlake