The Payson Longhorns scored the most points they've had all season to find success on Wednesday. They walked away with an 84-74 win over Camp Verde. Having run the score up that high, both teams probably have some extra defensive drills coming up.
Payson had a senior duo take command as Anderson Hatch dropped a double-double on 29 points and 15 rebounds and Mikey Schinstock scored 23 points along with five rebounds. The game was Schinstock's fourth in a row with at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Sergio Madrid, who scored nine points along with five rebounds.
Camp Verde's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Julian Perez, who dropped a double-double on 18 points and 11 rebounds. Those 18 points set a new season-high mark for him. The team also got some help courtesy of Tristan Clarke, who scored 12 points.
Even though they lost, Camp Verde were working as a unit and finished the game with 19 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.
Payson pushed their record up to 6-5 with that victory, which was their third straight at home. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 74.3 points per game. As for Camp Verde, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 6-4.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Payson will have some time to savor their win since their next game is a little ways off: they'll take on Show Low at 7:30 p.m. on January 9, 2024. Camp Verde will be staying on the road on Friday to face off against Horizon Honors at 7:00 p.m. on December 15th. Horizon Honors has been getting the ball to fall more lately as they've increased their point totals each of their last three games.
