Basketball Recap: Roy Falls Despite Big Games from Ben Stirland and Jesse Jones

Roy lost against Bountiful back in February of 2024 and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Friday. The Roy Royals lost 72-51 to the Bountiful RedHawks. While losing is never fun, the Royals can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Utah basketball rankings (they are ranked 101st, while the RedHawks are ranked 16th).

Jesse Jones and Ben Stirland certainly did their best on Friday to avoid the loss. Jones went 6 for 8 on his way to 16 points along with seven boards and three steals, while Stirland posted 15 points. The dominant performance also gave Stirland a new career-high in rebounds (three).

Lincoln Smith continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines for Bountiful, going 8 of 14 en route to 22 points in addition to five boards and three steals. Smith is on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in the last three games he's played. Another player making a difference was Davey Howe, who scored 11 points.

Roy has traveled a rocky road recently having lost five of their last six contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-12 record this season. As for Bountiful, the victory was the fifth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 12-3.

Roy has already played their next match, a 58-52 defeat against Box Elder on the 22nd. As for Bountiful, they also wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next game, a 59-55 loss against Woods Cross on the 22nd.