While Payson didn't have the best season last year (they finished 7-14), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They snuck past the Spanish Fork Dons with a 54-48 victory on Friday. Given the Lions' advantage in MaxPreps' Utah basketball rankings (they are ranked eighth, while the Dons are ranked 60th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Payson's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Zandon Theobald, who went 6 of 12 on his way to 15 points and six rebounds. Those 15 points gave Theobald a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Micah Swasey, who posted 11 points and seven rebounds.
Spanish Fork lost despite a true team effort on offense, the best among them being Gage Christensen, who put up 14 points and six rebounds. Caleb Cabrera was another key player, putting up nine points and five rebounds.
Lions
| 12/06/24 @ Spanish Fork | 54-48 |
| 12/03/24 vs Maple Mountain | 68-39 |
| 11/26/24 vs Hurricane | 57-48 |
| 11/23/24 vs Cedar | 72-45 |
| 11/19/24 vs Box Elder | 69-42 |
The victory keeps them at an undefeated 5-0. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 64.0 points per game. As for Spanish Fork, they now have a losing record at 2-3.
Payson will venture away from home to take on Juab at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday. One thing working in Juab's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last four games. As for Spanish Fork, they wasted no time getting back out on the court and have already played their next matchup, a 74-66 defeat against Timpanogos on the 10th.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
