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Bountiful • Thirteen games into the season, and Layton found itself trailing in the fourth quarter for the first time. The second-ranked Lancers registered 12 wins — 11 by double figures — before entering their game at Viewmont, which, presumably, would be their stiffest test in region play.
The Vikings utilized the home-court advantage created from their old-fashioned gym with a dim atmosphere to build an 11-point lead late in the third quarter until Sunnie Martinez's jumper sparked a 20-3 run to keep Layton's unbeaten season alive, with a 47-39 win on Friday.
"Viewmont's a very good team. We've always had great games here with them," said Layton coach Van Price. "It's kind of dark and the lighting is a little different, and then they threw some stuff at us that we weren't prepared for."
Viewmont employed a 1-3-1 defense, which flustered an undersized Layton lineup. The Lancers were cold from the onset, missing several clean looks from the perimeter — Clara Wood rimmed out three consecutive 3s — and clanking gimmes underneath. Viewmont led 8-6 after the first quarter, 19-17 after two, and 31-27 after three.
"It's just different," Price when asked if the gymnasium had any influence on the poor shooting. "It's just kind of an eerie, 'Hoosiers-type' atmosphere. Lot of different lighting. I don't think that was a big factor, though. We come here and struggle sometimes, and we did again tonight."
Viewmont opened the third frame on a 12-2 run to establish a 31-20 lead with 3:12 remaining in the quarter. Martinez's midrange jumper paired with Wood's deep 3 ignited a 9-0 run to counter. Martinez finished with 17 points. Hailey Bassett scored 21 points for the Lancers.
"Sunnie was huge," Price said.
The quick nine points were part of a 20-3 run which established Layton's first lead, 40-34, since early in the second quarter before Viewmont's Megan Carr's three-point play. Carr finished with a team-high 21 points.
"I thought we regrouped at the half, and our leaders stepped up and took care of the game," Price said. "Clara, Sunnie, Hailey — they all did real key factors in that."
Twitter: @trevorphibbs —
Storylines
R Layton erases an 11-point deficit with 20-3 run to improve to 13-0.
• Hailey Bassett finishes with team-high 21 points and Sunnie Martinez adds 17 for Layton.
• Megan Carr scores 21 points for Viewmont.