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Taylorsville • Perhaps it was the 9:30 a.m. starting time. More than likely, it had a little to do with state tournament jitters. But whatever the case, it took Bingham a quarter to wake up in its opening-round Class 5A girls' basketball game Tuesday against Viewmont.

But wake up the Miners did and the result was an impressive 56-45 victory over a good Vikings team.

Viewmont, led by sophomore Mercedes Staples, came out firing to grab a 17-7 first-quarter lead.

Then Miners center Leya Harvey went to work gathering in rebounds and making big shots.

The fourth-ranked Miners opened the second quarter with a 10-0 run to tie the game, and by halftime had grabbed a 25-22 lead.

Harvey and Shea Rasmussen said the Miners refocused, stayed calm and started talking to each other on the court.

"It was definitely a fight down low," said Harvey, who finished with a game-high 21 points. "Both teams were fighting for the boards. We tried to help each other, box out and go get the ball."

Rasmussen said the team might have had a bit of state tournament jitters.

The Miners also got a big boost from freshman Journey Tupea, who had all 10 of her points in the second half when Bingham pulled away. Madison Loftus added 12 for the Miners.

"Viewmont is a good team and we knew they would give us a huge challenge," said Bingham coach Charron Mason. "They played Layton so tough in region. We knew it would be a battle."

Mason had praise for Harvey.

"She is rebounding and she is scoring," said the Miner coach. "She is a great post player. We are lucky to have her."

This could be a learning experience for a young Viewmont team, that should return next season as one of the top teams.

Sophomore Mercedes Staples led the Vikings with 15 points and junior Tori Page added 14.

wharton@sltrib.com

Twitter: @tribtomwharton —

Bingham 56, Viewmont 45

R Bingham recovers from a slow start to dominate the last three quarters.

• Leya Harvey fuels Bingham's comeback with 21 points and a dominating inside performance. Madison Loftus adds 12 and freshman Journey Tupea scores all 10 of her points in the second half.

• Sophomore Mercedes Staples leads Viewmont with 15 while junior Tori Page adds 14.