LAYTON -- Three days before Christmas and the Lancers got an early lump of coal in their stockings.
Layton High remained undefeated Thursday -- holding off the Lakers 42-35 in a non-league game -- but lost its two-year starting point guard for four weeks and maybe longer.
Senior Amber Daly suffered a possible torn tendon in the middle finger of her left (non-shooting) hand in the last two minutes of the second quarter.
The Lancers (8-0 overall) had a 20-point lead at 1:16 of the second quarter, but got outscored 25-15 during the second half.
"We think Amber tore the tendon in her middle finger," Layton coach Van Price said. "That's the prognosis from our trainer; Amber will find out more tomorrow."
The injury happened when a Bonneville player ripped the ball away from Daly and her middle finger got bent backward.
"Amber is our playmaker and leader, and not having her, the other kids didn't know what to do," Price said. "I think we lost our composure a little bit at that point. You don't prepare for injury, and there is always the hope they will come back."
Daly could miss as many as four Region 1 games.
"The best-case scenario is they bubble wrap it and let her play," Price said. "I feel badly for Amber because she had a right shoulder injury last season that affected her shooting. She had to shoot everything left-handed."
Down 20 points at 6:41 of the third quarter, the Lakers' 1-3-1 zone defense forced nine second-half Layton turnovers.
Bonneville closed within seven points three times in the fourth quarter.
"We can't play the way we did in the first half and expect to win the game, especially against a team like Layton," Bonneville coach Mike Russell said. "We weren't finishing. We missed at least six uncontested shots deep in the paint."
Sophomore Maddi Smith, the Lancers' leading scorer at 11.14 points per game, tied her season high with a game-high 19 points, including three 3-pointers. Livia Treseder tossed in eight points for Layton, which shot 35.7 percent (15-of-42) -- 44.4 percent (4-of-9) from 3-point range -- and outrebounded Bonneville 27-25.
The Lancers committed 15 turnovers and swiped 11 steals.
"We still won, but we have to get people better prepared for situations like this," Price said. "I think in the fourth quarter we were pretty fatigued."
Layton was playing consecutive games for the second time this season. The Lancers spanked Woods Cross 66-33 on Wednesday.
"We set the games up with the state 5-A tournament in mind, assuming we make it. You have to play back-to-back games there," Price said.
"We've worked hard enough to be 8-0, but I didn't know if the team chemistry and cohesiveness would be there," he said. "Defense will keep you in a lot of ballgames, and other people are going to have to step up with Amber out. We're not quite as good without her."
Layton was allowing only 31.43 ppg, the best in the 5-A ranks, going into Thursday's game.
The Lakers' McKinlee Westmoreland, whose junior season ended prematurely with a torn ACL, scored a team-high 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting. She also had four rebounds and two steals.
Newcomer Emilie Volk, who enrolled at Bonneville after Christian Heritage closed its doors, was 2-of-7 from the floor for five points. Volk, the team's leading scorer at 13.75 points per game, pulled down 10 rebounds.
The Lakers (6-3) shot 36.8 percent (14-of-38), were 20.0 percent (2-of-10) on 3-point attempts, committed 20 turnovers and had eight steals.
* DAVIS 36, CLEARFIELD 33: At Clearfield, Courtney Hurst hit a pair of 3-pointers and scored 10 points to lead the Darts over the Falcons.
Davis outscored Clearfield 9-2 in the decisive second quarter.
* AMERICAN LEADERSHIP 49, BEN LOMOND 34: At Spanish Fork, Taylor Hughes scored 23 points for the Scots in a losing effort as American Leadership took a 37-20 lead into the final quarter.
Dalila Rodriguez scored 18 for American Leadership.
* VIEWMONT 53, FREMONT 41: At Plain City, the Vikings hit 81 percent from the free throw line and held on to beat the Silver Wolves.
Caitlyn Larsen scored 20 for the Vikings and Isabella Swan added 17.
Tanesha Daniels had 11 for Fremont. Mikkell Minnoch added seven.
* BINGHAM 60, WEBER 52: At Pleasant View, the Miners frustrated the Warriors with solid defense and forced them into a tough shooting night.
Summer Yack led Bingham with 14 points.
Weber was led by Erica Olpin, who scored 13 points to go along with four assists. Shaylee Crowton had 10 points and nine rebounds.
* MOUNTAIN CREST 53, LONE PEAK 46: At Highland, the Mustangs broke out to an 18-8 score after the first quarter and held on for a nifty road victory.
Karlee Kartchner scored 25 for Mountain Crest and Emily Moore added 16.
* MORGAN 63, BOUNTIFUL 53: At Morgan, McKenzie Schenk had a memorable night to help the Trojans fight past the Braves.
Schenk notched nine field goals and went 11-for-12 from the free throw line for 30 points. She also added 12 rebounds. Kelsey Henry scored 16 points.
Taylor Boroson and Kennedy Merrick scored 15 apiece for Bountiful.
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