Pride of the Lions: Payson boys and girls basketball piling up wins in 2024-25
- The Payson girls basketball team warms up before the Region 8 game against Timpanogos in Orem on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025.
- Payson head coach Chad Bahr applauds a good play during the Region 8 game against Timpanogos in Orem on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025.
- The Payson girls basketball team cheers on the boys team during the Region 8 game against Timpanogos in Orem on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025.
- Payson head coach Anthony Mitchell questions a call during the Region 8 game against Timpanogos in Orem on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025.
- Payson senior Quincey Mathews drives to the basket during the Region 8 game against Timpanogos in Orem on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025.
- The Payson boys basketball team stands for the national anthem before the Region 8 game against Timpanogos in Orem on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025.
- Payson senior Kyah Bahr drives to the basket during the Region 8 game against Timpanogos in Orem on Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025.
A number of high schools in the state of Utah have either their boys or girls basketball teams that are enjoying great seasons. The other, however, isn’t doing as well.
That’s not the case at Payson.
The Lions have the best record in girls basketball in Utah Valley at 15-1, while the Payson boys team is not that far behind at 13-4.
Their combined record of 28-5 is second in the state, only trailing the combined record of Ridgeline (32-4).
Both Lion head girls hoops coach Chad Bahr and head boys hoops coach Anthony Mitchell agreed that it’s not just chance that has Payson doing so well on the hardwood.
“It’s a really fun thing,” Bahr said in an interview last week. “We kind of push each other. Anthony’s my good friend and we’re always trying to one up each other. It’s a little competition there, for sure. But in terms of their success, it’s awesome.”
He explained that he knows a lot of the Lion boys players as well as the girls because he does a camp with Mitchell every year.
“We’ve watched this group coming up,” Bahr said. “Doing the camp is a big deal. I’m trying to build up the girls and he’s trying to build up the guys. Then when you finally get a group that gels and works well together, it’s awesome.”
Mitchell said that one of the things he loves about being part of the Payson community is seeing athletes grow and develop.
“It’s an awesome community to be a part of,” Mitchell said. “It really makes this team more of a family. We’ve seen the players since they were in fourth or fifth grade when they’ve come to our camps. They’ve cheered on the past teams and then it’s their time to be on the court and fill their shoes. It’s building a great culture.”
He said he values the connection and camaraderie the boys and girls basketball programs have.
“Both Chad and I love basketball,” Mitchell said. “We both coached as assistants under Coach Dan Lunt, then Chad was my assistant for a few years. It’s awesome to see him take that program and build it to where it’s at now. It’s great to be a part of it.”
Payson senior Quincey Mathews said it’s been great to see the whole town support what both her team and the Lions boys team are doing this season.
“It’s been so fun,” Mathews said. “We’ve had so many people come up and congratulate us. We’ve had so many like successes as a team. It’s just been so fun to feel the energy that we get from being at Payson.”
She said she sees those examples all the time.
“You have people who don’t even have kids anywhere, kids who have graduated years before, and they still come and support,” Mathews said. “They see you walking down the street and they say, ‘hey, you’re doing great. Keep it up.’ Our community is one of my favorite things, because they’re just so supportive about everything.”
She grinned as she talked about how there is a little extra juice when they are trying to do a little better than the boys.
“They are great guys and I enjoy being around the boys team,” she said. “But I’ll always take having a win over the boys. But they are doing great and we support them as much as we can.”
When the girls completed their game at Timpanogos last week, they became the biggest cheering section for the Lion boys, showing that support is more than just words.
Both teams are heading toward the end of January with big goals.
“I think it’s so exciting,” Mathews said. “I think officially we ended up getting fifth in state last year. We lost some good players but we have been able to bring it together.
“I feel like we’re able to play more together than anything else. I think one of the things that our team works best about is celebrating each other, even if we have tough games we’re still able to pull through because everyone relies on each other.”
The Payson boys team has been through some bumps in recent weeks, but he said the key for the Lions is to fight through.
“Sometimes it’s quarter by quarter but we have to learn and improve,” Mitchell said. “We’re going to make mistakes. We have to brush them aside and keep going.”