Phoenix finish tournament strong
Sonoraville shuts down Devils for third-place trophy
— Strong effort on the defensive end often leads to easy shots and confidence on the offensive end, and Sonoraville proved that on Friday.
The Phoenix blew open a close game at the half by outscoring Model 18-0 in the third quarter to take total control in a 63-51 victory in the third-place game of the Rome News-Tribune Christmas Tournament at Berry College.
Sonoraville ( 10- 1) was suffocating on the defensive end in the period, which included pressure on the ball, forcing turnovers and locking down the defensive glass. That allowed them to get easy transition baskets, and even when they didn’t, they ran their half-court sets with high efficiency to get good looks.
“I didn’t even realize we had shut them out in the third until someone on the bench said something to me,” said Sonoraville coach Brent Mashburn. “But any time you play that well defensively, that leads to easy offense. For us to come out of the half in a three-point game and take control and really dominate that third quarter was really good to see.”
The Phoenix jumped out to a 19-11 lead after one quarter, but Model (3-5) fought back in the second to cut the deficit to three at 29-26 going into the half, including scoring the final five points of the period. But the third quarter was all Sonoraville as they started the period with a three-pointer from Seth Harkins, ended it with a bucket from Lucas Brooks and had 13 points from Chris Rush and Wil Walraven in between.
Model’s Jackson Lively tried his best to get his team back in the game in the fourth quarter, scoring the Devils’ first 13 points of the period, but they never got closer than 12 points.
The win was a nice bounce-back effort for the Phoenix after a tough loss in the semifinals to Rome in which they didn’t ever get a lot of rhythm going offensively as their unbeaten run early in the season came to an end. Mashburn said he was curious how his team would come back the next day after the loss, and he was proud of the response on Friday.
“We got off to a really good start this year, and after that first loss last night, I really wanted to see how we would respond,” said Mashburn. “Once I got around the guys today and saw their attitude, I felt good about how we would play. We came out and our energy was really good throughout the game. We played well offensively, and I think defensively, we made it tough on them.”
Walraven scored 20 to lead Sonoraville and was named to the All-Tournament Team later on Friday. The senior scored 76 points in Sonoraville’s four games in the tournament.
Rush added 13 for the Phoenix with nine of those coming in the third quarter, and Brooks was the third Sonoraville scorer in double figures with 10. Trent Daniel also had seven, and Harkins added six on a pair of 3s. Mashburn said when his team is that balanced offensively, it makes it very tough on their opponents’ defense.
“That’s when we’re at our best when we spread it around,” said Mashburn. “Wil was good again tonight, and Chris was really good in stretches and I think dominated the game on both ends in the second half. We had some other guys step up too. I think when you have different guys that can all be the best offensive player on the court for stretches, it’s a huge advantage. And when you see the ball go through the basket, it makes it easier for you to play hard on defense.”
Lively scored a gamehigh 24 points, but was the only Model player in double figures in the loss.