Highland, La Joya post huge wins in 6A Conference
Biggest takeaway
The 6A Conference is wide-open after Gilbert Highland and Avondale La Joya Community made major statements. Highland outlasted Gilbert Perry 62-61 in four overtime periods, led by sophomore guard A.J. Riggs’ 3-pointer in the fourth OT that ended up being the winning points. La Joya stunned Phoenix St. Mary’s 7574 for the championship of the Horizon Hoops Holiday Invitational, behind senior point guard Nahshon Harper’s 36 points.
Harper was named MVP of the tournament. These are 6A teams nobody thought about in preseason, but both are 10-3 after stumbling out of the gates, growing fast in the season’s first month. It’s no surprise. Both programs are led by very good coaches – Highland’s Todd Fazio and La Joya’s Roger Lefebvre.
Biggest shocker
Phoenix Desert Vista on Friday recommended the firing of head coach Gino Crump for an incident with one of his players after a game at Phoenix St. Mary’s. The school and the Tempe Union High School District provided no details, only that there was an incident. The Thunder have been rolling at 9-1, ranked either No. 1 or 2 in 6A this season and have a lot to look forward to behind a talented core, led by 6-9 senior Osasere Ighodaro and 6-1 sophomore point guard Dasean Lecque.
How the Thunder continue after this is anybody’s guess.
Biggest rise
Watch out for the little 1A school from Anthem. Randy Walker, who won a state championship at Boulder Creek, has North Valley Christian Academy at 10-0, after going 6-0 on the week and winning the school’s holiday tournament with four wins. What made its run more impressive is that the school in the state’s smallest conference beat bigger schools Phoenix Christian (2A), Glendale Cactus (4A), Sahuarita Walden Grove (4A) and Phoenix Trevor Browne (6A).
This is a balanced team that had Isaiah Savoury (15.8 points a game), Breagan Patten (16.3) and Braden Roberts (16.5) all average close to the same amount on the week. This is only the second year of the program, and North Valley Christian has clearly sent a message that it is going after the 1A championship this season.
Biggest improvement
It might be Glendale Ironwood, who, in a Saturday matinee at home, beat Phoenix Sunnyslope 66-60, letting not only Sunnyslope, but No. 1 (Super 10) Goodyear Millennium and defending state champion Gilbert know that the Eagles will be a team to contend with in the 5A tournament. Coach Jordan Augustine has done a remarkable job building this program since he arrived in 2015. Peoria Sunrise Mountain, as well, has to be in the 5A title conversation after it made sure Ironwood didn’t have a perfect week, beating the Eagles 78-71. Ironwood (11-2) lost its only other game this year to Sunnyslope, 69-61, in the final of Sunnyslope’s Hoopsgiving Tournament in late November. Ironwood will go as far as Dominic Gonzalez (25 points, six rebounds and four assists average in three games) will take it. But the Eagles have help with Trent Hudgens transferring over from Phoenix Moon Valley. He is now eligible and makes them tougher to beat. Sunnyslope’s only losses have come against
Millennium, Gilbert and Ironwood.
“Sunnyslope is extremely talented and one of the most well-coached teams in the state,” Augustine said. “Any time you can find a way to walk away with a win against them, it is huge. However, our region is filled with skilled and well-coached teams. Our region is a grind. We need to continue to focus on being the best version of ourselves daily in order to have any success.”
On the addition of Hudgens, Augustine said, “He’s got a bulldog mentality and cares about the success of the team.”
Biggest sleeper
Don’t forget about Phoenix South Mountain’s hoops rise in 5A. Millennium won’t. Its closest in-state challenge has come against the Jaguars, escaping with a 6362 win. South Mountain (10-4) has been outscoring opponents by 22 points. Coach Jeremy Soria is in his sixth season now and you can see the stability in the program with players who know how to win. During a six-game winning streak, the starting five of Isaiah Freeny (17 points, five assists, four steals a game), L.J. Ginnis (13 points, seven assists, five steals), Damarion Pouncil (12 points, nine rebounds), Deotis Nunn (13 points, four assists) and Kyree Ware (12 points, four steals) have really stepped up. They’ve won by an average margin of 40 points during this stretch.
Best return
Sierra Vista Buena coach Dave Glasgow does a remarkable job making the most of the talent he has. But he knows he has to have everybody on board to be one of those 5A teams that can make a splash against the Valley powers. He was happy to have his best player, 6foot-2 senior guard Jaylen McFadden, for the first time on Friday in a 51-50 win over rapidly improving Gilbert Williams Field. McFadden, who missed the first 10 games with an ankle injury suffered on Nov. 16, had 17 points and nine rebounds in his season debut. Pomp Braswell’s 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds won it for 9-2 Buena, which, in late November, handed La Joya a 55-36 loss.
Best start
A 13-point loss to Tucson Cholla and a 33-point setback to Tucson Salpointe Catholic are Buena’s only blemishes. This might be Salpointe’s best team. Nobody in Tucson should touch them. The Lancers are 9-0, scoring more than 80 points seven times and in the 70s in two other games. The closest anybody has come to Salpointe is Ironwood Ridge, 75-62. Senior guard Evan Nelson, a two-time All-Arizona selection headed to Harvard for college, is averaging 17.9 points with Grant Weitman (16.8) and Jordan Gainey (13.8) playing strong roles.