The 4A - 6A season has started off with a bang with a number of top performers playing in highly anticipated games. Below is our list of top performers from the middle of week 2.
Mid-Week Top Performers
Desert Mountain vs. Mesa
Tuesday, November 28, Desert Mountain 49 Mesa 58
Desert Mountain has surprised a lot of people with their competitive start. Both of their loses have come to two of the top teams in their respective classifications, Catalina Foothills and Mesa. Further, both have been extremely hard fought games in which Desert Mountain showed they can compete with anyone. At this point, their key contributors have been Hayden Peters and Joey McNeely.
Mesa won the state championship two years ago and took somewhat of a step back last year. With that said, they are extremely well coached and play hard. They have played really strong early in the season and could be on pace for another state tournament run. In the early goings of the season, Mesa has been led by Xavier Fuller, Zach Hobbs, and Mark Hatch. This is yet another big win for a team that has a high ceiling going forward.
Red Mountain vs. Millennium
Tuesday, November 28, Red Mountain 62 Millennium 48
One of the biggest question marks for Red Mountain is their guard play. On the wing, they have University of Utah commit Timmy Allen. Allen is without a doubt one of the top prospects in the state. He is versatile and can score the basketball from anywhere on the court. In addition to Allen, Andre Harris is on the block taking care of business. He is one of the best passing big men in the state and has developed a nice mid-range jumper. While Millennium is still on the up and coming list, this is still a solid win for the group.
Millennium is young and full of promise. As far as upperclassmen leadership is concerned, Eric Fahy does all of the little things. He is one of the best undersized rebounders in the state and competes on the defensive end. As far as young prospects are concerned, DaRon Holmes has the most potential out of the group. The 6'7 wing is skilled with tremendous upside. In addition to Holmes, Justus Jackson and Isaiah Floyd will be talented prospects as well if they continue on this trajectory.
Buena vs. Nogales
Tuesday, November 28, Buena 83 Nogales 67Kino Bellinger was monumental in Buena's first win at Nogales since 2012. His 30 point effort, which was the team's high, put Buena in a position to be successful. Buena is 6-0 at this point and has played extremely well. They have a number of weapons and need to be viewed as a top contender for the 5A state title. Continue to watch for Dominic Mooney as well. He sets the tone for this team and gets every involved. The schedule does not get easier either as they square up with Catalina Foothills.
Nogales has had a strong start to this season due in large part to Sam Legleu. Legleu is the key to this team's success and has had a solid stretch of games that has enabled them to compete with all of their opponents and stand at 4-2. This team will be solid in 4A and will compete in one of the toughest regions for that particular classification.
Sunnyslope vs. Liberty
Liberty gave Sunnyslope everything they could handle after Sunnyslope's loss to Deer Valley. However, Kyle Fischer demonstrated why he is one of the top forwards in the state. His versatility makes him a tough match-up for anyone. He is capable of being the leader in points, rebounds, and assists while guarding the opposing team's best player, which is exactly what he did. Although this Slope team is talented, they tend to go as Fischer goes.
Quentin Guliford started the game extremely strong. He is shooting the basketball better from deep this year which is enabling him to get to the rim more frequently. In addition to Guilford, Braxten Croteau, who typically earns more attention for football than basketball, was solid. He is strong and held his spot well on the block offensively and defensively. Liberty is still awaiting the eligibility of transfer Josh Ursery. However, this group is showing they can still compete without the talented guard.
Boulder Creek vs. Gilbert
Tuesday, November 28, Boulder Creek 53 Gilbert 51
Despite only being 6'3, Kyle Harris has been an animal for Boulder Creek early in the season. His near double-double performances has aided Boulder Creek greatly in a couple of tough battles and this win over Gilbert. In addition to Harris, Wil Rillero is scoring the basketball well while creating for teammates. Rillero and Harris have been a solid 1-2 punch and wins like this show the Boulder Creek could end up being a state tournament team by season's end.
Gilbert has been up and down early in this season. They competed at a high level with a couple of top tier teams, but suffered a tough lose to Mesa. After giving up this W to Boulder Creek, they will have to turn around and play that Mesa team again. It will be interesting to see how they regroup.
