Photo: Jack Golleher splits the defense on his way to the hoop
The Prescott Badgers fell in their home opener to the Deer Valley Skyhawks 67-52. Prescott jumped on top six zip at the start, but Deer Valley chipped away to take a 11-10 lead. The score seesawed back and forth till the Skyhawks warmed up offensively in the final three minutes of the first half to lead 38-34 at the break.
Photo: Caden Lozen drives to the basket for two of his 16 points
Prescott had a tough third quarter offensively with just seven points and trailed Deer Valley led 52-41 after three quarters. Caden Lozen led the Badgers with 16 points and provided a crowd pleasing highlight going up to reject a Skyhawk shot. Despite the loss, there were signs of better things to come for Badgers and their fans.
Photo: Drew Jolley senses the defender right behind him
Coach Travis Stedman, “I was happy with the effort tonight and have been all season so far. We are so young and inexperienced, but this team continues to work hard and they are getting better every game. The schedule has been brutal but I like what I am seeing. We keep playing. It is just a matter of time when we start picking up wins.”
To put things in perspective, the “new look” Badgers so far this season have faced two schools in 6A , a 5A, and the two finalists in 4As with Deer Valley and last year’s champion St. Mary’s. It is a tall order for any team to handle, let alone an entirely new group of Badgers. So the growing pains will continue, but the Badgers very well could be ready when Grand Canyon Region play begins.
The Badgers (1-5) host another very good team in Arcadia on Monday at 7pm.
DEER VALLEY SKYHAWKS 67, PRESCOTT BADGERS 52
Deer Valley (67)-S. Gonzales 4 2-2 11, S. Gonzales 1 3-3 5, Riley 10 4-7 26, Ortiz 1 1-2 3, Williams 3 0-0 6, Heco 1 0-0 2, Hollie 1 0-0 2, Weaver 0 0-0 0, Andrews 0 1-2 1, Nielsen 0 0-0 0. 21 11-14 67.
Prescott (52)-Stedman 0 1-2 1, Lozen 5 5-9 16, Diner 1 4-10 6, Golleher 2 3-4 8, Jolley 3 0-0 6, Patterson 1 2-2 5, Jimenez 0 3-4 3, Tenney 1 0-0 2, Kleinman 1 2-2 4, Molnar 0 0-0 0. 14 20-32 52.
Score by Quarters- 1 2 3 4 – T
Deer Valley 15 23 14 15 – 67
Prescott 17 17 7 11 – 52
Fouled Out-S. Gonzales
Three Pointers- DV(3)-Riley 2, S. Gonzales 1. P(4)-Golleher 1, Lozen 1, Diener 1, Patterson 1
BOYS BASKETBALL SCOREBOARD
Deer Valley 67, Prescott 52
Dysart 67, Bradshaw Mountain 23
Ash Fork 48, Seligman 38
Highland 83, Mesquite 36
Mingus 60, Thunderbird 53
Mohave 73, Lake Havasu 36
St. Mary’s 84, Basha 78
Varsity Girls Basketball
The Prescott Lady Badgers played five games at the Salpointe Catholic Cactus Clash in Tucson in three days.
In their opening matchup the Lady Badgers fell to the host Salpointe Catholic 58-39. Day two ended with split results as Prescott lost a close 57-54 battle with Pinnacle. The latter game saw the Lady Badgers beat Catalina Foothills 51-37. Saturday afternoon Prescott beat Nogales 52-37 and are (5-2) on the season. One game remains versus Casteel before Prescott makes the trip back home.
The Lady Badgers return home to play ALA-Gilbert North on Wednesday at 5:30pm.
Bradshaw Mountain Lady Bears improved to (4-1) with a 44-27 win over the Dysart Demons.
The Lady Bears trailed 10-9 after one quarter, but a huge second quarter gave Bradshaw Mountain a 28-14 lead at the half. The game slowed in the rid with the lead increasing to 34-19.
Bradshaw Mountain will host Cactus on Monday at 5:30pm.
GIRLS BASKETBALL SCOREBOARD
Prescott 52, Nogales 37
Bradshaw Mountain 44, Dysart 27
Ash Fork 56,Seligman 2
Lake Havasu 48, Mohave 33
North Phoenix Prep 31, Mayer 27
San Pasqual 25, Bagdad 14
