3A Final Four Recap

<p>The 3A state tournament was one of the most intriguing state tournaments. The clear cut favorites heading into the state tournament were both upset in Valley Christian and Winslow.<br /> Both teams were extremely talented with strong resumes. However, the one and done format offered some interesting results as Winslow came up short in the first round and Valley Christian in the second. Regardless, both teams had tremendous seasons.<br /> Valley Christian was led by [player_tooltip player_id="1149000" first="Jaden" last="DeBoer"] and Jacob Rice. Winslow was led throughout the season by a multitude of prospects in Dustin Richard, Jeremiah Byjoe, Roy Billups, and Tyrell Young.<br /> While these two teams enjoyed solid respective seasons, it was the teams who found a way to the final four who most impressed when it mattered the most: Fountain Hills, Snowflake, Gilbert Christian, and Page.<br /> Fountain Hills<br /> Fountain Hills came into the tournament as the #7 seed. However, they had a number of close games against solid competition and some quality wins. They won the first two rounds convincingly as they capitalized on Northwest Christian’s 1st round upset.<br /> This group was solid all around and senior heavy. With that said, it Shane Davenport and Benjamin Danko.<br /> Snowflake<br /> It was not surprising to see Snowflake in this spot as their only loss on the season prior to the state championship was against #2 seed Winslow by 1. Thus, Snowflake came into the tournament as the #3 seed and was the only seed ranked 1-4 to make it to the final four.<br /> Snowflake has a rich history of basketball excellence and this group added to it. [player_tooltip player_id="1154332" first="Stewart" last="West"] led the way throughout the season and in the state championship loss. Noah Baum was vital to the team’s success as well. Baum will return next season with hopes of bringing Snowflake back to this same spot once again.<br /> Gilbert Christian<br /> Gilbert Christian was the biggest surprise to make it to the final four as far as rankings and records are concerned. However, this group gave Valley Christian all that they could handle a week before the state tournament battle. When the tournament came around, they were able to find a way to win.<br /> This group might not have accomplished what they set out to do in the state tournament. However, they made it to the final four and bring back their two biggest pieces in Albert Wilson and Brad Rowland.<br /> Further, the group has the luxury of having Keon Talgo and Max Lightfoot returning as well. It is safe to say that Gilbert will be one of the favorites to win the 3A state title next year.<br /> Page<br /> Despite losses to Snowflake and Fountain Hills prior to the state tournament, Page found a way to continue to improve throughout the season which resulted in them taking home the state title.<br /> Ultimately, this was the most balanced group in 3A. [player_tooltip player_id="999013" first="Robert" last="Smith"] ran the show for them offensively and knew his role. Further, [player_tooltip player_id="1024093" first="Stuart" last="Sandall"] nearly averaged a double-double while being the top defensive prospect in the classification.<br /> With that said, Sandall and Smith had plenty of assistance from [player_tooltip player_id="1154331" first="Jonah" last="Holiday"], Dahntay Dugi, and Orlandon Yazzie.</p>