Mesquite vs Salpointe Catholic 4A Final recap

On Monday, February 28th I attended the 4A Final with Mesquite versus Salpointe Catholic at Arizona Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum in Phx. AZ.   Game Notes: Salpointe Catholic started off looking confident with a 22-20 lead and led most of the half until the end of the second quarter where Mesquite led 35-34. Calmese was filling good and scored 20 points already. The second half started and it was all Calmese! He had 10 of their teams 16 third quarter points and the Wildcats extended their lead to 51-44. Calmese had 30. In the 4th quarter, the Lancers made a run and cut the gap significantly and was in striking distance with a two-possession game but Gonzales iced them with made free throws down the stretch. The Wildcats won it 64-58. Calmsese was as good as you would expect the 4A POY to be.   Some of the standouts from the game: [player_tooltip player_id="701246" first="Nathan" last="Calmese"] Mesquite Nathan made it look almost easy all night. He finished with 34 points 10 rebound and five assists. The pace and speed he played with were too much for the Lancers to handle. Once the game sped up, he was off to the races. He showed off his whole scoring package with a step back-3 off a crossover, burst into the lane, floaters, highly contested pull-ups from mid-range, using either hand in the air with next level body control and dunking the ball on the break. [player_tooltip player_id="814517" first="Cohen" last="J Gonzales"] Mesquite (Pictured) Once again the little big man did his thing. He has a knack of putting points up. Either by getting to the free throw line or filling it up from deep. He can get passed his defenders off of hesis and pure speed to the basket. He then can finish or get fouled with his athleticism and quick second jump if he missed his shot to grab the rebound and score. He made one super fancy reverse layup in traffic. He finished with 14 points three assists and two steals. Kayson Bryant PF 6’3 2022 Mesquite Every game he seems to produce. The long somewhat undersized face-up forward can ht the 3 plus knows his way around the basket. He runs the court well for transition layups and will rebound in his area with his length and good positioning. He finished with 9 points and second on the team in rebounds with six. [player_tooltip player_id="827047" first="Dillan" last="Baker"] Salpointe Catholic One of the better players in Tucson struggled a little from the field but he also showed off his all-around play. He loves his pull-up from mid-range and can hit the catch-3. He rebounds well in his area and is a very underrated passer. He sees the court and can make plays for others. He also gets his hands on a lot of balls. He collected three steals and had two blocks to go along with eight rebounds, five assists and seven points. [player_tooltip player_id="1008613" first="Julian" last="Riesgo"] Salpointe Catholic An undersized warrior played all 32 minutes. Him and Cohen J were the only two to do that. He is tough and gritty and leaves it all on the floor. He consistently puts pressure on the defense and takes it hard to the hole and scores or gets fouled. His on-ball defense made Cohen J job tougher then normal. He is not afraid to throw his body into the paint for rebounds and makes good decisions with the ball. He finished with 11 points four rebounds, six assists and one block. Brett Rosenblatt SF 6’3 2022 Salpointe Catholic A high IQ forward plays from the neck up. He can shoot it from mid-range or from the 3 off the catch. He has a quick release and confidence. He knows when to cut and ran the floor repeatedly for layups. He scored 13 points with five rebounds and one steal. James Smotherman PG 5’10 2022 Salpointe Catholic A pure point guard with the ability to score. He is a really good passer in traffic as he threaded the needle a few times. He is a little lean but compete on defense and can steal the ball and burst into the lane with his left or right hand. He is always looking down the court trying to find that sprinting teammate for the easy score. He can hit the 3 and brings a little swagger. He scored 13 points with four rebounds, multiple assists and one steal. [player_tooltip player_id="1202068" first="Canyon" last="Torres"] Salpointe Catholic A physical on-ball defender and scoring guard. He can score on put backs off of offensive rebounds or get to the cup off the dribble. His defense makes his game go. He has good lateral quickness with a strong upper body. He scored 6 points with five rebounds, one block and one assist. [player_tooltip player_id="1180584" first="Pasha" last="Shemirani"] Salpointe Catholic A long and lean power forward who scores it effectively in the paint. He can use either hand and uses ball fakes smartly and will go up for two. He finished with 8 points, four rebounds and was the only sub who played for the Lancers. Look for him and [player_tooltip player_id="1202068" first="Canyon" last="Torres"] to make a big leap up in production next year.