Hamilton fell from the unbeaten ranks Friday night at the hands of a methodical and impressive performance from Basha. 

The Bears made their claim as the state's best team during a 35-20 victory over the Huskies in a 6A Premier region clash at Basha High in front of a packed house. 
The Bears controlled the game with a balanced offensive attack along with clutch red zone defense. 
Wide receiver Gio Richardson caught two touchdowns while running backs Noah Roberts and Joshua Gaines provided a powerful 1-2 rushing attack to wear down Hamilton. 
 

"We won tonight by dominating the trenches and especially the second half," Roberts said of the key to Basha's victory.

Roberts also likes how the Bears are improving as the season moves along. 

"I think out team is on the rise...on the climb. We're responding...especially up front and how we're running the ball."
 

Keys to the Game

Outstanding offense and timely defense. Basha's rushing attack has also opened up the passing game, allowing quarterback Brodie Vehrs to take deep shots downfield. On Basha's first offensive drive, Vehrs found Gio Richardson from 33 yards with a perfect strike in the endzone for an early 7-0 lead.

Vehrs added another Basha touchdown early in the 2nd quarter with a 31-yard scramble, putting Basha in control 14-0. Hamilton was hardly finished though. Quarterback Rich Lucero Jr. got the offense moving, but Basha's defense came up with a pair of stops after the Huskies had reached the six and four yard lines of Basha. Instead of touchdowns Hamilton had to settle for two field goals from Jackson Swing.

The game was still close at Halftime with Basha holding on to a 14-6 lead. That's when Gio Richardson struck again with the game's biggest play. On the Bears first drive of the third quarter they were backed up to their 10-yard line. Vehrs made a quick throw to Richardson, who turned it into a 90-yard touchdown.

Suddenly it was 21-6 and Basha had full control. Roberts finished another third soring drive later in the third quarter for a 28-6 lead. Hamilton never quit fighting, as Lucero engineered two more scoring drives, but the Bears offense was just too strong.

 

Josh Gaines added an eight yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter for Basha, which scored 35 points against a highly ranked, undefeated team.

"This was really a great win and we played well on both sides of the ball," Basha coach Chris McDonald said. "our kids should feel good about it, especially against a great team."

Looking ahead 

With Liberty needing a second half comeback to beat Pinnacle lastnight, and the Bears seemingly improving weekly against elite opponents, Basha appears to be the top Open contender as the playoffs get closer. Red Mountain, Brophy and others may still have a say before all is said and done. And no one should forget about Hamilton.

Basha gets a bye next week while Hamilton hosts Perry.