South Mountain's girls basketball head coach Kisha Gwyn didn’t cover her eyes or cross her fingers.

But when her girls toed the charity stripe, Gwyn was concerned.

And for good reason.

South Mountain's free throw shooting percentage was at 58 heading into the Division III girls state basketball championship game. But South Mountain's girls became free throw marksmen Saturday at Gila River Arena. 

There was no other option if they wanted to capture South Mountain's second ever girls basketball title in the long history of the school. In its 58-55 victory over Valley Christian, South Mountain made 14 of 16 free throws — in the fourth period. 

“I’m going to tell you I was very worried,” said Gwyn about when her girls went to the line.

South Mountain converted 11 of its 17 made free throws in the final 1:52 of the game.

Valley Christian actually had a better free throw shooting night percentage wise (14-17, 82.4%). But Valley Christian was forced to foul when South Mountain, clinging to a small lead, went to its 4-corner offense with about 1:15 left. 

Valley Christian and South Mountain were the best teams in D-III this year and proved it so Saturday, particularly on defense. Valley Christian boxed-and-one one of the state’s leading candidates for Player of the Year, Najiyyah Pack, who still managed to score 18 points.

But she was held eight points under her season average thanks to the efforts of Sabriya Smith, who hurt an ankle late in the game but continued her gutsy outing.

Gwyn credited senior Zariah Tremble’s defense on sophomore Anna Gorman (15 p.p.g) for propelling their team in the second half, when Valley Christian led 37-27 in the third period. South Mountain closed the third period with a 9-2 run to keep Valley Christian from blowing the game open.

While Pack was shadowed by Smith, South Mountain’s other star player, point guard Ozarhia Fisher, was in foul trouble throughout the game. But a couple of young players stepped up for South Mountain, including sophomores Joanna Campbell (17 points) and Jessia Quintero.

Quintero made her only three in the game in the fourth period, giving South Mountain a 45-43 lead.

“As young as they (sophomores) are, they held it down for us us down,” Gwyn said.

South Mountain played strictly man-to-man and tried to deny Valley Christian from shooting threes every chance it got.

“We weren’t going to get beat from the outside,” Gwyn said.

South Mountain’s game-plan opened up some lanes for Valley Christian's Megan Timmer.

The junior was 10 for 12 from the field and scored 26 points. Valley Christian's (30-3) elusive title chace in recent years will continue next year when it returns every player except one from this season's 30-3 team. 

But this year, the team celebrating at the end Saturday was 25-8 South Mountain.  

“It means everything,” said Gwyan, now in her third-year at South Mountain, about bringing a title home to South Mountain. “The girls program was very successful in making the playoffs. But we couldn’t quite get over the hump. So my goal when I came in was to continue the tradition but get over the hump. And boy did we get over the hump.”

Scottsdale Christian's D slows down E. Foothills

Scottsdale Christian is the lone survivor of this season's tough competition on the Division III island.

The school avoided its share of potential postseason pitfalls, including Estrella Foothills in the boys championship game, an experienced defending champ in Snowflake and a couple of opponents with a large fan base to walk away with the title. Scottsdale Christian held Estrella Foothills to a season low in points during its state championship 40-35 triumph.

Scottsdale Christian was blessed with a tall team this year.

“We just had to take advantage of the God-given length that we had and we did at the end by playing great defense,” Scottsdale Christian coach Bob Fredericks said.   

There were off-the-court battles Fredreick’s boys confronted, including family members with cancer and other home issues.

For Estrella Foothills, Scottsdale Christian was well prepared.  

“So that (how to guard Estrella Foothills’ stars) was on our pregame board,” Fredericks said. “We sort of knew most of their sets, and we had 10 different plays that they run that we walked through in our gym before coming over (to Gila River Arena).”

The “catalyst” for setting up Scottsdale Christian’s game plan was assistant coach Don Anderson, who played on the 1999 and 2000 state championship teams of Scottsdale Christian under Fredericks.  

“He (Anderson) came back and did it as a coach, so I’m really proud of him,” Fredericks said.

Estrella Foothills shot just 25.5 percent from the field Saturday.

Only one player, Sam Ortega (10 points), scored in double figures for Scottsdale Christian (26-4), but five other players contributed five or more points. Estrella Foothills’ shooting was off, but its defense wasn’t, as it held Scottsdale Christian to a season low in points in a game.

Antaveus Brown and Rex Greabell scored 12 points apiece for Estrella Foothills, which ended its season with a 29-3 record.  

Agua Fria wins West Valley duel

Sunrise Mountain and Agua Fria continued its high-scoring, entertaining postseason pace Saturday.

But only one West Valley team, Agua Fria, advanced to the Division II title game Monday against Shadow Mountain. Jordan McCants ended the first half with near-half court buzzer beater and the second half with two free throws with 6.4 seconds left to help send Agua Fria to the final with a 71-68 win.

McCants, Agua Fria’s quick point guard, scored 25 points and had seven steals against Sunrise Mountain. Sunrise Mountain’s Elijah Thomas also scored 25 points and added nine rebounds and five three pointers in his final game of his high school career.

Sunrise Mountain made an impressive run to the semifinals as the No. 19 seed, but its 19 turnovers forced it to finish its season earlier than it wanted. Agua Fria scored 24 points off those turnovers.

Sunrise Mountain kept it close, despite a first half deficit of 12 points, by hitting 10 of its 21 threes. Bench player Michael Walcott hit a handful of clutch shots during his 18-point performance for Sunrise Mountain.

Cactus Shadows' 4th period run propels team to final

Cactus Shadows rallied from eight points down with seven minutes left to upend Sierra Linda 42-21 in the D-III state semifinals game at Gila River Arena.

A couple of threes by the winning team started the rally. They were the only threes Cactus Shadows hit in the game, but forward Caitlin Bickle and Tierney Dedonatis picked a perfect time to make them.

A put back by Cheyenne Lee helped Sierra Linda regain the lead (40-38) with 2:35 left. But Cactus Shadow finally went ahead, 41-40, following a free throw and baseline drive from DeDonatis.

Sierra Linda had a couple of chances to tie or take the lead but missed a free throw and final- second baseline jumper, ending its terrific season with a 30-3-1 record. Only one starter is not returning for Sierra Linda next season.

As for 24-4-1 Cactus Shadows, its best season in program’s history continues with the program’s first ever trip to a girls final. To show how far Cactus Shadows has grown under coach Richie Willis, the team went 5-17 four years ago in Willis’ first season.

The 6-feet-1 Bickle made 12 of her 14 free throw attempts Saturday on her way to a 23-point, 9 rebound performance. Lee (12 points, 9 boards) and Jenay Bojorquez (14 points) led the way for Sierra Linda.

Seton Catholic rolls past Mesa

Seton Catholic just had too many weapons at its disposal against Mesa in Saturday’s D-III girls basketball state semifinal game.

Seton Catholic jumped out to a 31-12 halftime lead and was never threatened the rest of the way. Mesa still had a successful season and should be applauded for winning its firsts playoff games in a long time.  

Seton Catholic will face Cactus Shadows in Monday’s D-II girls basketball championship game.

Four of Seton Catholic’s five starters scored in double figures against Mesa. Seton Catholic reached the D-III title game last year but lost to Maricopa by three points.

Paradise Valley gives Shadow Mountain stiffer test

Unlike its regular season game in which Paradise Valley was blown out by almost 40 points, Paradise Valley kept it close against Shadow Mountain in their state semifinal game Saturday.

Paradise Valley was more patient on offense this time but Shadow Mountain took over control down the stretch of its 65-56 state semifinal victory. Shadow Mountain’s turnovers also helped Paradise Valley stay in the game.

Michael Bibby scored 24 points, and Shadow Mountain made 23 of its 33 free throw attempts. Up next for D-II’s No. 1 seed, Shadow Mountain, is its first meeting with No. 2 Agua Fria.