While neither Goodyear Estrella Foothills nor North Lawndale (Ill.) Prep are in the East Valley, I wanted to share with you this crazy ending to those who didn’t watch the game live or on TV.
North Lawndale center Paul Bunch was fouled with under 30 seconds to go and had a 1-and-1 free throw opportunity with the game knotted up at 78. But before he got the first free throw attempt off, Bunch dribbled the ball off his foot and out of bounds.
The referees paused for a second before calling a …

The title tilt is set.
A long day of girls soccer that was Thursday’s  quarterfinals/semifinals matches of the Dobson Mustang Classic was filtered down to two.
Similar to the boys, the girls championship match will feature Chandler Hamilton. Kirk Nelson’s team shut out Mesa Mountain View in the quarterfinals, then beat Gilbert on penalty kicks in the semifinals to advance.
The Huskies get Gilbert Highland in the championship. The Hawks rolled against Mesa Red Mountain with four goals in the second half of the quarterfinal matchup, then came back in the afternoon and …

The title tilt is set.
A long day of boys soccer that was Thursday’s  quarterfinals/semifinals matches of the Dobson Mustang Classic was filtered down to two.
On the boys side, 5A Division II studs Goodyear Millennium knocked off Phoenix Central, then surprisingly rolled past Phoenix Mountain Pointe (which slipped past Gilbert in the morning quarterfinals) in the afternoon semifinals to reach the championship.
The Tigers will face red-hot Chandler Hamilton for the title. The undefeated Huskies took care of Ironwood in the morning, then shut out Chandler Basha in the semifinals.
Both championship matches …

I just finished watching Corey Hawkins put on quite a show, scoring 46 points as Estrella Foothills, the top-ranked team in 3A, knocked off defending 5A-I champion Phoenix St. Mary’s 79-76 in the VisitMesa.com Basketball Challenge at Mesa Mountain View.
The Knights aren’t as good as last year, but are a traditionally strong program and the win is an impressive one for the Wolves. Hawkins was revved up for this one, as he wanted to prove that Estrella Foothills could hang with anyone in Arizona, regardless of class.
“All the doubters, everyone …

The quarterfinals are set for the Dobson Mustang Classic in boys soccer on Thursday at Red Mountain Park.
All matches are 9 a.m.
Field 1:  Goodyear Millennium vs. Phoenix Central
Field 2:  Chandler Basha vs. Mesa Mountain View
Field 5:  Phoenix Mountain Pointe vs. Gilbert
Field 6:  Glendale Ironwood vs. Chandler Hamilton
The winner of Field 1 vs. Field 5, and Field 2 vs. Field 6, will meet in the semifinals at 1 p.m.  The championship match is Saturday at  11 a.m. at Dobson.

The quarterfinals matches in the Dobson Mustang Classic for girls soccer are set for Thursday at Red Mountain Park. All matches are 11 a.m.
Field 1:  Phoenix Desert Vista vs. Tempe Corona del Sol
Field 2:  Chandler Hamilton vs. Mesa Mountain View
Field 5:  Gilbert Highland vs. Mesa Red Mountain
Field 6:  Gilbert High vs. Phoenix Mountain Pointe
The winner of Field 1 vs. Field 5, plus Field 2 vs. Field 6 will meet in semifinals at 3 p.m.  The championship match is Saturday at 1 p.m. at Dobson High.

Gilbert Highland, last year’s 5A-I state runner-up in boys basketball, fell to 1-11 on the season after losing 73-55 to Canyon Springs, a Nevada school, in the VisitMesa.com Basketball Challenge at Mesa Mountain View on Wednesday.
Highland only lost 10 games in the last two years combined, but the severe drop wasn’t totally unexpected.
Chris Johnson and K.C. Toolson graduated, and Matt Carlino (Indiana) and Nick Johnson (Nevada) both transferred out of state, leaving the Hawks’ program a shell of what it was.
But there does seem to be some hope for the …

Here is the schedule of Thursday’s games at the VisitMesa.com Basketball Challenge at Mesa Mountain View High School:
9 a.m. – Horizon vs. Mountain Pointe
9 a.m. (auxiliary gym) – Chandler vs. Highland
10:30 a.m. – Red Mountain vs. Santa Rita
12 p.m. – Sunnyslope vs. Ocean View (Calif.)
1:30 p.m. De La Salle (Calif.) vs. Dobson
3:30 p.m. – Mountain View vs. Canyon Springs (Nev.)
5 p.m. – Estrella Foothills vs. North Lawndale Prep
7 p.m. – Mesquite vs. St. Mary’s
That final game is very intriguing. Mesquite is playing some very good basketball, and while St. Mary’s …

Chandler Basha knocked off Tempe McClintock and Chandler Seton downed Tempe Corona del Sol on Tuesday to finalize tonight’s championship game of the McClintock Shootout.
Basha (12-1) is led by 6-foot-5 swingman Judd Welfringer and 6-foot-7 freshman Torren Jones. Jones already has multiple Pac-10 offers and leads the team in scoring at 15.4 per game.
Seton answers with the backcourt duo of Thomas Harty and Andrew Blauvelt, both solid shooters. Center Carter Warnock has really improved his game over the past year, and how well he plays generally helps determine Seton’s fortunes.
Both …

Four teams are left in the winner’s bracket of the McClintock Shootout boys basketball tournament. The semifinals will be played tonight, with the championship game set for 7 p.m. Wednesday. All games are at McClintock.
Here is tonight’s winner’s bracket schedule:
7 p.m. – Basha vs. McClintock
8:30 p.m. – Seton Catholic vs. Corona del Sol
Seton rallied to beat Tempe Marcos de Niza last night to advance, and McClintock needed overtime to beat Phoenix Brophy.