Pinnacle, Corona del Sol impress at VMBC

28 December 2011 No Comments Kyle Odegard

I watched No. 2 Pinnacle play against Oakland McClymonds and No. 1 Corona del Sol face off with Anchorage Bartlett in back-to-back games at the VisitMesa.com Basketball Challenge this afternoon.

These two teams, along with Desert Vista and Basha, have been the most impressive Division I teams from the East Valley this year.

Pinnacle defeated McClymonds 87-52, shooting 60.7 percent for the game and hitting 13-of-20 three-pointers to improve to 13-1 on the season.

Corona del Sol watched its 18-point second half lead drop to four in the final minute, but the Aztecs hit enough free throws down the stretch for a 76-66 victory.

Here are some observations:

• I chose Pinnacle as the preseason No. 1 in Division I despite the Pioneers playing in 5A-II last season. The reasoning was this: Pinnacle was the top seed in 5A-II last year and made the state semifinals, beat Jahii Carson and Mesa, among others, during the regular season, and had everyone of consequence back. In the first game I watched them play this year, the Pioneers laid an egg against Desert Vista, which made me question that choice. However, Pinnacle has won eight straight since that point, all by double digits, including a blowout of Arcadia on Tuesday to precede this easy win. The key to the team is defense. If it can get stops and get out in transition, Pinnacle is tough to beat. “On the defensive end is where we push it really hard,” Pinnacle coach Charlie Wilde said. “People forget about it because we shoot it so well, but on the defensive end is where we get some of those shots.”

• The trio of Dorian Pickens, Cody McDavis and Drew Bender will all be playing college basketball somewhere after high school, but what sticks out about this team is its willingness to pass the ball. Pinnacle hit 34-of-56 shots against McClymonds, and no one shot more than 11 times. Bender led the way with 21 points and six rebounds, while Pickens had 13 on 6-of-7 from the field and Kevin Bowman added 13 as well. “We hang out and we’re all friends, so it’s not like no one likes anybody,” Bender said. “The bottom line is (getting) two points, no matter who gets it. We’re all friends and we have good chemistry.”

• Pinnacle obviously isn’t going to shoot 60 percent from the field very often, but the team consistently knocks down the majority of its open looks. I asked Wilde specifically about the pure shooting stroke of Pickens, but he said it is more than just him. “He’s smooth, and he works at it obviously,” Wilde said. “The thing is, I probably have three of them like that. Bowman is the same way, Drew when his feet are set, even my point guard (Chris Klima). I’ve got three or four kids that you feel pretty comfortable when they get a good, open look. And when we’re making the extra pass, they are getting the open look.”

• The addition of Avery Moss for the Aztecs cannot be understated. He missed the first 10 games of the season with a shoulder injury, but had 17 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks on Wednesday, his second game back. Moss said this game went much better than the first and that he is slowly switching to a basketball mentality. Moss is a star football player who will be making his college commitment public on January 3. “Getting into the groove after a month off is kind of rough,” Moss said. “It’s kind of a mental thing. I’m going from the football mentality to coming over here, and you can’t just tackle people any more. You have to use skill.”

• Corona del Sol got out to its big lead by pushing the ball up the court and scoring transition buckets. Casey Benson (20 points, five assists) and Calaen Robinson (26 points, four assists) led the charge. The Aztecs struggled at times in the half court. “We want to run, absolutely,” Corona del Sol coach Sam Duane said. “If we don’t have it, then we’ll go to the bigs. But we want to run.”

• If both Corona del Sol and Pinnacle continue to play well, it looks like they will meet up in the showcase game on Friday night. The tournament doesn’t have a title game, but tournament directors Marc Beasley and Steve Hogen like to pick the two best teams to face off on Friday. Corona del Sol takes on South Sioux City (Neb.) on Thursday at 7 p.m., while Pinnacle faces off with Red Mountain at 5:30 p.m. All games are at Mountain View.