It’s the final go-round of regular season games for girls basketball. Everything wraps up Friday night and Sectionals from each Division begin next Tuesday, with semifinals set for Thursday night and championship games on Friday night, Feb. 10  (Division IV girls are Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday).
The top eight teams in each Section advance to the Sectional Tournament, which is single elimination. If a team wins its first game in the Sectional Tournament it should advance to the state tournament.
(All games are 7 p.m.  and records are PP games only through Monday).
Pinnacle at St. …

I went and caught the Red Mountain-Desert Ridge game tonight because I had yet to see Jaguars guard Derreck Brooks this season, and he didn’t disappoint.
The Grand Canyon University signee hit 14-of-21 shots from the field for 38 points, although the Lions used good balance to win the Division I matchup, 69-62 at Red Mountain.
Brooks scored 20 points in a row at one point in the first half and kept the Jaguars in the game until the Lions used a 15-4 second-half run to push a six-point lead to 17.
Desert …

A day late (and more than a dollar short these days), so apologies for being late with this Week in (Pre-)view of top girls basketball games this week as we hit the stretch run before sectional tournaments.  So without further ado let’s get to some jam-packed schedules……..
(All records are for power point games only through  Monday. All games at 7 p.m. unless noted otherwise):
Red Mountain at Hamilton (Tuesday):  It’s the No. 2 Lions (9-4) against No. 4 Hamilton (9-1) in a hecukva “freedom” game matchup. Backcourts will rule the show …

Like so many others for the next couple weeks, the Red Mountain boys soccer team knows it’s in a street fight to claim one of those precious playoff spots.
The Lions also recently discovered a kid who’s battles are far bigger than their own.
The school’s student council puts on an annual holiday gift drive on behalf of families unable to afford gifts for their kids. It’s where several soccer team members met 12-year-old Brandon Parsley during a Saturday morning breakfast with Santa event last month.
Since their mother passed away, Brandon and …

The three-week crush is on everywhere to get one of those 24 playoff spots come February. Appetites were whetted by the terrific Chandler-St. Mary’s matchup last Friday night, but more good stuff is coming quickly.
(All games at 7 p.m.  Records are power point games only as of Monday, Jan. 9).
Xavier at Highland (Monday):  Talk about starting off the week with a bang, the Gators (6-2) and Hawks (6-1) could meet again after this, somewhere along the lines of a state quarterfinals matchup. If you like shooting, defense and fundamentals, this …

Not to be outdone there are some pretty good girl’s basketball matchups this week as power point play resumes in full swing.
(Records are power point games only as of Wednesday morning).
Mountain View at Red Mountain (Wednesday):  The Toros have been every bit as good as advertised so far, going 7-0 in power point games and good showings in a out-of-state tournament in California as well as the Nike Tournament of Champions. The Lions have won five consecutive power point games, and this will be its biggest test since a two-point …

Here are the Final Four results from the Dobson Mustang Classic.
The championship matches are Saturday (Dec. 31) at 9 a.m. (girls) and 11 a.m. (boys) at Dobson High School.
Boys Semifinals
Red Mtn 2, Millenium 0
Camelback 4,  Central 1
Girls Semifinals
Red Mtn. 1,   Campo Verde 0
Desert Vista 1  Mesquite 1  (Mesquite wins 4-3 in PK)
Championship matches
Girls:  Red Mtn.  vs. Mesquite (9 a.m.)
Boys:  Red  Mtn. vs. Camelback (11 a.m.)

Charlie Beljan won the Class 5A state high school individual championship in 2001, during the middle of Red Mountain winning three consecutive team state championships (2000-2002).
He’s trying to start another impressive run.
Beljan, 27,  earned his first PGA Tour card Monday by finishing in a tie for 13th at the PGA Qualifying School’s final stage in La Quinta, Calif. Beljan tied for 13th with four other golfers at 11-under par, and he was one of 27 players to earn their card after playing six rounds.
Beljan was a 2003 graduate of Red …

The Mountain View and Laveen Betty Fairfax boys hoops teams will play each other on Tuesday in the city of Mesa’s Hall of Fame Game at 7 p.m. at Mountain View.
The Toros defeated Brophy to win last year’s 5A Division I state championship. Mountain View loses key contributors Mark Mazzucco, Jaren Sweeney and Kyle Bingham from that team, but Cam Boone, Mitch Wallace and Jeff Kerr return to a Toros squad that is once again expected to be in the mix in Division I.
Fairfax defeated Chaparral in the 5A-II title …

Here are my Division I playoff predictions. Division II can be found here. Division III can be found here.
Division I
First round schedule: No. 16 Valley Vista at No. 1 Hamilton; No. 9 Chandler at No. 8 Westview; No. 12 Sunnyside at No. 5 Red Mountain; No. 13 Boulder Creek at No. 4 Desert Ridge; No. 14 North Canyon at No. 3 Desert Vista; No. 11 Cibola at No. 6 Pinnacle; No. 10 Tucson at No. 7 Basha; No. 15 Mountain Pointe at No. 2 Brophy.
First round winners: Hamilton, Chandler, Red …