Maricopa boys’ basketball in a ‘waiting game’ after loss in section tourney (video)

The Maricopa High School boys’ basketball may have played their last game of the 2015-16 season in a losing effort Friday night against Scottsdale Christian Academy in the Arizona Interscholastic Association Division III Section V Tournament semi-finals.

The Rams beat Blue Ridge High School (Lakeside) in the first round of the section tournament Wednesday night, but couldn’t overcome the section’s top ranked-team Friday. Scottsdale Christian jumped out to a 23 point lead at halftime and, despite a furious comeback attempt from Maricopa in the second half, held on for a victory.

“When you’re playing the best team in the state, and they’re making shot after shot after shot, it’s tough to deal with,” head coach Jacob Neill said. “Then in the second half, we came out and our shots finally started falling for us and that allowed us to get into our press.”

The Rams utilized their speed and aggressive play to frustrate Scottsdale Christian throughout the second half. After scoring 39 first-half points, the Eagles were held to just 10 in the third quarter.

“The first half, we really weren’t pressuring the ball,” sophomore Josh Johnson said. “The second half, we came out and we started pressuring the ball a bit. That got [Scottsdale Christian] uncomfortable.”

Maricopa scored 25 points in the third quarter to get within six points of the Eagles. However, fatigue set in for the Rams.

“When you press like that you do get fatigued and you do get tired,” Neill said. “As they went along they were also able to see where the weaknesses in our press were, and they were able to attack those a little more.”

Maricopa entered the game ranked 30th in the AIA Power Rankings. In order to make the top 24, the players knew a memorable performance was needed.

“We came out in the second half and put our hearts and souls into it,” senior guard Johnny Johnson Jr. said. “This might be our last game, and everyone came out and played with a lot of effort and a lot of heart.”

The Rams moved up to 28th position in Saturday morning’s rankings. It is unlikely for Maricopa to jump four more spots without playing another game, but the rankings will receive a final update before the playoff brackets are set next week.

“It’s a waiting game now,” Neill said. “We’re sitting just outside the top 24. Playing Scottsdale Christian should give us a boost to the strength of our schedule, but the fact of the matter is no one really knows how the AIA formula works. The one thing I refuse to do with the guys is have the end of the year speech because there’s still a chance.”