Arbor View boys ride Jones’ defense to win over Cimarron

Diontae Jones was the only freshman on the court Friday night at Cimarron-Memorial.

But the Arbor View guard made plays well beyond his years to help the Aggies escape with a memorable win.

Jones had a crucial steal and layup to give Arbor View the lead and then was injured while taking a charge to help the Aggies seal a 64-60 Northwest League victory over the Spartans.

“That kid is the future of Arbor View High School basketball who just became the present,” Aggies coach Kyle Hageness said. “He took a game-winning charge that gave him a concussion and sent him to the hospital.

“What a gutsy play, what a gutsy kid. We’re very glad he’s wearing Arbor View red and gray.”

Jones took a steal near half court straight to the rim for a layup in traffic to give Arbor View (5-3, 1-1 Northwest) a 61-60 lead with less than 20 seconds left.

Cimarron’s Marques Barnes drove the baseline for a possible go-ahead layup, but Jones took a charge with 7.5 seconds left to preserve the win.

Jones, who scored 10 points, hit his head hard on the court upon taking the charge. He appeared woozy while athletic trainers helped him off the court.

Hageness said Jones was taken to a local hospital with a “bad headache” for precautionary reasons, but he expected him to be OK.

“(Jones) a 14-year-old boy. He’s a monster,” Arbor View guard DeAndre Bright said. “He gets out there, plays his role and does good things for us.”

Bright and Chase Ealy scored 13 points each for the Aggies, and DeAndrea Johnson added 11 points for Arbor View.

Erik Brewer led Cimarron (3-1, 1-1) with 20 points and nine rebounds. Barnes scored 19 points, and teammate Deijon Spillers supplied five points, six rebounds and four assists.

Spillers hit a 3-pointer to give Cimarron a 59-55 lead with less than 1:30 left, but Arbor View closed the game on a 9-1 run to steal a road win and even its league record.

“Unbelievable,” Hageness said. “Tonight, they carried over what we did in practice and got a really big win for us. It’s huge.”