Palo Verde awakens, edges Legacy

Sam Hutchings picked the perfect time to have the biggest game of his career.

The 6-foot-5-inch senior had 20 points and nine rebounds Tuesday, and his put-back with 39 seconds to play put Palo Verde up for good as the Panthers stormed back from an 18-point halftime deficit for a 63-59 win over visiting Legacy in the Division I Sunset Region quarterfinals.

"We had a big game out of Sam tonight around the basket," Palo Verde coach Paul Sanchez said. "That was huge, because he kept us in the game early and kept us going throughout the game. And that was a big rebound and put-back late in the fourth quarter."

Hutchings had 12 points in the first half, but the rest of the Panthers seemed to be sleepwalking as Legacy took a 41-23 lead at the break.

Palo Verde (13-10) stormed back in the second half, opening the third quarter with a 17-2 run to get back into the game.

"I think mostly we settled down," Sanchez said. "We came out with a desire and determination not to go down. We played an ugly first half."

Palo Verde got a big second half from leading scorer Eris Winder. Winder didn't start the game for what Sanchez said was a team rules violation, but the senior point guard made his presence felt in the second half.

Winder had just one point at halftime but scored 23 in the second half to help lead the surge.

The fourth quarter featured 11 lead changes, but Hutchings' bucket put the Panthers up for good and set up a meeting with Bishop Gorman (25-3) in the semifinals at 8 p.m. Thursday at Durango.

Khari Sloane had 13 points, eight rebounds, four assists and three blocks for Legacy (19-9).

■ Bishop Gorman 75, Shadow Ridge 55 - At Gorman, Trey Kennedy had 12 points, eight rebounds and eight assists as the Gaels overcame a slow start to top the Mustangs (9-17).

Rashad Muhammad added 15 points for Gorman.

Terell Bowden had 22 points for Shadow Ridge.

■ Centennial 73, Durango 60 - At Centennial, Marcus Allen had 31 points and 13 rebounds, and Malcolm Allen had 30 points as the Bulldogs (20-8) defeated the Trailblazers (14-11).

Centennial faces Arbor View at 4:40 p.m. Thursday at Durango.

Dartangan Rollins and Tyler Watts each had 14 points for the Trailblazers.

■ Arbor View 67, Cimarron-Memorial 64 - At Arbor View, Charles Porter had 21 points as the Aggies (20-7) nipped the Spartans (12-13).

Navonte Hill added 18 points for Arbor View.

Austin Garrison led Cimarron with 15 points.

DIVISION I SUNRISE BOYS

■ Canyon Springs 74, Eldorado 66 - At Eldorado, Freddie Banks didn't need to dig deep into his collection of halftime speeches. Instead, the Canyon Springs coach went for one of the old standbys.

"They threw a haymaker at us," Banks said. "I told the kids, 'It's OK. We're only down two points. Let's regroup.' I knew it would come sooner or later."

Gerad Davis scored 12 of his 19 points in the second half, and the Pioneers shot 66.7 percent from the field after the break to beat host Eldorado in a Sunrise Region quarterfinal.

Canyon Springs (16-10) faces Las Vegas (19-9) in the semifinals at 4:40 p.m. Thursday at Green Valley.

The Sundevils (14-10), who trailed for most of the second quarter, closed the period on a 17-5 run to take a 33-31 lead into the locker room.

After an Eldorado basket, Canyon Springs answered with an 11-1 run to take a 42-36 lead and never trailed again. The Pioneers went 14-for-21 from the floor in the second half.

Chris Swanson finished with 17 points, and Tim Straghter added 15 points and 13 rebounds for Canyon Springs.

Eldorado, which was led by D.J. Billingsley's 23 points and 10 rebounds, got as close as 58-55 in the fourth quarter. The Pioneers responded with an 11-0 run and were up by as many as 15 points late.

■ Las Vegas 63, Liberty 49 - At Las Vegas, Leo Goodman had 15 points, and the Wildcats used a 27-7 third-quarter run to down the Patriots (10-17).

Aziz Leeks had 13 points for Las Vegas.

Tyler Newman led Liberty with 16 points.

■ Foothill 89, Green Valley 69 - At Foothill, Elijah Smith poured in 40 points, including a 17-for-29 effort from the free-throw line, to lift the Falcons (22-5).

Chris Echols added 19 points for Foothill, which faces Valley at 4:40 p.m. Thursday at Green Valley.

Troy Cropper had 25 points and Tyler Roberts 22 for the Gators (12-15).

■ Valley 81, Basic 60 - At Valley, Cameron Burton had 21 points as the Vikings (20-8) rallied from a 29-26 halftime deficit to top the Wolves (15-8).

Daniel Young had 19 points and Spencer Mathis 16 for Valley.

Andrew Lopez had 16 points for Basic.

DIVISION I-A BOYS

■ Cheyenne 69, Boulder City 53 - At Cheyenne, the Desert Shields poured it on early and often to sink the Eagles in a Division I-A Southern Region quarterfinal.

Cheyenne, which won its first playoff game since 2009, faces Desert Pines at 8 p.m. Thursday at Sunrise Mountain in a semifinal.

"It's just nice to be back" in the playoffs, said Desert Shields coach Teral Fair. "We've had a long history of success. It's just nice to be in the mix in the postseason."

Cheyenne (14-9) built a 24-7 first-quarter lead and shot 62.9 percent (17-for-27) from the field in the first half.

Stephen Miller supplied all 12 of his points in the first half for the Desert Shields. Jas Coulson had 13 points for Cheyenne.

Boulder City (15-10) battled back from a 17-point halftime deficit, cutting Cheyenne's lead to 44-33. But Coulson's bucket in the paint at the 4:26 mark sparked a 13-3 spurt that gave the Desert Shields a 57-36 edge they didn't relinquish.

Kaleb Bailey scored 27 points for Boulder City.

■ Desert Pines 72, Mojave 49 - At Desert Pines, Donavin Wright had 16 points as the Jaguars (24-3) cruised past the Rattlers (15-12).

Trevion Turner added 13 points for Desert Pines.

Malik Abbott led Mojave with nine points.

■ Clark 68, Virgin Valley 38 - At Clark, Sherron Wilson had 18 points as the Chargers (27-1) rolled by the Bulldogs (14-11).

Diontae Jones added 16 points for Clark, which meets Chaparral at 4:40 p.m. Thursday at Sunrise Mountain.

Garrett Leavitt and Tyson Teerlink each had 15 points for Virgin Valley.

■ Chaparral 62, Faith Lutheran 49 - At Chaparral, Tyree McNeal racked up 23 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists to help the Cowboys (16-8) outlast the Crusaders (13-13).

Patrick Savoy added 16 points and 10 rebounds for Chaparral.

Sam Stevens had 17 points for Faith Lutheran.

DIVISION IV GIRLS

■ Indian Springs 28, Round Mountain 14 - At Indian Springs, Heather Thormahlen scored nine points as the Thunderbirds (8-11) beat the Knights (5-14) and advanced to face top-seeded Tonopah at 6:20 p.m. Friday at Chaparral.

DIVISION III GIRLS

■ Agassi Prep 50, The Meadows 42 - At Mountain View, London Ward had 12 points as the Stars (10-10) topped the Mustangs (13-10) in a Southern League play-in game.