Pioneers run Falcons ragged

Speed kills. It was fatal to Foothill's boys basketball team.

After clawing back into the game, the Falcons couldn't match Canyon Springs' frantic pace in the third quarter and the Pioneers outran Foothill 76-60 in the Sunrise Region championship game Friday at Liberty.

"That's one of the things we have to try to take advantage of, our speed," Canyon Springs coach Daryl Branham said. "We told the kids, 'Even if they come at us, we've got to get it out and go right back down the floor.' It seemed to put pressure on them to get back on us defensively."

The Pioneers (25-3) earned a berth in next week's state tournament in Reno.

They led 40-30 at halftime, but Foothill (23-7) quickly cut the lead to 42-38 on a basket by Evan Roquemore. Roquemore scored six points during the spurt.

"It's a game of runs," Branham said. "We just had to contain it and then make a run of our own."

Foothill cut the lead to four twice more in the third quarter, the last time on a post basket by Dakota Yamka that made the score 49-45 midway through the period.

But Canyon Springs scored 21 points in the final 3:42 of the quarter to regain control.

"The biggest things were just defense and heart," said Canyon Springs junior guard Michael Thompson, who finished with 26 points and 11 rebounds.

Canyon Springs' run was helped when Roquemore, who scored 37 points in a semifinal win over Valley on Thursday, went to the bench with his fourth foul with 3:23 left in the quarter.

"That was a big turning point," Branham said. "He picked up his fourth foul, and he's a big cog in that wheel. I knew we had to take advantage of them then."

Thompson and Curtis Stuckey combined for 17 points in the quarter to lead the Pioneers.

"I can't say enough about how (Thompson) is playing right now," Branham said. "Inside, outside, rebounding the ball; he's really started to come full circle now."

The Pioneers placed five scorers in double figures. Jared Brandon had 11 points, and Donald Anderson, Jeremy Alexander and Adrian Snow added 10 each. Stuckey had nine, all in the third quarter.

"That's one of the good things about our team," Branham said. "Anybody can have a big night on any night. That's one of the things that makes us kind of hard to guard, because you can't key on one or two people."

The Pioneers dominated on the glass, outrebounding Foothill 37-18. Canyon Springs had 16 second-chance points compared with Foothill's four.

Tyland Copeland led the Falcons with 17 points. Roquemore scored 15 and Chris Clementi 12.

Contact Prep Sports Editor Damon Seiters at dseiters@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4587.