BASKETBALL: Thompson, Brown lead Bulldogs to tourney title

Khalil Thompson had 18 points and nine assists, and Troy Brown added 12 points and 15 rebounds Saturday to lift Centennial’s boys basketball team to an 82-69 win over Palo Verde in the championship game of the Southwest Rotary Classic in Yuma, Ariz.

Aaron Turner had 20 points for the Bulldogs, who also got 12 points apiece from Terrell Hicks and Garrett Scheer.

“We’re so unselfish,” said Centennial coach Todd Allen. “To have five guys in double figures is great. This was a good tournament for us. We got to play a lot of kids early on, and we learned a lot about each other.”

The Bulldogs used an 18-10 run in the second quarter to take a 39-31 halftime lead. Thompson scored 11 points in the third quarter, and Turner added nine in the quarter to help Centennial preserve the lead.

Centennial was 21 of 39 from the free-throw line, compared to a 7-for-11 effort by the Panthers.

“Our defense was key,” Allen said. “We got to the line a lot, and we had the chance to really put it away.”

Braxton Richards led Palo Verde with 26 points.

Curie (Ill.) 66, Bishop Gorman 62 — At Chicago, Kansas recruit Cliff Alexander had 22 points and 20 rebounds as the Condors beat the Gaels in the Chicago Elite Classic.

Gorman fell behind 11-2 to start the game before battling back. The Gaels got as close as three in the fourth quarter, but couldn’t complete the comeback.

Noah Robotham scored 12 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter for Gorman, which outscored Curie 27-20 in the final period.

Stephen Zimmerman added 10 points for Gorman, which entered the season ranked No. 11 nationally by USA Today.

American Fork (Utah) 51, Foothill 48 — At Orem, Utah, Tyler Rawson had 15 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Cavemen over the Falcons in the Great Western Shootout.

Ryan Andrus had 16 points for American Fork.

Austin Starr hit five 3-pointers and had 15 points for Foothill. Matt Rapp added 12 points, and Torrance Littles scored 11 for Foothill, which got 12 assists from Jalen Shepard.

Cherry Creek (Colo.) 63, Spring Valley 36 — At Spring Valley, Griffin Parr scored 12 points, and Taylor Shepard added 11 points to lead the Bruins to the easy victory over the Grizzlies.

Terrell Lee had 11 points for Spring Valley, which trailed 29-24 at the half.

Sandy Valley 65, Trona (Calif.) 25 — At Sandy Valley, Logan Shelton scored 17 points, and the Sidewinders sprinted to a 42-13 halftime lead and downed Trona.

Lane Eastham and James Rau each added 16 points for Sandy Valley.

GIRLS

Elko 45, Faith Lutheran 39 — At Reno, Shayla Butterfield had 18 points, and the Indians built a 25-17 halftime lead and held on to top the Crusaders in the High Sierra Tournament.

Alex Wright had 16 points, and Haley Vinson added 12 points for Faith Lutheran.

Calvary Chapel (Calif.) 36, Mountain View 34 — At Anaheim, Calif., Taylor Boer had nine points and 15 rebounds to help Calvary Chapel edge the Saints in the Husky Invitational.

Rose Adkins hit four 3-pointers and finished with 16 points to lead Mountain View.