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Sunset Boys: Jalen Hill helps Clark come back to beat Faith Lutheran

Junior wing Jalen Hill had all the answers late for the Clark boys basketball team.

Despite and an early 13-point hole, Clark clawed back to earn a 58-50 victory over Faith Lutheran in the Sunset Region semifinals on Thursday at Legacy.

The Chargers (22-6) are back into the region title game on Saturday against Bishop Gorman at Legacy. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.

“We’ve have to get focused,” said Hill, who finished with a game-high 25 points. “We need to come out hungry for that game.”

There is history to consider between Clark and the Gaels.

Bishop Gorman beat the Chargers in the Class 4A state title game last season and has won all three meetings between the two this year.

Clark earned the rematch by turning the tables on the Crusaders (22-6) on Thursday.

The Crusaders led 17-4 after the first quarter, but Hill and Antwon Jackson helped Clark close by scoring eight points and seven points, respectively to trim the deficit to 25-24 at halftime.

“We wanted to be aggressive,” Clark coach Chad Beeten said. “Once we did, we were able to get into the paint a bit. We were able to get Jalen to the rim a little more.”

Hill, for his part, kept the Chargers on top late.

Clark led 45-43 after three quarters, but with 3 minutes, 34 seconds to play, Dalton Kincaid made two free throws for Faith Lutheran to tie the game.

But with 1:39 left, Hill again broke a tie to put Clark up for good. The Chargers’ junior made five of six free throws down the stretch to help Clark secure the victory.

“I like to get the ball into my hands late in the game,” Hill said. “They had a couple of defensive breakdowns and I was able to take advantage of them.”

Kincaid finished with a team-leading 17 points for the Crusaders.

Bishop Gorman 84, Desert Oasis 47 — At Legacy, the Gaels cruised into the region championship game by beating the Diamondbacks for the third time this season.

Gorman (26-4) led by as many as 50 points in a contest that went to a running clock with 3:49 to go in the second quarter.

The Gaels starters sat out the entire second half.

Jamal Bey led Gorman with 16 points in the first half, as the defending Class 4A state champions build a 60-12 lead at the break.

Jacob Heese scored all of his game-high 18 points for Desert Oasis (20-10) in the second half.

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