GATOR WINTER CLASSIC: Green Valley wears down rival Cougars

Green Valley’s girls basketball team knew it wanted to play at a high tempo Thursday.

The Gators, though, had a difficult time trying to find a delicate balance between high octane and out of control.

By the early part of the second quarter against rival Coronado, host Green Valley found its stride.

The Gators played a swarming, trapping defense and took advantage of transition baskets to post a 62-45 win in the Gator Winter Classic.

Maggie Manwarren had 14 points, and Rianna Rudolph added 12 points for Green Valley, which had 11 players score.

“To be honest, we knew they had to play a game (earlier) today, and we only had to play one,” Green Valley coach Eric Johnston said. “We wanted to get as much pressure as we could on them. They have two or three big girls, and we don’t. If we’re going to beat a team like that, we have to find a way to get it going up and down.”

Green Valley (8-4) was a bit too hectic for its own good early, falling behind 8-2 in the opening minutes because of inconsistent passing and ill-advised 3-point shots.

“We have a bad habit of starting a game thinking we’re going to hit every 25-footer we take,” Johnston said. “We were 1-for-8 in the first quarter shooting threes, and I don’t know if we shot a 3-pointer in the second quarter. You can’t play that speed when you’re shooting 25-foot jump shots. It just doesn’t work.”

A 3-pointer by Dajah Washington to start the second quarter gave Coronado a 16-13 lead, but the Gators settled down and used a 19-4 run to build a 32-20 lead.

After the trey, Washington didn’t score again in the first half. Washington scored nine of her team-high 16 points in the second half, but the Cougars (8-4) never seriously threatened.

“We really wanted to get the ball out of Dajah’s hands,” Johnston said. “We know if the ball is not in her hands, they are kind of a different team.”

Coronado 45, Canyon Crest (Calif.) 30 — Washington scored all 16 of her points in the final three quarters to help the Cougars top the Ravens.

Grace Green added 10 points for Coronado.

Grace Weinzette led Canyon Crest with eight points.

Durango 66, Canyon Crest (Calif.) 40 — Jazmin Chavez hit four 3-pointers in the second half and finished with 23 points to lead the Trailblazers by the Ravens.

Brittany Romo added 20 points for Durango.

Erin McBurnett led Canyon Crest with 11 points.

Chaparral 46, Sierra Vista 25 — Marcia Hawkins scored 10 of her 14 points in the second half to help the Cowboys pull away from the Mountain Lions.

Abigail Delgado also had 14 points for Chaparral, which led only 18-14 at halftime.

Kennedy Nieves had seven points for Sierra Vista.

South East (Calif.) 61, Sierra Vista 27 — Genesis Carrera had 12 points, and the Jaguars began the game on a 28-3 run en route to an easy win over the Mountain Lions.

Lupe Cruz and Jackie Cervantes each added 10 points for South East.

Kimayah Love led Sierra Vista with seven points.

Shadow Ridge 36, Las Vegas 31 — Kaila Hurley had 12 points, and the Mustangs outscored the Wildcats 10-3 in the fourth quarter to pull out the win.

Shaleea Butler had 13 points for Las Vegas.

Western 50, Westchester (Calif.) 45 — Guadalupe Herrera and Destiny Gonzalez each had 14 points to lead the Warriors by the Comets.

Capricia Pierce added 10 points for Western.

Arionne Harris paced Westchester with 27 points.

Rancho 54, Moapa Valley 17 — LaKissa Martin had 17 points as the Rams routed the Pirates.

Darje Martin added 13 points for Rancho.

Makayla Jackson led Moapa Valley with six points.

Westchester (Calif.) 74, Spring Valley 49 — Ijeoma Anugwom had 23 points, and the Comets hit 10 3-pointers in a win over the Grizzlies.

Eiranna Gowdy added 12 points, and Heyavin Johnson had 11 points for Westchester.

Shania Davis paced Spring Valley with 12 points, and teammate Samantha Meredith scored 10.

Yosemite (Calif.) 62, Western 36 — Sierra Dominici hit six 3-pointers and finished with 28 points as the Badgers rolled by the Warriors.

Veronica Miller added 15 points for Yosemite.

Gonzalez paced Western with 24 points.

South East (Calif.) 56, Del Sol 23 — Carrera had 12 points, and the Jaguars used runs of 8-0 to start the game and 13-0 to start the third quarter on their way to a win over the Dragons.

Cervantes added 10 points for South East.

Sayanna Roy led Del Sol with seven points.

Cimarron-Memorial 47, Needles 37 — Shataya Harper scored 20 points to help the Spartans down the Mustangs.

Shauntel Efferson scored all 10 of her points in the second half for Cimarron, which trailed 33-31 entering the fourth quarter.

Caitlyn Courtwright had 12 points, and Demi Limon scored 10 for Needles.

Needles 31, Moapa Valley 26 — Jane Antone scored eight points, and the Mustangs used a 9-0 run in the third quarter to down the Pirates.

Jackson had eight points for Moapa Valley.

Sunrise Mountain 46, Las Vegas 35 — Brittany Veal had 19 points to lead the Miners by the Wildcats.

Butler led Las Vegas with 10 points.

Sierra (Calif.) 44, Sunrise Mountain 36 — Megan Stark had 12 points to lead the Chieftains by the Miners.

Veal had 16 points for Sunrise Mountain.

Sierra (Calif.) 37, Shadow Ridge 23 — Mikayla Raley had nine points, and the Chieftains began the game on an 18-0 run on their way to a win over the Mustangs.

Aubree Nish had nine points for Shadow Ridge, which hit its first field goal with 3:30 left in the third quarter.