High school basketball: Koa Peat goes off for 35 points as No. 15 Perry wins second consecutive Arizona title

By Jordan Divens Mar 4, 2023, 7:10pm

Pumas capture inaugural AIA Open Division state championship 74-57 as top five sophomore dazzled.

Top five sophomore prospect Koa Peat scored a game-high 35 points to guide No. 15 Perry (Gilbert) to its second consecutive state championship with a 74-58 victory over Sunnyslope (Phoenix) in the Arizona Open Division state title game.

The 6-foot-8 forward dominated from the opening whistle, scoring 12 points in the first quarter to give the Pumas a 16-10 advantage at the end of the period.

Perry (30-1) executed its offensive flawlessly in the second quarter and saw strong contributions from five-star senior Colorado signee Cody Williams and sophomore No No Brown to win the stanza 20-8 to go ahead 36-18.

Although Sunnyslope (Phoenix) (26-5) cut into the lead by one point after a last-second basket at the end of the third quarter, it was unable to cut the deficit below 15 points for the remainder of the contest.

Peat completely dominated the game in all aspects, shooting 13-of-18 from the field and 9-of-12 from the free throw line while adding six rebounds and four blocks. He scored at least five points in every quarter with 17 points in the first half and 18 points in the second half. Williams contributed 15 points in the win.



Perry also won the previous matchup against the Vikings 71-46 on Jan. 12. Freshman Rider Portela finished with a team-high 21 points in the loss.
Five-star sophomore Koa Peat was dominant in his second consecutive state championship victory. (Photo: Steve Paynter)
Five-star sophomore Koa Peat was dominant in his second consecutive state championship victory. (Photo: Steve Paynter)