The Highland Hawks put another one in the bag on Tuesday to keep their perfect season alive. They slipped by Cesar Chavez 59-58. Given Highland's advantage in MaxPreps' Arizona basketball rankings (they are ranked second, while Cesar Chavez is ranked 33rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Michael Johnson was his usual excellent self, scoring 20 points along with 3 steals. Ty Crandall was another key contributor, scoring 12 points.
Despite the defeat, Cesar Chavez had strong showings from Gabriel Briones, who scored 14 points along with 5 rebounds and 4 steals, and Lex Clontz, who scored 17 points. The game was Clontz's fifth in a row with at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Jenuwine Taylor, who scored 5 points.
Highland's victory bumped their record up to 4-0. As for Cesar Chavez, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 3-2.
Highland will be playing at home against Hamilton at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Hamilton has insisted on making their lastfour contests complete nail-biters, turning in a record of 2-2 during that stretch of close contests. As for Cesar Chavez, they will head out on the road to face off against Fairfax at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday.
