The Highland Hawks waltzed into their match Tuesday with two straight wins but they left with three. They ended the year with a bang, routing Carl Hayden Community 65-42. Given Highland's advantage in MaxPreps' Arizona basketball rankings (they are ranked 14th, while Carl Hayden Community is ranked 103rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Michael Johnson was his usual excellent self, scoring 22 points along with six rebounds. Those 22 points set a new season-high mark for him. The team also got some help courtesy of Walker Stum, who scored 11 points along with seven rebounds.
Highland's win bumped their record up to 8-2. As for Carl Hayden Community, they are on a three-game losing streak that has dropped them down to 8-6.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Highland will wrap up 2023 with a road trip to face off against McClintock at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday. McClintock is also coming in off of a big victory, so somebody is in for a big reversal of fortune. Carl Hayden Community will be staying on the road on Wednesday to face off against Saguaro at 1:00 p.m. on December 27th. That game will pit two of the most dominant guards against one another: Nashoba Redhouse and Santino Esquivel.
