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THREE-HS HEADS TO STATE

Peoria sinks 14 treys in 4A semifinal shellacking of St. Mary's

Posted 2/25/20

Phoenix St. Mary's Catholic brought its talent-laden youthful roster to Peoria High for Tuesday night's 4A boys basketball semifinal before an overflow crowd.

The No. 4 seed Knights had the …

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WEST VALLEY PREPS

THREE-HS HEADS TO STATE

Peoria sinks 14 treys in 4A semifinal shellacking of St. Mary's

Posted

Phoenix St. Mary's Catholic brought its talent-laden youthful roster to Peoria High for Tuesday night's 4A boys basketball semifinal before an overflow crowd.

The No. 4 seed Knights had the advantage in height and length in every position. With maybe one exception, they looked liked the kids that would be chosen first in a pickup game.

At least, that is, until the top-seeded Pathers started shooting.

Peoria (26-3) spread the court, penetrated and sank 14 of 22 three-point attempts in a 85-59 rout. Even for a team that made 205 treys in the prior 28 games and hits 35 percent of its attempts, that is remarkable marksmanship.

"We're at home, and that matters. But again, I can't stress enough the maturity of this group to be able to handle a big moment like this. None of these guys have been in that moment before," Peoria interim coach Patrick Battillo said. "There was the excitement from our crowd, plus St. Mary's being an amazing program and bringing their crowd. But they showed their maturity right from the gate. We came out of a quarterfinal game that had been a dogfight to playing a team we hadn't played in, I think, a decade. That goes to our preparation and focus." 

Entering this month Peoria had one postseason victory since its 2012 state championship - a 2018 play-in win against Cottonwood Mingus.

Now the Panthers are one win away from their first title in eight years. Peoria faces #2 Tucson Salpointe Catholic (29-1) at noon Saturday inside Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix.

"We ignore what we call the noise outside. We know what we are capable of. This senior group is special, and not just them but the maturity of Andrew as a freshman, and Corey and Trey  stepping up. They're really buying into us all being seniors in that light. There is not another year. It is now," Battillo said. "But our work is not done. We have a very tough opponent on Saturday and we need to finish."

That 2012 team was led by state player of the year Dewayne Russell and expected to at least reach the final.

Despite entering this game 14-0 in 2020, Peoria was not afforded the respect typical of a top seed and entered the season near the bottom of some 4A top 10 polls and missing from others.

"We played together and trusted each other from the beginning of the season. junior guard Corey Perry said. "We live off the doubt, and it fuels us. We've been doubted the whole season but now we just have one more."

The home team earned the respect of its more-touted visitor and its large crowd quickly. Do-it-all junior big man Kevin Kogbara seized control early, bursting out of the gates with eight points as Peoria grabbed a 10-2 lead.

Kogbara's two threes were contagious, as senior point guard Isaac Monroe and freshman guard Andrew Camacho added triples of their own for a 20-6 lead after one.

"We just stayed composed. Everybody's doubting us. But we played our game and stuck to the script," Monroe said. "

In the next four minutes, #4 St. Mary's (24-4) seemed to settle down, attacking the basket continuously and getting layups or fouls. Sophomore guard Orlando Gonzalez hit the Knights' first three to cut the deficit to 27-21.

That was as close as the visitors would get. Perry sank his second three ball of the quarter to start a 12-1 run.

Kogbara capped a 15-point half by draining a step-back three 2 seconds before the buzzer. Peoria led 42-24 at the half and its only concerns were Monroe's three fouls.

"His game really does raise a level. His growth this year, personally, has been tremendous. He's not only excited in big-game moments. He takes that pride in doing the many things he can do," Battillo said. "Kevin will adapt. I'm not at all surprised that he's able to perform on a stage like this."

Hopes of a Knight comeback as Monroe and Perry each made two treys to begin the second half with a 12-2 run.

Perry finished 5-5 from long range. And most of the time Monroe - who led all players with seven assists - was setting him up.

"Me and Isaac have been working all year. He's been lifting me up since I was a young bull. I'm glad it's working in the game. Me and him have come a long way," Perry said.

Camacho hit the Panthers' 14th and final trey late in the third quarter for a 30-point lead. By then, the only question was the final stats.

Neither program had made this deep of a playoff run in years, though St. Mary's did reach the 4A quarterfinals last season.

All but two Knights seemed unprepared for the spotlight. Sophomore guard Keiren Brown led all scorers with 29, and freshman guard Jason Fontenet Jr. impressed with 10 off the bench.

Conversely, Peoria's bench was scoreless. That's not a problem when all five starters score between 15 and 19 points.

"This team is so selfless. They really have bought into trusting one another and trusting the program. That takes  a certain focus and discipline from a young man. I'm so proud of Corey, to do this in one of the biggest moments of his life," Battillo said.

For the record, Kogbara and Perry schared the lead with 19 points each. Monroe added 17. Camacho and senior guard DeAndre Petty each scored 15.

Petty was the lone Panthers starter without a three. But once again the 5-10 dynamo led his team in rebounding with 10 boards.

"It's definitedly an advantage playing in our gym. I definitely think we were locked in from the start of the game. We're all shot makers. When we drive and kick, it's a knock down," Perry said.

Peoria's cohesion has only grown during the course of the season, despite circumstances that easily could have torn it apart.

Soon after the season began, fifth-year head coach Will Roberts went on personal leave. He has not been back since.

"The foundation that Will set here ... we are just continuing that blueprint. And I can't say enough about him," Battillo said. "He's been gone for quite a while now and at first it was a lot of adversity. But they've been buying in and luckily we have a very tight staff."

For a lot of the Panthers, their bond with Roberts started well before high school. He started the Team M'Phasis club more than a decade ago and several Panthers started there in their early teens.

It is where they learned if they play together and play to their strengths, greatness is possible.

"Coach Will bred us for this. He trained us," Monroe said. "It's amazing (winning tonight). I can't explain it."