Chuck Constantino

Special to West Valley Preps

TUCSON — In order to make sure Catalina Foothills fate wasn't tied to its last three playoff games, all of which were decided by buzzer beaters, coach Doug D'Amore went back to the basics in the practices leading up to the start of the postseason.

No. 3 Catalina Foothills downed No. 14 Peoria 55-38 in the first round of the 4A state championship Wednesday night.

“They did a really good job of playing within themselves and not forcing anything,” D'Amore said. “And we had a few possessions we gave away, but they didnt hang their heads and we finished strong.”

The Falcons (24-5) will host No. 11 Salpointe Catholic in the quarterfinals on Saturday, at 6:30 p.m. It will be the third game between the two teams this season and the second consecutive season meeting in the postseason, with Salpointe edging out the Falcons on a last-second shot in the 4A state semifnals last year.

Foothills senior guard Sam Beskind scored a game-high 19 points, as junior guard Carson James chipped in with 15 points and sophomore wing Hayden Moser added 9.

“I think we settled down a little bit,” Beskind said. “This last week-and-a-half, without any games, we really emphasised the fundamentals and got back to the basics, made sure we're in the correct spots defensively. So, once we were in the game defensively, we were able to execute.”

The Panthers opened up to a 19-14 lead after the first quarter thanks to the perimeter defense, but lost all momentum once the second frame began.

Catalina Foothills allowed Peoria (18-10) to score just two points in the second quarter, shooting 1-of-9 from the field. Midway through the second quarter, Beskind rose over a defender to dunk the ball, leaping high enough that Beskind jumped over him.

Peoria coach Will Roberts noted Beskind's two dunks changed the Panthers attitude and energy.

“ disciplined, they did a great job of exectuing and we didn't, its been a problem a little bit all season,” Williams said. “We stopped sliding over to take charges...it seemed like we had our heads down when he dunked a couple of times. We put our heads down.”

Peoria sophomore guard Isaac Monroe finished with a team-high 10 points, as senior wing Knot Anyieth scored nine points in his final high school game.

“It was a special year,” Roberts said. “The good thing is we have a lot of younger guys who can play, hopefully this teaches them a lesson that this needs to burn, this needs to hurt so that we can practice with an attention to detail like were supposed to have...I'm excited for next year, but theres a lot of work to come before next year.”