By Chris Caraveo

West Valley Preps

The Centennial girls basketball team continued its winning ways in 2018 with a victory over Maricopa, but this time it was to advance in the state playoffs.

The Coyotes (24-4), off double-digit scoring performances from four players, beat the Rams (18-10) by a score of 68-53 Wednesday night in the first round of the 5A playoffs.

“We knew they were going to press us a lot so we worked on trying to handle pressure in practice,” Coyotes head coach Matt Visintainer said. “We did a pretty good job. We turned the ball over a little bit in the first half but we kind of settled down in the second half and tried to minimize those mistakes. But (Maricopa) is a very athletic team.”

Senior guard Chantel Sloan led the Coyotes with 17 points. Fellow seniors Taylor Leonard and Paige Isaac scored in double digits with 16 and 13 points, respectively.

The teams may as well have been playing in the rain, which was the case outside the gym in Peoria, as the Coyotes and Rams turned the ball over constantly in the first half.

No. 4 seed Centennial started the game on an 8-5 run off a three-pointer by Isaac. After a Rams timeout, the visiting team went on a 6-4 run to end the quarter, including a floater at the buzzer from junior guard Jayla Johnson.

The Rams opened the second quarter with freshman guard Brooke Smith scoring two points to take a short-lived lead. On the Coyotes next possession, Isaac hit another three-pointer to regain a advantage the home team would not relinquish. Maricopa senior Sydni Callis missed a three, which Leonard rebounded and dribbled down the court all on her own for a layup.

The Coyotes outpaced the Rams 15-8 in the second quarter. Both teams were aggressive on loose balls, with multiple jump balls called throughout the game.

The Coyotes went into the half up 27-19 and extended their lead to 12 in the second half, prompting a Rams timeout. Maricopa junior Destinee Chavis cut the deficit by four, hitting a layup off a Coyotes foul, then stealing the ball for another layup.

However, Sloan responded with a three-pointer from the top of the key. After the teams exchanged three turnovers, Sloan scored two points off a Leonard assist to push the lead to 13.

The Rams sparked a comeback to end the third, using a 9-4 run with 2:30 left to close their deficit to five. The Rams outscored the Coyotes 20-13 in that quarter.

Centennial senior Cynthia Phanrasy, tries to drive around Maricopa sophomore Taylor Coleman during Wednesday's 5A first round playoff game. [Donna Mundy/For West Valley Preps][/caption]But Centennial would pull away in the final quarter, using an 8-2 run to move back ahead by double digits. That lead grew to as high as 19 points. Sloan made five of six free throws down the stretch, with three of them coming off technical and shooting fouls on the same play.

Coach Visintainer acknowledged the uncanny turnovers throughout the first half, as well as the few double-digit leads that were cut down.

“Just telling them to stay composed,” Coach Visintainer said. “We know they’re going to come trap a lot. I said if we can limit our mistakes, that was going to be the key. During timeouts we talked about staying composed, making sure we’re making good decisions on offense, transitioning back on defense, contest the shots and make sure we grab the rebounds.”

The Coyotes came into the playoffs riding a 10-game win streak dating back to Dec. 30, when they lost to Pinnacle in a tournament. Since then, the Coyotes defeated last year’s 5A finalist Sierra Linda twice, as well as Peoria Unified School District rival Liberty.

Maricopa traveled about 60 miles to play Centennial. The Rams entered the contest on a 9-2 streak in games played in 2018. They have done it with a mostly young squad, with only two seniors on the team.

Johnson was the leading scorer for the Rams with 24 points, including four threes in the second half. She had five in the game.

“Jayla was outstanding,” Maricopa assistant coach Quentin Patin said. “She pretty much carried us all night. She had the attitude. Even though she’s a junior, she plays hard.”

Patin said the team came into the game pretty prepared for the Coyotes, but came up short in multiple aspects.

“Not closing out shooters. Leaving players wide open for shot,” Patin said. “I guess they thought we had a game on Saturday or we were going to get in no matter what. It has to be disappointing for our seniors.”

Despite the loss, Patin expects the Rams to use this game as motivation heading into next season.

“We underachieved,” he added. “Early on we took some hits. We kind of came together late. We were inconsistent. It was a season of ups and downs, acclimating to new players. Not to take anything from Centennial, they’re very well coached, they’re scrappy, very physical, long. That length, that bothered our players.”

Centennial hosts No. 5 Phoenix Arcadia (25-3) in the second round at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.

Centennial coach Matt Visintainer high fives senior forward Chantel Sloan during a timeout in Friday's 5A first round game against Maricopa. [Donna Mundy/For West Valley Preps][/caption]