Richard Smith West Valley Preps It was happening again. In this case for the Paradise honors basketball team, it was Valley Christian. On Dec. 17 in Chandler, the Trojans erased a six-point fourth quarter deficit for a 48-44 win. A month later they looked poised to do the same on the Panthers' home court. Saturday night the visitors whittled away at a 12-point fourth quarter lead at the line, drawing to within one at 53-52 with 2:07 remaining. This time though, the Panthers showed more poise - and this time sophomore point guard Jalen Scott would not let his team lose. On the next Paradise Honors possession, Scott grabbed an offensive rebound and hit a short floater for a three-point lead. Then he forced a turnover that senior wing Josh Jackson picked up. Scott did it all for the #5 ranked team in 3A as it held of #4 Valley Christian (17-4 overall, 10-3 regular season). He finished with 18 points, eight assists, six assists and six steals. "It's hard to get on him because he doesn't make bad decisions. We just wanted him to go from making good decisions to great decisions," Paradise Honors coach Zach Hettel said. "Sometimes instead of good passes, the great play is him getting to the rim. It's about trying to get him to be a little more aggressive because everybody thinks he's going to pass the ball." While much of the intrigue around Paradise Honors (16-3, 13-3) revolved around the new guys - junior forwards Jerry Iliya and Roy Eze and sophomore center Matur Dhal - Saturday was a night for the old guys. Scott remains a distributor, averaging 6.3 assists a game while being the Panther's fourth-leading scorer at 7.2. But as Saturday showed, he is becoming more assertive with his own offense. "I've been telling Jalen since he was 13 years old that he is a bucket getter. He can pass the ball, distribute and set up shots for anybody on the team. But he can get to the hole and create shots for himself like nobody else I've seen. He can get a bucket whenever he needs it," Hawkins said. Meanwhile Hawkins, another returnee from last season's 2A semifinalist, scored seven of the Panthers' first 12 points and finished with 12 points and seven rebounds. Jackson missed the front end of that one-and-one with 44 seconds left. Valley Christian senior guard Ethan Jones made one of two to cut the deficit to 55-53. Hawkins took the outlet pass downcourt and blew his dunk attempt so spectacularly that it caromed back to his teammates at near half court. Jackson was fouled again and calmly sank both free throws - for his only two points - to seal the win. "We needed somebody to step in and make those free throws," Hettel said. Scott also produced highlights on either side of the first quarter horn. He banked in a three from a step inside midcourt to beat the buzzer. Then, after Dhal blocked the Trojan's first shot of the second quarter and launched an outlet to Scott, the guard dunked while being fouled and completed a three-point play. "Coach was telling us on film that if you have a chance to take it to the hole, take it. Just get those rebounds and go," Scott said. The play encapsulated the home team's approach to the rematch. The Panthers did not press much, but when they got a defensive rebound or turnover they went tearing up the court. In Chandler, the game was played more at the Trojans' pace. Coach Greg Haagsma has led Valley Christian to more than 500 wins in 22 seasons by emphasizing tough defense and a meticulous, patterned offense. "After watching the first game again we knew we couldn't allow them to play at a slow tempo. When we went to their house we let them walk up the floor and we walked up the floor," Hettel said. "It's hard to press because they can break it and then you're giving up layups. But on any made or missed shot, we were pushing the ball." Senior point guard Jalen Grijalva kept the visitors in it during the first half with 11 points, as Paradise Honors led 33-28 at the break. The Panthers made a concerted effort to feed Eze to start the third quarter. He scored seven of his team's first nine points to stake them to a 42-33 lead. "Roy did a good job to start the third quarter. We talked about that coming in. We wanted to pound it inside. It was just hard when he got those two fouls early," Hettel said. Senior guard Zach Timmer kept Valley Christian in it by scoring 13 of his 15 points in the second half. Splitting these games will pay dividends for the 3A newcomers come playoff time. Last year Paradise Honors blew through its 2A schedule, losing only to 4A Cave Creek Cactus Shadows and finishing the regular season with a 26-1 record. When the Panthers faced Whiteriver Alchesay in the state semifinal, it had been months since they had to struggle through a game against a team that could hang with them. Now, as Hettel said, the Panthers may see the Trojans four times - with the regional and state tournaments to come in February. "This is better. Last year our scrimmages were harder than most of the teams we faced. Then we got to the playoffs and lost," Scott said. Paradise Honors senior wing Josh Hawkins, left, is fouled by Valley Christian junior forward Logan Phillips while attempting a layup against on Jan. 19, 2019 at Paradise Honors High School in Surprise. [Jacob Stanek/West Valley Preps] [/caption]PARADISE HONORS 58  VALLEY CHRISTIAN 53 SCORE BY QUARTERS

Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Q4	Total
Valley Christian	12	16	11	14	53
Paradise Honors	15	18	16	9	58

BOX SCORE Valley Christian: Zach Timmer 15 points, 6 rebounds; Jalen Grijalva 15 points, 4 rebounds; Logan Phillips 10 points; Peyton Hanzal 9 points, 6 rebounds; Chandler Carter 3 points, 3 rebounds; Ethan Jones 1 point. Paradise Honors: Jalen Scott 18 points, 8 assists, 6 rebounds, 6 steals; Roy Eze 12 points, 7 rebounds; Josh Hawkins 11 points, 7 rebounds; Charlie Rogers 5 points, Matur Dhal 4 points, 7 rebounds; Wyatt Bell 4 points; Jerry Iliya 2 points.