PHOENIX, Ariz.— Seven teams are on their way home from Phoenix and the Valley of the Sun with some new gifts just in time to place them under the tree. At the top of most high school players wish list is a state championship or a Nike Tournament of Champions title and with state playoffs a few months down the road, those seven teams unwrapped a shiny swoosh for their efforts which will keep Santa in their good graces at least for another year.
Championship games wrapped up Saturday for the 23rd annual Nike TOC following four days of action in what is generally considered to be the gold standard of girls high school tournaments. From Wednesday’s opening tip 94 teams were hoping to make a statement on one of the few legitimate stages available to make your name on a national scale. Five sites and 10 gyms hosted the action leading into Saturday’s finals. Below you can catch up on all of the results from Phoenix and the six bracket championships as well as an independent (non-NFHS) division featuring unaffiliated teams which utilized round robin play to ultimately determine the championship team.
To see our coverage from days one through three, follow the link below.
https://bluestarmedia.org/nike-toc-2019-day-one-featured-five/
https://bluestarmedia.org/nike-tournament-of-champions-day-two-2/
https://bluestarmedia.org/nike-toc-2019-fridays-five/
To see complete brackets, results and participating teams follow next link to the Tournament of Champions web site.
https://basketball.exposureevents.com/141636/2019-nike-tournament-of-champions/schedule
In what might go down as one of the more competitive finals ever, Sierra Canyon and La Jolla Country Day did battle for 32 minutes with the deciding points coming with just 5.8 seconds remaining in the game. La Jolla came into the game with an 11 point per game winning margin while claiming a semifinal win over always challenging Archbishop Mitty, 62 – 54. Sierra Canyon took a tougher path featuring two overtime games and just a slim 4.3 point edge per contest. Their ticket to the final came by way of their 62 – 54 win over Riverdale Baptist Friday evening.
The Trailblazers jumped out quickly on La Jolla holding a nine point edge midway in the first before ending the quarter with a comfortable 15 – 8 lead. With a veteran roster, the Torreys weren’t about to roll over and immediately bounced back with a 13 – 5 period of their own including Te-Hine PaoPao connecting at the horn for their first lead of the game going into the locker room up 21 – 20. The entire third was a back and forth affair with both teams giving and taking throughout before Sierra Canyon’s Vanessa Smart’s lay-up tied things up at the buzzer once again with the score standing 34 all with eight minutes remaining.
The final period was more of the same punch and counterpunch. La Jolla led at the 1:42 mark and it was still a one point Torrey margin with 38.8 seconds. Following a timeout Tournament MVP and future Oregon Duck PaoPao uncharacteristically missed the front end of a one and one providing another chance for Sierra Canyon. Following a time out of their own, the Trailblazers failed to convert their first look but senior forward Alexis Mark grabbed the offensive board and stuck it back for a 43 – 42 lead. Unfortunately plenty of time still remained for La Jolla junior guard Jazzy Anousinh to go coast to coast for a lay up and ultimately the win as a last second heave came up way short for Sierra Canyon.
Freshman post Breya Cunningham led the way in the win with 19 points joining PaoPao on the All Tournament team. PaoPao finished with 13 in the final, 11 of which came in the first half of play. For Sierra Canyon Ashley Chevalier and Vanessa De Jesus paced the scoring with 13 apiece. Chevalier is headed for Texas while De Jesus is off to Duke next year. Both were named to the All Tournament team as well.
Elizabeth Seton drew a tough card looking at the John Anderson Division roster of teams. St. Mary’s of Stockton, Regis Jesuit, Windward, National Christian and more stood in the way of a great trip to the Valley of the Sun. They won their first three games by 24, 2 and 8 for a 11.3 margin of victory including a semifinal win over St. Mary’s, 55 – 47. Their reward? Windward who was just squeaking by with all single digit wins and a margin of just 5.3 points per game but had taken down ultra-competitive Clovis North in the semis.
Both teams were slow out of the gate with the first points not being posted until over three and a half minutes had been played. While hardly an offensive showcase, Elizabeth Seton held a 7 to 6 lead following the first period. The second period wasn’t going to thrill anyone either with both teams methodically looking for options within the halfcourt. Junior guard Regina Walton turned a one point lead into four with a three pointer just before the horn at the break, 18 – 14. In the third, Windward, who had not led, tied things up at 20 on two JuJu Watkins freethrows at the 6:05 mark. The back and forth continued throughout the third and saw the Roadrunners hold a two point edge at 29 – 27 with just a quarter remaining. The final period was a genuine battle with multiple lead changes but no one leading by 3 over the course of the quarter. Elizabeth Seton even went to holding the ball with just under three minutes and only a three point lead. A three pointer gave Windward a 41 – 39 lead at the 1:47 mark. It was all fouls and strategy down the stretch but Elizabeth Seaton helped keep the game alive coming up short at the line. (The missed 6 freethrows in the second half and 9 overall) In the end Windward came up three points short falling 43 – 40 and giving Elizabeth Seton plenty of reason to celebrate.
Walton led Seton in the win with 11 while senior Tyler Gray chipped in 9 more for the cause. Junior Michelle Duchemin had 14 in the loss while Watkins added 11 more. Gray was named Anderson MVP and was joined on the Anderson All Tournament team by Walton. Duchemin and Watkins both claimed All Tournament honors as well.
Both Freemont and Cathedral Catholic rolled into Saturday’s Mike Desper finals sporting double figure margins of victories in their first three games. Freemont won by 18 and then 10 before being challenged by Lynwood in the semis yet still prevailing 59 – 53. Cathedral Catholic’s closest game was 14 points in their opener with their largest margin coming in the semis against Shadow Mountain 58 – 32.
Cathedral Catholic jumped out quickly in the final forcing some turnovers but an early timeout settled down Freemont leading to just a 16 – 10 deficit for them after one period of play. The turnovers then plagued Cathedral Catholic early in the second and Freemont capitalized taking their first lead of the game at the 4:55 mark of the quarter. The Dons responded and before the break reclaimed the lead at 32 – 28 at the half. In the third the lead quickly bloomed for Cathedral Catholic into double figures before an offensive rebound and stickback at the buzzer made it 48 – 40 going into the fourth quarter. Freemont would not go quietly into the night and forced Cathedral Catholic to earn this one. Multiple times it was 9 or even 7 but the Tigers couldn’t get over the hump ultimately falling 60 – 53.
Sophomore and recent UConn commit Isuneh Brady led the Dons in the win with 18 points, 11 of which came in the second half. Sophomore Izzy Navarro added 14 more while classmate Taryn Johnson finished with 10. Taylor McCabe, also a sophomore, put up 23 in the loss, 17 in the first half alone. Junior Charli Earth added 10 more for the Tigers.
Joe Smith Division All-Tournament Team
Ryanne Allen 6-1 2022 Archbishop Wood High School (Warminster, Pennsylvania)
Aishah Brown 6-1 2020 Centennial High School (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Ashley Chevalier 5-7 2020 Sierra Canyon School (Chatsworth, California)
Breya Cunningham 6-3 2023 La Jolla Country Day School (La Jolla, California)
Jayda Curry 5-6 2021 Centennial High School (Corona, California)
Vanessa De Jesus 5-8 2020 Sierra Canyon School (Chatsworth, California)
Aaliyah Edwards 6-3 2020 Crestwood Preparatory College (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)
Ashley Hiraki 5-7 2020 Archbishop Mitty High School (San Jose, California)
Kaylah Ivy 5-8 2020 Riverdale Baptist School (Upper Marlboro, Maryland)
Iyanna Lamb 5-6 2020 Long Beach Polytechnic High School (Long Beach, California)
Te-Hina Paopao (MVP) 5-10 2020 La Jolla Country Day School (La Jolla, California)
Delicia Pinnick 5-8 2020 New Hope Academy (Landover Hills, Maryland)
John Anderson Division All-Tournament Team
Asia Avinger 5-8 2020 Rosary Academy (Fullerton, California)
Madison Conner 6-0 2021 Perry High School (Gilbert, Arizona)
Marisa Davis 6-1 2021 Valley Vista High School (Surprise, Arizona)
Michelle Duchemin 6-0 2021 Windward School (Los Angeles, California)
Timea Gardiner 6-3 2022 Fremont High School (Plain City, Utah)
Tyler Gray (MVP) 5-6 2020 Elizabeth Seton High School (Bladensburg, Maryland)
Kennedy Johnson 6-0 2021 Bishop O’Dowd High School (Oakland, California)
Amaya Oliver 6-2 2020 St. Mary’s High School (Stockton, California)
Malia Samuels 5-5 2023 Eastside Catholic School (Sammamish, Washington)
Savannah Tucker 5-9 2020 Clovis North High School (Fresno, California)
Regina Walton 5-5 2022 Elizabeth Seton High School (Bladensburg, Maryland)
Juju Watkins 6-0 2023 Windward School (Los Angeles, California)
Clare Droesch Division All-Tournament Team
Kamilla Cardosa 6-7 2020 Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga, Tennessee)
Dominique Darius 6-1 2021 Blair Academy (Blairstown, New Jersey)
Treasure Hunt (MVP) 6-1 2020 Hamilton Heights Christian Academy (Chattanooga, Tennessee)
Lemyah Hylton 5-11 2022 Southwest Academy (Springfield, Ontario, Canada)
Olivia Miles 5-11 2021 Blair Academy (Blairstown, New Jersey)
