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Middle school Phantoms pull off nail-biter
Grand Canyon A team clinches anarrow OT win

In a full day of basketball action Saturday, the Phantoms middle school A team played the most exciting game ­ a neck and neck contest with Williams that went into overtime and earned Grand Canyon the win by a single point. The final score was 32-31.

The Phantoms were outsized but not outclassed by the taller Falcons, who could not build up a substantial lead. The game was close all the way and tied up at 24-all in the final 15 seconds of regulation play on a free throw by John Kissner. A free throw by Larrin Talas made all the difference in overtime.

Kissner was top scorer, with 17 points, followed by Larrin Talas with 14. Andrew Araiza had 10. Ricky Saavedra scored 4 and Jared Ruyle scored 2.

This game repeated a solid performance in Williams last week, where they again won by a single point in overtime.

"We ran a different defense," said Head Coach Andrew Aldaz of the team's strategy. "We ran zone on the bottom and pressure on top. Because they were bigger than we are, we used the zone defense and not man-to-man."

In B team action, the Phantoms lost to the Falcons 38-27. Saavedra scored in double digits, racking up 18 points. Ruyle scored 8, and Jonathan Huff, Talas, Luke Streit and William Donley chipped in 4 apiece.

Grand Canyon's C team lost 46-39 and the sixth and seventh graders lost 40-19.

In the C game, Talas was top scorer with 9. Also scoring were Saavedra, 6; Streit, 4; and two apiece for Jerrith Foster, Christian Baraga and Victor Ibarra.

Aldaz said that the team has shown steady improvement in their short season, with their biggest challenge being consistency.

"They play well in spots," he said.

The A team's record is 3-1, while the B team's is 2-2.

The Phantoms have one more series in the regular season, against Music Mountain and Parks in Parks, this Saturday with games beginning at 9 a.m.

On Friday and Saturday, Feb. 16 and 17, the A and B teams compete in I-40 league tournaments. The B team plays in Seligman on Feb. 16 and the B team plays in Parks on Feb. 17.


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