Basketball roundup: Othello boys hold off East Valley

OTHELLO — A year ago, first-year coach Roman Pruneda put in the work to begin reshaping the basketball culture. This past summer, his players matched that with hard work of their own.

On Friday night, in front of a vocal, full-house Othello crowd, the Huskies (1-3, 1-2 CWAC) saw a little bit of that hard work pay off when they kept East Valley at bay to win their first CWAC game of the season 71-68 at Taggres Gym.

A year ago the Huskies might not have had the moxy to step up in the face of the Red Devils (2-2, 1-2 CWAC). But the team with one returning starter and just three seniors held its own when push came to shove.

Senior Jonathan Garza, the only returning starter, drained five from beyond the arch to finish with a team-high 24 points.

But it was the mano y mano Husky pressure, mixed with a little zone late that turned a 69-68 lead into a three-point victory. East Valley had all the tools to get there with Jace Durand ready and willing to help take it to overtime. The 6-foot-2 East Valley sophomore hit four 3-pointers on his way to a game-high 25 points, but never got the chance to send it to overtime.

“We don’t have all the talent that we had last year, but we have a lot of young guys playing with a lot of intensity,” said Pruneda, who beat his old mentor from East Valley Steve Elder. “Defense is where we’re going to make a difference. My old coach (Elder) said this team has really come a long ways.”

Husky fans were treated to a high-octane offensive effort, matched with floor-length defense. Huskies sophomore Kai Quigley had 10 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter. He tied the game with a 1:42 remaining, making one of two free throws, then came down with an all-important offensive rebound for the putback to give the Huskies their final lead at 69-67 with a minute remaining.

“We put in a lot of work this summer and we’re all pretty hungry. Last year we set a tone and this year we go out and win it,” Garza said. “We want to get everybody involved in the offense because we have to win together.”

Marckos Carrillo made it a one-point difference, leaving the door open when he missed the back end of a two-shot free throw situation. The Othello defense kept the East Valley shooters at bay and closed with two free throws to stay out-of-reach in the end.

“Coach came to me and said I needed to play intense on defense. They put me in and I knew I needed to bring it,” said Frank Lopez. “The difference so far is the intensity we play with. I think defense is going to be the difference this year. We just got to work harder than everybody else.”

Box score

EV 14 17 18 19 — 68

O 9 19 21 22 — 71

East Valley: Jace Durand 25, Uriostegui 8, Salinas 3, Marckos Carrillo 17, Estill-Nash 5, Morrow 6, Thorson 4.

Othello: Patrick Azevedo 13, Jaden Flores 4, Kai Quigley 17, Jonathan Garza 24, Frank Lopez 13, Murillo 0.

BOYS BASKETBALL

Grandview 76, Othello 46

Box score

O — 7 8 12 19 46

G — 20 20 19 17 76

Othello: Jonathan Garza 20, Frank Lopez 7, Juan Vallejo 6, Hilario Murillo 5, Jaden Flores 3, Kai Quigley 3, Patrick Azevedo 2

Grandview: Ferrell Medina 22, Nate Garza 11, Rocco Parrish 8, Nate Gutierrez 8, Nicholas Gutierrez 7, Sergio Navarro 7, Christian Trevino 7, Julian Trinidad 6

Naches Valley 57, Wahluke 54

Box score

NV — 12 8 22 15 57

W — 16 12 15 11 54

Wahluke highlights: Tanu Buck 19, Isaiah Perez 12

Royal 61, Highland 14

Box score

R — 11 26 11 13 61

H — 2 4 4 4 14

Royal highlights: Owen Ellis 24, Sawyer Jenks 12

GIRLS BASKETBALL

East Valley 37, Othello 35

Othello took a one-point lead into the final seconds, riding on a 6-0 run that put them in position to win their first game of the season.

The Red Devils (3-1, 2-1 CWAC) took the ball in on the sidelines with a inbounds pass to Natalie Andreas, who finished with 15 points and nine rebounds. She turned and put up a shot from half-court that was nothing but net to give East Valley the victory.

Othello’s Macy Hampton finished with 10 points and Maciah Tovar had nine for the Huskies (0-3, 0-2).

Box score

EV 11 9 8 9 — 37

O 7 7 13 8 — 35

East Valley: Harrington 3, Natalie Andreas 15, Garza 0, Meadors 0, Miller 0, Livingston 1, Alvarado 2, Wright 0, Bivins 2, Hibbitt 3, Kuhlmann 8, Barry 3.

Othello: Lane Simpson 0, Macy Hampton 10, Maciah Tovar 9, Maleigha Veliz 3, Hailee Guzman 1, Ashley Perez 6, Alexis Coronado 6.

Grandview 48, Othello 33

Box score

O — 23 2 3 5 33

G — 8 14 8 18 48

Othello: Maciah Tovar 17, Macy Hampton 12, Lane Simpson 2, Hailee Guzman 2

Grandview: Michelle Ruiz 13, Bailey Duis 8, Karina Fajardo 7, Andrea Laurean 6, Marin Bender 6, Aulani Benitez 4, Cheli Mendoza 2, Cassidy Euker 2

Naches Valley 69, Wahluke 22

Box score

NV — 25 19 16 9 69

W — 0 12 4 6 22

Royal 57, Highland 51

Box score

R — 21 13 9 14 57

H — 12 17 14 8 51

Royal highlights: Chenoa Louie 19, Emma Wilhelm 11