The ACCAC has selected Central Arizona’s Shakeil Bertrand for the ACCAC’s Division-I Player of the Week and Scottsdale’s sophomore Boogie Anderson as the ACCAC Division-II Player of the Week for the week ending of January 13-19th. Central Arizona JC 6-foot-8 freshman forward Shakeil Bertrand averaged 13.5 points and 10 rebounds, while shooting 64% from the field in CAC’s two contests for the week. Scottsdale’s Boogie Anderson, received another Player of the Week honor for himself – averaging 22.5 points per/game for Scottsdale, as Scottsdale JC won both of their contests. The 6-4 sophomore has been terrific all season for Head…
Author: Anthony Ray
Ironwood High School (19-2) has not won a state championship in basketball in the school’s long history, but this season will be the program’s best chance ever to do so, as Head Coach Jordan Augustine and his terrrific staff have developed the Ironwood program into being one of the state’s most consistently dominant programs. While the players are different each season, the culture is always the same, which is predicated by Augustine and his bold and intense coaching style. His players always compete at the highest level on both ends of the floor and play together, which results in success.…
Cochise’s 6-foot-7 sophomore forward Naje Smith and Blake Williams of Chandler-Gilbert Junior College were selected as the Division-I and Division-II Players of the Week in the ACCAC for the period of January 6-12th. Naje Smith had a huge week for himself as Cochise JC defeated Chandler-Gilbert, and also South Mountain JC. A native of Spokane, Washington, and Lewis and Clark High School, Smith has had a strong season for Head Coach Jerry Carrillo. Smith exploded to average 32 points per/game in both victories, converting 26 of 40 field goals from the field, and also made (4) of (9) three-point field…
Sunrise Mountain High School (14-4) and Centennial High School (14-6) are among the top programs in the West Valley, so when the two teams faced off on Friday evening it was sure to be an action-packed event, as both teams were looking for bragging rights, as well as looking to improve their chances for a 5A State title run. For Sunrise Mountain and Head Coach Gary Rath, the time is now, as the Mustangs have a very talented lineup and also have some maturity in their lineup – primed to make a state playoff run this season. For a very…
The Grind Session is widely known for producing top match-ups between prep programs, and this weekend’s Latitude Longitude Classic @ St. Mary’s High School did just that, as the event featured an exciting contest between AZ Compass Prep and Dream City Christian, a game and a match-up between two of the state’s elite prep programs, and a game that has not happened to date, until this past weekend. The fact that the Grind Sesssion was able to make this game happen between program organizers meant a great deal to scouts like myself, who simply want to see the best play…
Eastern Arizona and Scottsdale Junior College are at the top of the ACCAC Conference standings, tied for the conference lead overall. Eastern Arizona’s 6-foot-6 sophomore forward Nathaniel Pollard, Jr. and Scottsdale JC’s 6-foot-5 sophomore wing Xavier Fuller have both been the catalysts this season for their respective team’s success. For their performance this season, both prospects have been named repeat ACCAC Players of the Week by the ACCAC for the fourth time this season. Xavier Fuller has been named the Division-II honoree after he averaged 24.7 points over (3) different SCC wins, which included a big 34-point performance in a…
One of the top young prospects in the state has quickly emerged this high school season, and is definitely one prospect to watch closely for the future. St. Mary’s High School’s 6-foot-3 freshman guard prospect Jason Fontenet Jr. is one of the elite freshman prospects in the state, and has a name that Arizona basketball enthusiasts know very well. Jason Fontenet Jr. is the son of former Arizona basketball star guard and St. Mary’s High School basketball product Jason Fontenet. Fontenet Sr. graced the Arizona basketball hardwood in the late 1990’s and very early 2000’s, and went on to play…
When Hillcrest Prep landed the services of nationally top-rated 2021 prospect, 6-foot-9, 220-pound junior forward Michael Foster during the off-season, it was widely known nationally amongst the basketball community what they had received. Rated by every top scouting service in America among the elite overall prospects in the country, Foster immediately took the Hillcrest Prep program to another level. Hillcrest Prep has been consistently known for producing elite-level basketball talent in America. After producing such top-rated talents as DeAndre Ayton (Phoenix Suns, #1 overall NBA Draft pick), Marvin Bagley (Sacramento Kings, #2 overall NBA Draft pick) and also 2020 prospect…
In mid-December, we learned of the recommendation for termination of Desert Vista High School’s Head Coach Gino Crump – a decision by the program and the school district that shook the Arizona basketball community, as well as the student-athletes currently on the team. Such a decision, such as this one during the middle of the season, was unparalleled in Arizona basketball historically, but Crump was suspended by the program while the district carried out their investigation. The recommendation by Desert Vista was also to terminate Crump’s employment as the head coach at the completion of the investigation. A very emotional…
With the holidays now over and a new year beginning, Scottsdale and Mesa Junior College stand at the top of the ACCAC basketball standings, as each of the junior college programs look to prepare for a strong finish to the junior college season. With numerous tournaments taking place this holidays season and individual games, Scottsdale and Mesa both had strong performances through the first half of the season. Scottsdale JC (14-1), led by Head Coach Mark Bunker, has had a terrific start to the junior college season, and is currently ranked as the nation’s #13 team among Division-II programs in…