Author: George Courtney

ALA-Gilbert North’s Cezer Sotomayor picks up his first college offer from Arkansas Little-Rock who competes in the Ohio Valley Conference. Sotomayor is a great looking combo-guard who is a good facilitator. Besides being able to facilitate the offense, he can score from all three levels.  Sotomayor has the intangibles to be a good guard prospect at the college level. He has a great understanding of the game, blue collar work ethic, and plays with a lot of heart. I also like his ability to defend. He is just an all around team player. Sotomayor transferred to ALA-Gilbert North, which has…

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1Q – The game was energetic as both Hamilton and Mesa brought their best game. Both teams measured each other out, trading half court possessions. Mesa displayed a gritty lock up man-to-man defense, where Hamilton used their athleticism and length to clog the lanes with a stifling 3-2 zone defense. Ultimately, Mesa converted more field goals than Hamilton, resulting in the Jackrabbits leading 15 to 10. Both teams had balanced scoring with Mesa’s AJ Seumanu with 3, London Haskell with 3 also and Hamilton’s Davion Harris with 3. 2Q – The Huskies came out of the gate with intensity and…

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In a battle of two of the premier programs in the Chandler-Gilbert corridor, Hamilton High School went toe to toe with Mesquite High School in the semi-finals of the 20th Annual Mesa Fear The Hop Tournament, in what was featured as the Arizona Preps Game of the Night. The Huskies and Wildcats traded back and forth. Ultimately, the first quarter ended in a tie, 13-13. Both teams used a scoring-by-committee approach. It seems that this semi-final game will be decided late in the second half. In the second quarter, the Huskies started the second quarter with possession. The first field…

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***SPECIAL TO ARIZONAPREPS from Guest Analyst: George Courtney The Mesa Fear the Hop Tournament is quickly emerging as the top Thanksgiving Tournament in the State of Arizona. This year’s event drew in out-of-state teams from Hawaii and Texas. The first day was filled with a bunch of prospects to keep an eye on. Here are a few that stood out on Day 1: AJ Seumanu 2024 6-3 Wing Mesa Seumanu impressed with 13 points, 14 rebounds and 3 assists in his opening performance. The strong downhill prospect was hard to contain, as he is strong and tough and cleaned the…

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***SPECIAL TO ARIZONA PREPS from Guest Analyst: George Courtney In the first game of this year’s 20th Annual Mesa Fear The Hop Tournament, host Mesa High School (1-0) won the jump-ball and striked early with a lay up from McKy Peters. Paradise Valley High School (0-1) answered back with a three from guard Antoine Anderson. The atmosphere was rocking, as this was the “Student Body Game” where Mesa flexed their home-court advantage with having their entire student body attend the game. Mesa employed defensive pressure to start the game, which flustered Paradise Valley’s offensive timing. Paradise Valley would keep biting…

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Inspire Prep National made history by having their first Division-I prospect sign. Elite floor general, Dilen Miller signed his National Letter of Intent with the George State University Panthers. Miller is one of the top floor generals in the 2024 class. He transferred from Tucson Magnet over to Inspire Prep. The move proved to be beneficial, as his college recruiting stock flew to new heights. Miller is a 6-foot-4 floor general with three-level scoring ability. He thrives in getting to the cup to either facilitate, finish at the rim or pull up. Miller uses his IQ to read his opponents…

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Inspire Prep National is one of Arizona’s newest basketball prep academies. Enter Philadelphia native Coach Erik Hood, and the Pilots are ready to soar to new heights. The Pilots opened their national schedule in a Monday night showdown at Paragon Academy in Chandler, Arizona. Paragon is led by Arizona Hoops legend Christian Polk. Polk originally launched prep academy Eduprize in neighboring Gilbert, Arizona, before launching his new program at Paragon.  The game started off a little slow as the Pilots were looking for their rhythm. The Panthers (Paragon) looked very young and inexperienced, however Coach Polk has his kids competing…

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The Mesa High Boys Basketball Program has created a new tradition to kick off the scholastic summer high school season. The event attracted ten teams from the Canyon Athletic Association and the Arizona Interscholastic Association to include Mesa, Eduprize, Desert Mountain, AZ Compass Prep, Pueblo, Palo Verde, Casa Grande, Dream City Christian, Horizon Honors and Ridgeline Academy. This event is refreshing to see, since most of the teams in this event do not see each other in the regular season. Here are a few thoughts from my observations . . . Despite the tough loss in their first game, Mesa…

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The GC3 Hoops Platform (partnered with Arizona Preps) is looking to build and expand coverage of deserving athletes to add to our database. One of the state’s biggest secrets is the Canyon Athletic Association (CAA). The CAA serves charter, public, and non-traditional schools at the elementary, junior high and high school levels. In my honest assessment and opinion, the CAA has the top middle school league in the state with (95) Junior High School teams with a state tournament for (3) different divisions (1, 2 and 3). I was able to catch the matchup between Dobson Academy and Leading Edge…

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Poston Butte was founded in 2009 to serve a growing, unincorporated community in San Tan Valley, Arizona. The school has been a hotbed for growth, as more homes are being built – drawing in families to settle in the Phoenix Valley’s Southeast corridor. Coach Savannah Bix took over the program during the 2018-2019 season and is the third coach in program’s history. She hit the ground running and established a foundation. Ultimately, she instilled an expectation of winning and qualifying for the playoffs. In her first season, her team finished 9-17, however she continued to grind to get her kids…

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