The Arizona 2015-2016 high school basketball season got underway on Monday afternoon around the state with numerous high school basketball tournaments taking place, and with many of the state's teams in action on the day. The Arizona Preps' staff would catch a couple games on the night at the Sunnyslope Hoopsgiving Basketball Tournament.
We would first watch Brophy Prep (1-0) face a very athletic and fast Peoria (0-1) team that would look to push the basketball every chance they would get. Brophy, under new leadership this season, after the release of former head coach Tony Fuller, would look very strong on the evening, behind the strong play of 6-foot-5 sophomore forward Jaxson Baker and emerging 6-foot-9, 265-pound post Sean Dunn (pictured).
Dunn would put together his best performance of his young career, as he would be a force on the glass - scoring inside the paint and finishing very strong around the rim. Dunn would run the floor hard and even show good versatility defensively - proving he could hedge on the pick and roll defensively, and also move his feet well enough to deflect passes and start the Broncos' fast break.
After a 33-26 halftime lead over Peoria, Brophy would build their lead to 20+ points in the second half, as Brophy would force numerous turnovers and bad shots by an undisciplined Peoria team. Brophy would advance easily to the second round.
In the late game, host Sunnyslope HS (1-0) would breeze past an overmatched Camelback HS (0-1) team. Behind a well-balanced attack of the Vikings, Sunnyslope would jump out to a huge 45-19 halftime lead.
Sunnyslope HS 6-foot-3 senior guard Dane Maggi, while not shooting the basketball particularly well on the evening, would look good in the victory, while the guard play for Sunnyslope would be too much for Camelback to overcome.
Sunnyslope will face a talented Sunrise Mountain HS team at 8PM on Tuesday evening. 6-foot-6 senior wing Elijah Thomas (Saint Mary's College signee) had a big game in his team's afternoon win on Monday.
