Recapping Round 1 of girls' Arizona high school basketball Open playoff tourney
The first round of the Arizona Interscholastic Association girls' open basketball tournament is in the books. We'll recap everything, from upsets to previewing the second-round matchups. Teams losing Tuesday in the first round of the 32-team field will return to participate in their conference playoffs beginning next week.
Teams advancing to Round 2
6A
No. 1 Desert Vista Thunder, No. 2 Perry Pumas, No. 4 Xavier Gators, No. 7 Pinnacle Pioneers, No. 9 Hamilton Huskies, No. 11 Sandra Day O'Connor Eagles, No. 13 Dobson Mustangs, No. 14 Mesa Jackrabbits, No. 17 Valley Vista Monsoon.
5A
No. 6 Millenium Tigers, No. 15 Betty H. Fairfax Stampede, No. 21 McClintock Chargers.
4A
No. 3 Seton Catholic Sentinels, No. 5 Mesquite Wildcats, No. 8 Salpointe Catholic Lancers, No. 10 Flagstaff Eagles.
Summary
All but 2 of the top 16 teams advanced to the second round. The two lowest-seeded teams to advance are No. 17 Valley Vista Monsoon and No. 21 McClintock Chargers.
Valley Vista's win over No. 16 Sunrise Mountain isn't all that surprising, as they are the defending 6A Champions. McClintock came into the game as a team who had the potential to pull off the upset, and they won a nail biter, defeating No. 12 Canyon View by one point.
Round 2 preview
The second round kicks off on Thursday. All games are at 7 p.m., at the higher seed's school.
Among the games to keep an eye on is No. 17 Valley Vista (12-6) versus No. 1 Desert Vista (18-0). This is a rematch of last year's 6A semifinals, where Valley Vista, the No. 1 seed at the time, defeated the Thunder by 25 points. But things changed in the off-season, as Valley Vista lost star player Jennah Isai to graduation. The two teams met earlier this season, with Desert Vista winning by nine points.
No. 9 Hamilton (6A, 12-6) travels to No. 8 Tucson Salpointe Catholic (4A, 16-2), a game that could prove competitive. The Huskies have had several wins against teams still in the tournament, such as Pinnacle, Seton Catholic and Millenium. But Salpointe enters the contest on a 15-game winning streak. The Lancers also enter the game as the defending 4A Champions, so they know what it takes to survive in a tournament.
No. 21 McClintock (5A, 16-2) at No. 5 Mesquite (4A, 16-2), could be another game to watch. The Chargers are the lowest-seeded team still alive, after their upset over No. 12 Canyon View. They will look to carry that momentum into the second-round matchup against Mesquite, which allowed only allowed 37 points to No. 28 Sunnyside in the opening round.
No. 13 Dobson ((16-2) at No. 4 Xavier (12-3) could prove a defensive slugfest. Both are 6A teams but didn't face each other in the regular season, playing in different regions. According to MaxPreps, both teams have allowed less than 900 points total during the regular season. This game feels like the first team to get close to 50 points will win.
No. 14 Mesa (6A, 13-5) at No. 3 Seton Catholic (4A, 17-1) could be a close game, but the Sentinels will enter the game as the favorites. This will be the fifth time this season Seton has played a team in 6A, going 2-2 so far, including a win over Valley Vista.
No. 11 Sandra Day O'Connor at No. 6 Millenium: The Tigers (14-3) are defending 5A champions and will look to upend the 6A Eagles. Both teams also boast great defenses, as according to MaxPreps, they both finished the regular season allowing fewer than 900 points.
No. 10 Flagstaff versus No. 7 Pinnacle could be the most competitive game of the second round. While Flagstaff is in 4A, they enter the affair on a 14-game winning streak. Pinnacle (6A) finished with a 9-1 record in section play. The 6A factor could certainly come into play.
Rounding out the second round is No. 15 Betty H. Fairfax versus No. 2 Perry. Fairfax enters the game with one of the best offenses in the state. According to MaxPreps, they put up over 1,800 points in the regular season. However, they will need a lot to go right to defeat Perry. Perry is on a 14-game winning streak. The Pumas blew out Williams Field by 52 points in the first round. Betty H. Fairfax will need to be on their A-game to have any chance at pulling off the upset.
As a reminder, the teams that are eliminated in the first and second rounds of the open tournament go back to their respective conference playoffs, so their seasons aren't over yet.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Recapping the first round of the girls' Arizona HS basketball Open
