BOYS BASKETBALL: Taft hits free throws, holds off Centennial

Taft (Calif.) made 6 of 7 free throws in the final 32 seconds Saturday to hold off Centennial for a 59-54 boys basketball victory at South Point Arena.

The Torreadors led 54-49 after two free throws by Brandon Thomas with 31.9 seconds left.

But the Bulldogs got a 3-pointer from Jake Hutchings from the top of the key to cut the lead to 54-52 with 27 seconds.

Kihei Clark made two free throws with 22.3 seconds to go to push the lead back to four. Troy Brown's drive with 12 seconds left cut it to 56-54, but Taft was 3-for-4 from the line in the final 11.1 seconds for the final margin.

Kesean Davis had 17 points to lead Taft, and Clark added 12 points, six rebounds and 10 assists.

Brown paced Centennial with 19 points, but was 7-for-19 from the field, and 0-for-4 on 3-pointers. He added 15 rebounds and six assists.

Hutchings added 18 points and five rebounds for the Bulldogs.

Durango 80, Liberty 64 — At South Point Arena, Demetrius Valdez scored 13 of his 16 points in the first quarter to help the Trailblazers take control early and roll past the Patriots.

Valdez was 5-for-5 from the field in the first quarter, including three 3-pointers, as Durango sprinted to a 30-10 lead.

Zyare Ruffin scored a game-high 21 points for Durango, which pushed the lead to 70-37 after three quarters. Jeremie Portuondo added 13 points and 13 rebounds, and Jason Landman had 12 points and eight rebounds for the Trailblazers.

Michael Diggins had nine rebounds for Durango, which held a 47-28 rebounding advantage.

Kyle Thaxton, who missed the first half for SAT testing, led Liberty with 17 points. Jahmal Bartley added 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Patriots, who got 11 points from Jordan Holt.

Liberty played without leading scorer Dyllan Robinson, who injured his left knee on Friday night against Silverado.

Clark 58, Las Vegas 21 — At Clark, Ian Alexander had 13 points as the Chargers ran away from the Wildcats.

James Bridges added nine points for Clark, which had leads of 40-11 at the half and 54-15 after three quarters.

Donovan Joyner led Las Vegas with five points.

Faith Lutheran 57, Pahrump Valley 19 — At Faith Lutheran, Luke Bergen had 12 points as the Crusaders blitzed the Trojans.

Elijah Kothe added nine points, and Chase Johnston grabbed 11 rebounds for Faith Lutheran, which led 21-0 after one quarter and 34-6 at the half.

Danny Foss led Pahrump with 10 points.

White Pine 51, Lake Mead 48 — At Lake Mead, Sam Stewart had 15 points, and the Bobcats scored the final four points of the game to edge the Eagles.

Shay Rutledge led Lake Mead with 21 points, including a go-ahead 3-pointer with 20 seconds left before the Bobcats' late surge.

Jonathan Gust added 14 points for White Pine.

Mountain View 70, Lincoln County 39 — At Mountain View, Tyrell Brooks had 24 points and eight rebounds as the Saints routed the Lynx.

Terrence Brooks added 17 points, and Tevin Gray had 13 points and five assists for Mountain View, which used a 44-15 run in the middle quarters to take command.

Brady Lawrence led Lincoln County with eight points.

Round Mountain 67, Sandy Valley 44 — At Round Mountain, the Knights defeated the Sidewinders.

Water Canyon (Utah) 44, Beaver Dam 36 — At Littlefield, Ariz., Water Canyon topped the Diamondbacks.