Tri-State Holiday Invitational: Desert Oasis coach keeps tournament ticking on opening night

Cibola (Arizona) coach Ron Bratton has a nice little exchange with Desert Oasis’ boys basketball program, with each team visiting the other’s basketball tournament.

The only difference for Bratton and his Southwest Rotary Classic at the beginning of December in Yuma, Arizona, in his words: “I’m still looking for my Dave.”

Desert Oasis assistant coach Dave Aikman has poured his heart and soul into the third annual Tri-State Holiday Invitational, which opened play Wednesday and runs through Friday at Desert Oasis.

Along the way, Aikman has earned the respect of his peers.

“The people in the organization keep me coming back. There’s a blend of everybody, and it takes a village,” Bratton said. “But just him is important to the programs, the kids. I still haven’t found my Dave yet, but I’m sure he’s out there.”

The tournament doesn’t attract some of the nation’s best teams like Southern Nevada was treated to last week in the prestigious Tarkanian Classic, but Aikman has been able to draw a steady stream of competition to provide quality play and exciting games.

On Wednesday, it was Wooster and Rancho with the fantastic finish.

After Wooster’s Jory Richardson drained a pair of free throws with 6.1 seconds left, Rams point guard Jahleel Stevens drove the length of the court with a game-tying layup as time expired to force overtime. Richardson’s lay-up with 42.4 second left in OT gave the Colts a 53-50 lead. Then, Da’leon Finley’s put back with 28.7 seconds left for Rancho, and Stevens’ steal and drive to the other end gave the Rams a 54-53 lead with 9.8 seconds left.

But Wooster’s Benjamin Zelisse-Stewart’s turnaround six-foot floater off the backboard at the buzzer gave the Colts a 55-54 win.

Zelisse-Stewart led all scorers with 22, while Richardson added 13 points for the Colts. Stevens led the Rams with 13 points, and James Brown had 11.

Exciting finishes are nothing new to the tournament, which has seen plenty of last-second shots and dramatic fourth-quarter comebacks in its first two years.

Desert Oasis coach Joseph Bedowitz credits Aikman’s 11 months of preparation for pulling off a quality event.

“I know what he does behind the scenes, and I give him free reign because I know how good of a job he does of putting this together,” Bedowitz said. “From the simple things of getting the signs up in the right places, to inviting the right teams.”

Hurricane (Utah) coach Todd Langston, whose Tigers are back for a third straight year and went 2-0 on Wednesday, said he likes bringing his players to the tournament because they’re able to experience a faster-paced game against the type of competition that gets them ready for league play.

“It’s a different brand of basketball than we play in Utah, and that is encouraging for us to come down to play,” Langston said. “It’s just very well ran, and they treat the kids good. The organization of the tournament is awesome.”

Bedowitz said Aikman’s rapport with everyone involved — coaches, players, sponsors, volunteers, and media — is “probably 80 percent” of the reason the tournament continues to be successful.

“The reason these teams keep coming back is … because of Dave and the schedule he’s put together,” Bedowitz said. “It doesn’t matter the level, once they get through pool play, games become competitive. And that just goes back to the teams that were invited and the contacts that Dave has made to make this tournament what it is.”

Spring Valley 85, Rancho 62 — Keelan Wickersham scored 14 of his game-high 23 points in the second half to lead the Grizzlies past the Rams.

Up by four at the half, Spring Valley outscored the Rams 57-38 in the second half to pull away. James Webster scored 14, Anthony Dodson had 12 points, and Jahlani Blair added 12 points for the Grizzlies.

James Brown led Rancho with 26 points, Jahleel Stevens had 11 points, and Tejai Washington chipped in 10.

Desert Oasis 78, Basic 58 — Jacob Heese led all scorers with 22 points, and the host Diamondbacks used a 22-7 first quarter to set the tone against the Wolves.

Nate Van had 16 points, and Felix Reeves added 12 points for Desert Oasis.

Geoff Faries led the Wolves with 16 points, and Trent Digiulio added 14.

Desert Oasis 81, Virgin Valley 40 — Nate Van had 18 points to lead the Diamondbacks, who bolted out to a 35-12 edge after the first quarter, over the Bulldogs.

Jacob Heese scored 17, and Kadyn Koch added 16 points to lead the Diamondbacks,

Jayden Perkins led the Bulldogs with 18 points.

Shadow Ridge 55, Sunrise Mountain 24 — Garin Macfarlane scored 14 points, Justin Canlas had 11 points and the Mustangs’ defense stifled the Miners in the blowout victory.

After opening the game with a 16-7 edge in the first quarter, Shadow Ridge held the Miners scoreless in the second quarter to extend its lead to 42-7 at halftime.

Sunrise Mountain, which had just four players score in the game, was led by Steve Adeyemi with 10 points.

Silverado 64, Lincoln County 27 — Trevor Martin led all scorers with 18 points as the Skyhawks ran away from the Lynx.

Dajon Keeling had 13 points for the Skyhawks, who out-scored Lincoln County 42-12 in the second half.

Noah Smith’s six points paced the Lynx.

Basic 69, Cibola (Ariz.) 37 — Geoff Farries buried seven 3-pointers en route to a 35-point performance to lead the Wolves over the Raiders.

Peter Nelson added 10 points for Basic, which led 42-20 at the half.

Ryan Curtis-Sanchez led Cibola with 13 points.

Lowry 52, Sunrise Mountain 50 — After opening a nine-point halftime lead, the Buckaroos held off the Miners’ late rally.

Steven Adeyemi led the Miners with a game-high 23 points, and Dalvin Brown chipped in 10 points.

Lowry got a team-high 17 points from Kobe Stoker, and Dorsey Naveran added 10.

Hurricane (Utah) 63, Shadow Ridge 52 — Jackson Last scored nine of his 35 points in the second quarter, as the Tigers pulled away from Shadow Ridge by halftime.

Garin Macfarlane led the Mustangs with 22 points, while Richard Box scored 10.

Reagan Marshall finished with 11 points for Hurricane.

Gilbert Christian (Ariz.) 56, Silverado 49 — Martell Williams led all scorers with 20 points, but it wasn’t enough for Skyhawks, as the Knights had four players score in double digits in the win.

Dajon Keeling added 14 points for the Skyhawks.

Trey Donaldson and Nick Pappas led Gilbert Christian with 15 points apiece, while Kyler Gargan and Travis Lindsey each added 10 points.

Mountain View (Utah) 69, Spring Valley 50 — The defending tournament champion Bruins opened the game with a 22-6 first quarter, and ended up with four players in double figures in their win over the Grizzlies.

Nick Hatch and Savinata Suguturaga led the way for the Bruins, each with 12 points.

Jonathan Powell and Kobe Moore each scored 11 points for the Grizzlies.

Cibola (Ariz.) 61, Virgin Valley 53 — CJ Atherton led all scorers with 23 points, and Ryan Curtis-Sanchez added 15 as the Raiders took down the Bulldogs.

The Raiders erased a three-point deficit in the first quarter to outlast the Bulldogs.

Jayden Perkins had 15 points for Virgin Valley, and Riley Waite added 12.

Provo (Utah) 52, Lincoln County 26 — Led by Mason Miles, who had 13 points, the Bulldogs hit 21 field goals and limited the Lynx to just seven en route to a blowout win.

Kobe Walker’s 10 points led the Lynx.