Arbor View overcomes late turnovers, holds off Desert Oasis

Arbor View held a 26-point lead with 2:32 to go in the third quarter on Friday and looked to be on cruise control against Desert Oasis.

But then things nearly got away. The Diamondbacks forced 15 second-half turnovers and got as close as four points before the Aggies held on for a 70-61 boys basketball victory.

“They put a little pressure on us and the wheels came off,” Arbor View coach Dustin Clayton said. “I don’t know how many consecutive possessions we couldn’t even get a shot off. It was just turnover, turnover going the other way for layups. And that’s usually not like us.

“I didn’t know what was going on.”

Arbor View (7-2) led 57-31 after a basket by Tyre Williams with 2:32 to go in the third quarter, but Desert Oasis closed the quarter on a 9-0 run, and didn’t stop once the fourth quarter came.

Junior forward Marcus Connolly didn’t enter the game for the Diamondbacks until the final minute of the third quarter, but almost immediately hit a 3-pointer to help spark the comeback. He finished with 14 points, all in the final 8:29.

Desert Oasis (6-4) got as close as four after a 3-pointer from the left wing by Dominique Ford with 2:54 to play. But seniors Favor Chukwukelu and Williams helped stop the bleeding.

Chukwukelu hit a pair of free throws and Williams completed a three-point play with 2:10 to go to give the Aggies some breathing room.

“I kept telling them at those timeouts when we were trying to stop runs, we have to take care of the basketball and get a good shot,” Clayton said. “We need a bucket right here to shut this down just to change the momentum back in our favor.”

Jaylon Lee had 10 rebounds, including six late in the fourth quarter to help the Aggies hold on.

“Jaylon owning those boards late was huge,” Clayton said.

Larry Holmes led Arbor View with 18 points. Chukwukkelu had 13 points and Donovan Yap 11 for the Aggies.

Ford led Desert Oasis with 15 points, seven rebounds and four steals. Janorris Sejour added 11 points and five rebounds off the bench.

Contact prep sports editor Damon Seiters at dseiters@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4597. Follow @DamonSeiters on Twitter.