Shooting 30% from the field, making 3 of 12 from 3-point range with none made in the second half, and compiling 17 turnovers is a concern for Salpointe coach Joseph Luevano.
Balancing those numbers and that concern was a 48-35 victory in front of a large crowd at Sunnyside against another of the top teams in the state.
Salpointe (14-1) entered the game as the No. 4 team in the state and Sunnyside (14-2) as the No. 8 team, according to MaxPrep’s ranking.
Luevano agreed last summer to schedule the non-region game at Sunnyside with Blue Devil coach Justin Delgado despite a signficant roster turnover from last season in which eight players graduated with seven of them moving on to college basketball.
“We don’t shy away from tough competition,” Luevano said. “I didn’t really know what we were going to have. … I knew we were going to be competive but I didn’t know where.
“I agreed to it knowing we’d come down here. … I knew it would be a great environment for us to prepare for the playoffs. That was our goal. We had 14 kids on the roster and 10 of them are freshmen or sophomores. We have four juniors. We don’t have any seniors.”
Sunnyside, 14-2 overall, has four seniors, including post player and captain AJ Yanez, whose foul trouble all game threw her off her game and beset the Blue Devils.
She picked up her second foul with 2:55 left in the first quarter and did not play in the second quarter, a period in which Salpointe outscored Sunnyside 17-3 to open a 26-11 lead at halftime.
When Canez fouled out with 5:19 left, Sunnyside had scored six unanswered points to cut the lead to 40-29. Delgado was whistled for a technical foul while arguing the foul call.
Salpointe sophomore 6-foot-4 post player Abuk Lual made both free throws from the foul and Jayci Nelson, sister of Arizona guard Evan Nelson, nailed both of the free throws from the technical foul.
Sunnyside never could cut the lead into single digits. Dora Medina, who finished with nine points, converted a strong move to the basket to cut the lead to 45-35 with 2:28 remaining.
Salpointe sophomore guard Katie Adams made two free throws with 1:19 left and junior forward Aryanna Kollasch made one of two free-throw attempts with 11.4 seconds remaining to conclude the scoring.
Joseph Luevano and his staff have led Salpointe to a 14-1 record, after tonight’s 48-35 win at Sunnyside, despite losing eight seniors from last year’s team, seven of whom are playing in college:
Sidney Anderson, Grand Canyon
Ava Dagnino, Pima College
Allison Even, Trinity… pic.twitter.com/GxyFVwa21Z— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) January 10, 2026
Adams scored 11 of her 13 points in the first half, including six when Salpointe gained separation in the second quarter. Jayci Nelson had eight points in the second quarter, six on two 3-pointers, and finished with 12 points.
“We were a little skeptical coming in, but we knew that if we played together and did what we know we can do, we would win,” said Adams, whose confident demeanor on the court belies her age.
She made all seven of her free-throw attempts.
“We have a kid that can step up on any given night, and we’ve played some really tough games,” Luevano said. “Tonight, it was Katie Adams. Katie Adams stepped up and had a big game.
“Jayci Nelson and Ary Kollasch have been huge all season long, as well as Abuk Lual, who has been a force inside all season long. Those guys have been consistent. We’ve always needed somebody else to step up and tonight it was Katie. She stepped up big for us.”
Katie Adams, a calm and collected sophomore, is an example of Salpointe’s impressive young talent after the Lancers graduated eight players from last year’s team. She led Salpointe with 13 points in the 48-35 win over Sunnyside. The Lancers are 14-1 despite the significant roster… pic.twitter.com/Bzvr5OZ6Ku
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) January 10, 2026
Adams also had seven rebounds and two steals.
Sunnyside’s tenacious defense had much to do with Salpointe’s troubles.
The crowd in the gym was also a factor. It was a scene that should happen more often in Southern Arizona high school basketball.
“This environment affected us,” Luevano said. “The style of play affected us. It really forced us to struggle and I’m proud of them (his team) for not just having a hard-fought win but pulling away a little bit and making it a little bit of a cushion.”
The Lancers’ length and depth factored into Sunnyside also struggling offensively, making 12 of 40 (also at 30%) from the field, 2 of 11 from 3-point range, and committing 11 turnovers.
The difference in the score was at the free-throw line with Sunnyside making only 9 of 20, including 3 of 12 in the fourth quarter.
Salpointe made 15 of 21 from the line — 8 of 10 during the fourth quarter.
Lual finished with 11 points and 18 rebounds, her third double-double in her first full varsity season.
Sunnyside was led by Esa Barajas’ 11 points, nine of which came in the second half that helped the Blue Devils trim their 26-11 halftime deficit to 40-29 with 5:29 left before Yanez fouled out.
Sunnyside next plays at Vista Grande in Casa Grande on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
Salpointe faces the challenge of playing defending Open Division state champion Goodyear Millennium (10-3) on the road Saturday at 5 p.m.
The Lancers beat Millennium at home last year in a regular-season non-region game. After losing at Phoenix Sunnyslope the following game, Millennium went on to win 12 straight games to end the season.
“I really proud of them, especially against a tough playoff team — (Sunnyside) is going to go on and create some damage in the 6A, probably,” Luevano said. “That was a great team for us to play. Now, we have to go play probably the No. 1 team in the state. We’ve got to get right quick.
“My goal is to have one of the toughest schedules in the state. This is my sixth year as head coach. According to MaxPreps, we’ve always had a top 10 strength of schedule.”
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator in 2016 and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.
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