No. 1 Pima sprinted out to a 20-2 lead over No. 3 Scottsdale Saturday night and the Aztecs used that initial wave to carry the program to another NJCAA Region and District championship with a 74-49 victory. The Aztecs will be watching the National Tournament Selection Show slated for Tuesday at 5 p.m. local time with the tournament scheduled to be played from March 16-21 in Danville, Illinois.
The Aztecs finished with a program best 35-1 record last year and a third place finish at the national tournament, but there might have been questions about how the team would respond this year after losing the top four scorers to graduation, including NJCAA All-American Cohenj Gonzales (18.7 points a game) who is now a junior for Colorado Mesa, but the scoring production from the top four players on this year’s team are on course to pass the mark set last year. In short, this team can run, dunk, play defense and score some more.
The Aztecs recorded 17 three-pointers in a 108-70 victory over No. 4 Glendale on Thursday in the semifinal round but the team went 7-29 from beyond the arc Saturday night yet still managed to build a 20-2 lead with 12:30 left in the first half. Pima led 31-8 with 6:16 left but the shots stopped falling and Scottsdale cut the lead down to 37-19 at the half.
Four of the team’s seven made three’s came in the first seven minutes of the second half and a 55-28 lead with 13 minutes left in the game proved too much for the Artichokes to overcome and head coach Brian Peabody was able to unload his bench with his team leading 72-45 with 3:06 left.
Mason Hunt scored a game-high 25 points against Glendale and he scored 19 against Scottsdale to earn the Most Valuable Player award for the tournament. Isaiah Hill added 16 Saturday night and Isaac Johnson had 14. Davion Harris led the Artichokes with 10 and Coleman Fields added nine. Quincy Kirk pulled down 10 rebounds for Scottsdale and Johnson nine for Pima.
Scottsdale (17-14) upset No. 2 South Mountain 65-57 in the semifinal round. South Mountain finished with a 25-6 record. Pima is ranked No. 4 in the nation and the rest of the teams from Arizona are unranked and unlikely to receive an at-large berth.
Pima @PimaMens_bball head coach Brian Peabody talks shooting and this team. Incredible offense that feeds of a quick defense. pic.twitter.com/xTubipvEqc
— Andy Morales (@AndyMorales8) March 8, 2026
Mason Hunt. NJCAA Region/District Tournament MVP. @PimaAthletics @PimaMens_bball pic.twitter.com/EJ4u5Ei3Ap
— Andy Morales (@AndyMorales8) March 8, 2026
No. 1 Pima @PimaMens_bball dominating 74-49 victory over No. 3 Scottsdale. Pima is 32-0 with an NJCAA Region and District championship. The selection show is slated for Tuesday at 3 pm for the women and 5 for the men. National Tournament is March 16-21 in Danville, IL. Mason Hunt… pic.twitter.com/X4JEtVL6pi
— Andy Morales (@AndyMorales8) March 8, 2026
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