Down 26-8 after one and 42-26 at the half, Rincon/University came out of the locker room knowing the final 16 minutes could be more of the same but a 26-17 run the third quarter gave the Rangers some hope with the lead cut down to 59-52. The backstory to all this drama was the push to get head coach Rich Utter his 500th career victory but it was not to be. The Rangers went on to take a 67-64 lead with 1:05 left but the Chargers scored the last five points for the 69-67 win….
STORY IN THE TWEET
Cholla held off Rincon/UHS 69-67 #azpreps365 https://t.co/IQEoScCaaq
— AZPreps365 (@AZPreps365) January 13, 2024
For Cholla Michael Payne led all scorers with 21 points including four 3-pointers, Cyree Jenkins scored 17, Jerry Mendoza had 15 and Camden Jenkins had eight. Zaire Hays led Rincon/UHS with 13 points, Sam O’Dowd had 12, Jaylin Nichols had nine, Abel Munoz had nine, Jaydon Moore had eight and Luis Blanco Ruiz finished with eight.
FREE PHOTOS IN THE LINK
CRUNCH TIME VIDEOS
Zaire Hays puts Rincon/University up 67-64 with 1:05 left pic.twitter.com/1qgZIGbxNr
— Andy Morales (@AndyMorales8) January 13, 2024
Jerry Mendoza calmly ties the game at 67-67 with 52.3 second left for Cholla pic.twitter.com/lkTdl0PI61
— Andy Morales (@AndyMorales8) January 13, 2024
Jerry Mendoza cuts to the basket to put Cholla up 69-67 with 1.5 seconds left pic.twitter.com/bledT9JE5N
— Andy Morales (@AndyMorales8) January 13, 2024
Excellent play and look for a Ranger game-winner with 1.5 seconds left but just short pic.twitter.com/OrH5jS0gDD
— Andy Morales (@AndyMorales8) January 13, 2024