While Valley Christian had a two-week Christmas break, our Trojan boys basketball team kept up their hard work for that three-peat championship they're hoping to earn.
During the break the boys played in one tournament over the course of four days and had three regular season games as well.
First over the break the Valley Christian Trojans competed in the Visit Mesa Basketball Challenge held at Red Mountain High School. On Wednesday, December 27th, they played Clovis West High School from California at 11:30 am. This team is currently ranked 10th in California. The Trojans fell short against the Cougars, but only lost by three points with a score of 63-66. On Thursday, December 28th, they played the Mission Prep Royals, another school from California, at 8:30 pm. The Trojans destroyed the Royals and came out on top with a score of 72-39. On Friday the 29th, Valley competed against Timpview from Utah at 4:00 pm. The boys pulled through and ended in a victory with a tight score of 63-62. The last day of the tournament, Saturday, December 30th, the boys played the Boulder Creek Jaguars at 8:30 pm. Sadly, this game ended in a tough loss with a final score of 66-73. Junior Kyle Grier reflected on these games saying, "It was a fun experience getting to play quality teams from out of state. Almost every game was great competition which we don't always get during the season." The Trojans enjoyed the tougher competition throughout this tournament and put in the work to play the best they could.
Towards the end of break, the Trojans continued their regular season games and played against Rancho Solano Prep, ALA Ironwood, and Holbrook. The Trojans started their final week of break with a game against Rancho Solano with a 79-57 win. Later on in the week, the #1 ranked 3A basketball team, our VC Trojans, played the second-best team in 3A, ALA Ironwood. This game was filled with a lot of nerves as most thought it would be a close game. This matchup ended in an astonishing 88-58 victory for the Trojans. Senior Kevin McCarthy shared, "We came out with a good win and showed them who is number 1, but they showed us some areas that can be worked on to improve for the rest of the season." Lastly, on Saturday, January 6th, the Trojans headed up north to Holbrook, Arizona. They played against the Holbrook Roadrunners and came out with a 90-50 victory. As the Trojans finished their week, they would head back to school and prepare for two rivalry games against Scottsdale Christian and Gilbert Christian.
The boys basketball team has had an amazing first half of their season, and they are thrilled to see how it plays out in the second half. The Trojans have been working their hardest and are excited to go for a three-peat state championship to end a great season.
They are away at Scottsdale Christian on Friday, January 12 at 7:30 pm, and away at Gilbert Christian on Saturday, January 13 at 7:00 pm. Come and support your 16-2 basketball team, Go Trojans!
