The Pinnacle Pioneers (11-9) Varsity Boys basketball team defeated the Boulder Creek Jaguars (13-8) 70-62 in Thursday’s matchup.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Pinnacle bounces back with a big win over Boulder Creek 70-62. Braylon Johnson & Ryan Nelson each with 20, Saleem Gakiza w/ 19 pic.twitter.com/wBK0l5Oyr8
— Pinnacle Basketball (@PinnacleBball) January 19, 2024
Pinnacle Gets Through Struggles
After an extremely strong start to the season where the team won nine of their first 11 games, the Pioneers have struggled. They lost seven of their next eight games and dropped significantly in rankings.
In defense of Pinnacle, a majority of those losses came against some of the top teams in the state/country, including Perry, Houston Christian, Sunnyslope, Clovis West, and Notre Dame Prep.
While they do have four players averaging double-digit points, senior forward Braylon Johnson has been the team’s star. Johnson is averaging 18.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.
Braylon Johnson closing the gap for Pinnacle against Sunnyslope in third quarter pic.twitter.com/x5bNDjKvVX
— Richard Obert (@azc_obert) January 13, 2024
The Pioneers next match up against the Mountain Ridge Mountain Lions (8-14) on Tuesday, Jan. 23 @ 7 p.m. MST. The team will look to keep it rolling as the playoffs approach.
Boulder Creek
Similar to Pinnacle, Boulder Creek started the season off very hot. The team started 7-1 and defeated some elite teams this season, including the Valley Christian Trojans (19-2).
Despite some recent struggles for the team, junior forward Andrew Bhesania continues to perform at a high level. He is averaging 19.9 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game. The junior is doing this with incredible efficiency as well.
Andrew Bhesania is the Player of the Game for Boulder Creek 💥 #HoophallWest | #HoophallRegionals pic.twitter.com/AwXDyOE4a1
— Hoophall Classic (@HoophallClassic) December 1, 2023
The Jaguars next face off against the Sunnyslope Vikings (13-4) on Tuesday, Jan 23 @ 7 p.m. MST. The Vikings are currently on a seven-game win streak and will not be an easy task for Boulder Creek.
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Saleh Awwad is a writer/reporter covering Phoenix High School Sports, Arizona State Sun Devils, and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @SalehAwwad_
