Paloma Wins, Finishes Third in Own Tournament, 58-55

Demarco Prewitt drives past a defender during Paloma Valley High's victory in its own tournament on Wednesday. Photos courtesy of kristijophotography.com

By Daniel Millhouse

In a physical clash for third place in the Winter Shootout Tournament, Paloma Valley High School's boys basketball team scored a 58-55 victory over Canyon Springs on Wednesday.

The lead changed hands numerous times throughout the first half, but Paloma took hold of the score for good with 6:42 left in the third quarter. Demarco Prewitt led the way with 8 of his 15 points scored in the third quarter to keep the Cougars on their heels for the rest of the game.

From the start, the game was a physical battle. Canyon Springs played a full-court press that gave the Wildcats trouble at first, though they also sent Paloma Valley players to the line five times in the first quarter alone. The Wildcats were able to capitalize on this by going 7 for 8 from the line to cap off their 13-8 lead after one quarter of play.

Canyon Springs countered by starting the second quarter with an 8-0 run to give them the lead with 5 minutes left in the half. The lead continued to change hands multiple times through the quarter, but the Cougars held onto the lead thanks to Maiki Jackson’s 7 points scored, ending the half with a score of 24-23.

The Cougars came out strong again to start the third quarter, scoring the first 4 points of the second half, but Paloma Valley countered with its own 6-0 run to grab a lead that it wouldn’t relinquish for the rest of the game.

Both teams quickly found themselves quickly in the bonus in the third. Jackson had 3 fouls alone in the third that contributed to his eventually fouling out.

Paloma Valley scored 20 points in the third thanks to Prewitt and 3-point contributions from sophomore Chance Nolan and senior Blake Bouman, who tied a school record for 3-pointers in a game with 7 in the Wildcats' game against Vista Del Lago Tuesday night.

"We got some good seniors who are very coachable"” Paloma Valley coach Michael Pfeiffer said after the game about his team’s play after halftime. "When you’re coachable and you give our coaches 10 minutes to make adjustments, then we can apply them to make a run and do some things."

At the end of three quarters, the Wildcats held onto a 43-40 lead.

The fourth quarter turned out to be just as physical, as both teams found themselves in the double bonus. The Wildcats were sent to the line six times, shooting 8 for 11 in the final quarter. On the flip side, the Cougars were sent to the line five times, sinking 7 free throws in 10 attempts.

The Cougars had trouble against the Wildcats defense in the final quarter, failing to sink some important shots that could have helped them tie the game up. Senior Josh Madrid contributed with strong defense while Nolan was able to hit his second 3-pointer of the game at a key moment to break the will of Canyon Springs.

With the score at 55-53, Canyon Springs had a chance to tie the game. Jackson missed an open shot and Nolan was able to fight for the rebound with 30 seconds left in the game. Dishing the ball to Bouman, he was flagrantly fouled by Chris Calligen with 26 seconds left, sending Bouman to the line. Bouman sank both free throws to give his team a 4-point lead and the ball back.

Canyon Springs was never able to recover.

The Wildcats were led by notable performances by Prewitt, who scored 15 points, sophomore Steven Bradshaw (right), who scored 10, and Madrid, who scored 9.

The Cougars were led by EJ Williams, who scored 13 points and Jackson, who scored 11 before fouling out.

The Wildcats will continue the season on Jan. 5 when they face the Nighthawks of Murrieta Valley at home.