After a sluggish loss to Scottsdale Prep in the season opener, Sedona Red Rock High School’s boys basketball team was looking to right the ship and get in the win column against North Pointe Prep in the season’s second game on Friday, Jan. 22. Fortunately for the Scorpions, they did just that.
Sedona controlled the action throughout and went on to post a dominant 61-27 victory over the Falcons.
“On Friday we played probably the best we ever have,” senior Jaiah Grondin said. “Defense-wise, offense-wise, everything was just clicking. The first game was rough. It was the first game in months and we got ahead of ourselves. But on Friday we went out, stayed in control and took the game over.”
Three Scorpions finished the game against the Falcons in double digits. Senior Jamie Alagna led the way with 16 points, fellow senior Joey Johnson had 15 while Grondin had 13. Alagna added six rebounds and four steals, while Johnson had three rebounds and three steals.
The other two starters — juniors Dorian Stevens and Alberto Sanchez — contributed across the statsheet, as well. Stevens had eight points, 12 rebounds, four blocks and three steals. Sanchez, meanwhile, had eight points, eight rebounds and four assists.
The overall effort, especially the steals generated by the good defense, was welcomed by SRRHS coach, Pedro Ortega Sr.
“I was most proud of our defensive end,” Ortega said. “We tried very hard and kept them to 27 points. Defense, in my world, generates offense. I put a lot of emphasis on defense. It’s the key. We feed off of that and the transition gives us a chance to score on the other side.”
Given that the start of the season was delayed by more than a month, this year will feature far fewer games than normal. That places an extra level of importance on each game.
For the Scorpions, the win had even more importance, given how poorly they played in the 47-34 loss in the season opener.
“I thought it would be super important for our confidence,” Alagna said. “Going into our senior year we were expecting a lot. In the first game we needed to fine tune some things. In the second game, being able to fine tune what we needed to work on can be beneficial.”
“I think the game we played Friday was important to bounce back in,” Grondin added. “Everything could have gone downhill if we didn’t play well in that game. This is a good uplifting game to have after the first one. The game was very important to win.”
Aside from the fewer games, another added challenge of the season has been playing with masks.
When the Scorpions began practicing in them, they were problematic. But with a little more practice and getting more suitable masks, things have gotten better.
“I definitely think it’s gotten a lot better,” Alagna said. “It helps that we have masks that are made for sports. We had been in the masks that we wear everyday to school. That was miserable. But adjusting has been better than expected. We can definitely ride out the season with these masks.”
The win over the Falcons evened the Scorpions record at 1-1.
Their next game will be on Friday, Jan. 29 at 7 p.m. against Glendale Prep. It will be Sedona’s home opener, though, with the exceptions of up to two guardians for each player, fans will not be permitted.
Two games in, the Scorpions feel good about where they stand.
“As of right now I think that we are good,” Grondin said. “Of course we would have loved to win the first game. But I think it showed us where we need to perform better and we did in the second game. And I think that game showed us where we need to improve and hopefully we’ll do that in the next one.”
