High School

Buzzer Beaters and Nail Biters: Breaking Down the Arizona Boys Basketball Semifinals

The semifinal round of the boys' big school basketball semifinals in Arizona turned into a wild night.
Zach Alvira|
St. Mary's Knights Mick Riordan (11) shoots a jumper over Millennium Tigers DJ Spencer (11) during the open division semifinals at Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, on March 4, 2026.
St. Mary's Knights Mick Riordan (11) shoots a jumper over Millennium Tigers DJ Spencer (11) during the open division semifinals at Chaparral High School in Scottsdale, on March 4, 2026. | Diannie Chavez/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The writing was on the wall Wednesday night following the conclusion of the Arizona Open Division semifinal boys' basketball game between St. Mary's and Millennium at Chaparral High School in Scottsdale.

Millennium, the No. 6 team in the nation, was locked in a tight battle with St. Mary's, a perennial powerhouse that features five-star forward Cam Williams.

The Knights trailed the No. 6 team in the nation by four points with under a minute remaining. They clawed their way back into it, trailing by just a point with 1.5 seconds remaining.

The rest was cinema. And it set the stage for a wild semifinal night in Arizona.

Mick Riordan Sends St. Mary's to the Championship

Inbounding from the side opposite his team's bench, junior guard Noah Ondoua waited patiently for Riordan to come free at the top of the key.

The movement by St. Mary's confused Millennium defenders, leaving Riordan wide open. Ondoua fed him the ball. Riordan caught it on the run, took a step, turned and fired from well-beyond the 3-point line.

Riordan showed confidence in his shot immediately, holding his hand up after the follow through. It went in. His teammates mobbed him. The St. Mary's student section stormed the court. Players from Millennium crumbled to the floor in agony after the 66-64 St. Mary's win.

"It was surreal," Riordan told the Arizona Republic. "I think that's the first game winner I ever hit. We didn't draw that up. That was just impromptu. That was Coach getting a call out to us. I mean I work on that shot so much. It finally paid off."

St. Mary's who won the 4A championship last year, now advances to the Open Division State Championship.

Sunnyslope Holds Off Basha

Sunnyslope has advanced to the Open Division finals two of the last three seasons, losing each time to a Koa Peat-led Perry team. With Peat now starring at the University of Arizona, it opened the door for the Vikings and other programs to finally come out on top of Arizona's premier postseason tournament.

Many believed Sunnyslope, the No. 5 ranked team in the country, would match up against Millennium. The two programs split their meetings in the regular season.

The Vikings watched as Millennium was upset by St. Mary's. Shortly after, they took the floor to battle Basha, a perennial Open Division-bound program led by four-year starter Mason Magee.

The No. 5 team in the nation was pushed to their limits Wednesday night. Basha forced the Vikings to overtime, but did so with Magee fouling out just before the end of regulation. Sunnyslope held off the Bears in the end, with star forward Darius Wabbington blocking a 3-point attempt from Basha guard Kingston Montague that would have sent the game to double-overtime. The block secured the 67-64 win for the Vikings.

"We just wanted to switch everything there," Sunnyslope coach Ray Portela told the Arizona Republic. "We knew they were going to run something to 11 (Montague). And we were like, 'Hey, no 3s.' Darius (Wabbington) switched up with a great job late."

Sunnyslope was led by the 6-foot-10 Wabbington, as well as forward Ryder Portella, Ray Portella's son, and point guard Delton Prescott. At 27-2, the Vikings head into Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix for the third time since 2022.

This will be the first time they are favored.

Perry, Liberty Complete Upset Bids to Face-Off in 6A Title Game

The year of the Jackrabbit came to a screeching halt Wednesday night, as the fifth-ranked Liberty Lions dominated top-ranked Mesa, 67-50, in the semifinal round of the 6A Conference playoffs.

The Jackrabbits got off to a quick start, building a 17-8 lead over Liberty at the end of the first quarter. But the Lions quickly regrouped and tied the game at 22 entering the break.

From there, Liberty took over.

The Lions went on to outscore Mesa 45-28 in the remaining two quarters. Freshman Trevin Davis led the way with 17 points, while senior Keegan Colter had 15. All five of Liberty's starters were in double figures.

About two hours south of Mesa, Perry continued its run to the 6A title as the 7-seed, knocking off No. 6 Tucson on the road, 69-64.

Perry was widely written off this season.

The Pumas lost Koa Peat, No-No Brown and DeAndre Harrison to graduation, three of the key components to their dominance the last four seasons. Legendary coach Sam Duane Jr., retired from coaching, leaving another major hole to fill.

Justin Collard was hired to take over a program and follow in the footsteps of Duane. But he and his players carved their own paths. They went 10-15 in the regular season and fell out of the Open Division bracket after losing to St. Mary's.

Since then, the Pumas have played their best basketball of the year.

They went on to beat Maryvale, West Point and finally Tucson Wednesday night to advance to the 6A title game. It's the fifth appearance in a championship in as many years for the Pumas. The previous four at the Open Division level.

Central, Mountain Pointe meeting again in 5A championship

For the second time in as many years, Central and Mountain Pointe will face off inside Veterans Memorial Coliseum with the 5A Conference trophy on the line.

Central held off Willow Canyon after a pair of missed freethrows to come away with a 67-66 victory in the semifinals. Mountain Pointe knocked off Notre Dame Prep 63-53 to advance to the title game.

Both programs have seen a resurgence as of late. Central has been turned around by the Mattingly brothers, John and Grant, as well as other key players such as Dominic Rojas and John Fahrendorf. All four players average more than 10 points per game.

Central captured its first basketball state championship in program history last season.

Mountain Pointe, meanwhile, has had similar success the past two seasons. Head coach Kaimarr Price has been one of the top coaches in the state since taking over Mountain Pointe in 2019.

The school alum has made it his mission to bring championships home to Mountain Pointe. He has come close on two occasions, losing to rival Desert Vista in his first season and Central last year. But this year's team is young and full of talent.

Sophomores Jayvein Moody, Marcus Isaac and Justin Kimbrough all average 11 points or more a game.

Championship Information for Arizona Big Schools

The Arizona big schools championships tip off Friday and end with the boys' Open Division on Saturday night at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix. Below is the championship schedule.

Friday, March 6

Girls' 5A Conference Championship: No. 5 Raymond S. Kellis vs No. 2 Horizon - 6 p.m.

Boys' 5A Conference Championship: No. 4 Central vs No. 2 Mountain Pointe - 8:15 p.m.

Saturday, March 7

Girls' 6A Conference Championship: No. 6 Valley Vista vs No. 4 Highland - 11 a.m.

Boys 6A Conference Championship: No. 7 Perry vs No. 5 Liberty - 2 p.m.

Girls' Open Division State Championship: No. 4 Sandra Day O'Connor vs No. 2 Millennium - 5 p.m.

Boys' Open Division State Championship: No. 3 St. Mary's vs No. 1 Sunnyslope - 8 p.m.

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Zach Alvira
ZACH ALVIRA

Zach Alvira is an award-winning sports editor and writer with over 10 years of experience working in the Arizona high school, college and professional sports landscape. He now serves as the Editor for the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association while covering Arizona prep sports. He began contributing to High School On SI in 2026.

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