Top-ranked Navajo Prep girls rally for 41-36 win over No. 3 Crownpoint

CROWNPOINT

Something had to give.

In the contest between two of the state’s top 3A teams, the top-ranked Navajo Prep Lady Eagles (16-3) battled back from a five-point deficit to upend No. 3 Crownpoint 41-36 in a key District 1-3A matchup on Friday night.

Navajo Prep trailed 32-27 with just over four minutes left before they turned it up a notch on both ends of the court to steal a road win in front of a capacity crowd at Crownpoint High School.

“We needed this game, especially going into the second half of our district, but also for postseason,” Navajo Prep coach Rainy Crisp said. “Playing in this type of game, in this type of environment where three-fourths of the gym was rooting against us was good for us.

“In the first half, Crownpoint and their fans did a great job of getting into our heads mentally,” she added. “Halftime, we just focused on us. They did great and I’m so proud of them.”

The five-point win by Prep snapped Crownpoint’s 11-game win streak as both teams were looking to take over the driver’s seat in the district race with Prep owning a 6-0 mark while Crownpoint comes in second at 5-1. Crisp agreed that Friday’s showdown was perfect example of what the matchup should look like between the top two teams in the district.

“That’s what the game is supposed to be like, right, with the No. 1 and 2 in the district,” she said.

Crownpoint coach Byron Murphy concurred while adding that he was very proud of his team for staying resilient, especially when they faced adversity in the early going of the contest.

“I’m beyond proud of my girls,” said Murphy, whose team dropped to 16-4 overall. “I needed them to show up for this game and they showed up. There were little things that cost us the game, but not once did my girls ever give up.

“I’ve been teaching them that you never give up whether it’s on the court or in life,” he added. “And no matter how much adversity hits you, you never give up.”

The hometown Eagles had to work out some early flaws as they faced a 7-2 deficit in the opening quarter. Navajo Prep added a pair of quick buckets at the start of the second stanza, getting baskets from freshman point guard Dejahnelle Denetso and junior forward Leilani Wood for its largest lead at 11-2 with 6:19 to go before the half.

Crownpoint, however, clawed its way back and finished out the quarter on a 13-5 run with senior forward Courtney Craig starting the rally with two-point bucket.

After a Navajo Prep missed, senior guard Kathryn Francisco nailed a 3 atop the key that pulled Crownpoint within 11-7. Navajo Prep answered with a putback by freshman post Taylor Begay, but Craig scored six of the next eight points as her old-fashion, three-point play with 2:10 remaining earned Crownpoint a 15-13 edge.

The Crisp-coached team regained the lead with a free throw from senior guard Kameron Dale and a transition layup by Denetso for a 16-15 edge heading into the half.

Navajo Prep opened the third with 3 from Dale, but that was answered by a trey by Crownpoint junior guard Miley McMillian as the game remained a one-possession game.

After a pair of free throws from Wood, Crownpoint went on a 10-2 run that spilled into fourth as Craig’s two-point basket put the home team ahead at 28-23 with 7:33 remaining in the game.

The two teams traded baskets for the next three minutes before Prep picked up its intensity on the defensive end. The visiting Eagles also snatched some key rebounds that help ignite an 11-0 rally.

“Crownpoint did a great job, and they came out ready to play,” Crisp said. “I feel like we came out ready to play, too, but once our shots weren’t falling that is when they got ahead.

“But in the second half, I think the turning point was when (my team) started to control themselves,” she added. “I told them, one point at a time, one stop at a time and forget about the score. Let’s just play defense.”

Dale initiated that late run with a baseline trey as that basket came off a Crownpoint turnover with Prep trailing 32-31 with 3:44 left.

The Crisp-coached team then tied the contest at 32-all on a free throw from Wood with three minutes left.

The visiting Eagles took the lead for good when they capitalized on another Crownpoint turnover as junior Jayden Conn completed a three-point play for a 35-32 lead.

Junior Nataya Serrano then stretched that lead to 38-32 by nailing 1-of-2 at the charity line while adding a two-point bucket with 1:30 left.

Despite facing a six-point deficit, Crownpoint didn’t go away quietly as Francisco nailed four straight free throws in an 11-second span to get her team within 38-36 a minute remaining.

Crownpoint’s full court press then force a turnover, but the hometown team gave it right back with an overthrown pass intended for Craig, who was cutting to basket.

Prep received an insurance basket from senior guard Kamyra Goldtooth to end Crownpoint’s rally.

“We had our chances but, shoot, Navajo Prep is the defending state champ and Rainy Crisp is always gonna bring a strong team,” Murphy said. “That is what we prepared for, and it was a battle all night. We just fell short to a good team.”

Craig led all scorers as the Crownpoint forward finished with 16 points, which included a 6-of-7 effort from the free throw line while Francisco added 11.

For Prep, Serrano finished with a team-high 10 points while Dale chipped in eight.

In other District 1-3A action on Friday night, Newcomb defeated Wingate 60-44 while Zuni posted a 66-40 win.

With those finals, it marked the halfway mark of the district season as Prep leads the seven-team group with a 6-0 record ahead of Crownpoint (5-1) and Newcomb (14-6, 4-2). Tohatchi heads the next group at 10-10 overall, and 3-3 in district followed by Zuni (6-13, 2-4), Thoreau (7-13, 1-5) and Wingate (5-14, 0-6).

“I always say this every year, but our district is the toughest district,” Crisp said. “Any night, as we had seen tonight, it could really go either way. Now that we finished the first half of our district, playing everybody again is going to be tougher because everybody’s going to make adjustments.”

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