Tuba City advances to AIA Copper semis: 3A North well represented in state playoffs

By Lee Begaye
Special to the Times

TUBA CITY — Tuba City moved within one game of the Arizona Interscholastic Association Copper State final Thursday night, defeating St. Johns 59-43 behind 21 points from freshman Layla Curtis.

Curtis led the Lady Warriors while senior forward Aubrey Begaye added 15 in the win. Freshman Jordan Tsinajinnie scored 11 for St. Johns, sending St. Johns back to the AIA 2A state tournament as the No. 2 seed.

The teams traded baskets early before Tuba City took a 12-11 lead after the first quarter. Curtis scored the Lady Warriors’ first nine points while Begaye added a field goal. St. Johns had three scorers in the period, with Tsinajinnie and sophomore Alyvia Richardson scoring four each and senior Roerie Knight adding three.

Tuba City began to separate in the second quarter, outscoring St. Johns 14-10. Senior guard Justice Nez and Curtis each scored five points and senior Raquel Lee added four as the Lady Warriors built a 26-21 halftime lead. Junior Lucy Sundal led St. Johns with five in the quarter while Tsinajinnie scored three.

Six different players scored for Tuba City in the third quarter as the Lady Warriors pushed the lead to 42-30. Curtis scored four while Begaye added three before picking up her third foul, limiting her minutes the rest of the period. Sophomore Sage Platt led St. Johns with four.

Begaye sparked the final push, scoring eight fourth-quarter points on two 3-pointers as Tuba City closed out the 17-13 quarter. Curtis added three and sophomore Nakota Tallman scored three. Tsinajinnie and senior Evannah Richardson scored four each for St. Johns as the 2A school finished with a 7-of-19 effort from the free-throw line.

Tuba City will face 2A top-ranked Pima (25-4) in the Copper Bracket semifinals at Winslow on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 6 p.m. In the other semifinal, 3A top-ranked Snowflake (29-1) will meet 3A third-ranked Valley Christian (19-7) at 3 p.m.

Tuba City coach Peterson Butler said transition offense was key to the win.

“Our game plan was to get out and score in transition,” Butler said. “We want to get the running game going and score quickly. St. Johns adjusted to it, and we went to off-ball screens to get Layla to the basket. Rebounding was critical for us. We did a good job in the second half.”

“Layla always comes to play, Aubrey contributed even though she had foul trouble in the third, but she came through in the final quarter,” he continued. “Our bench came in to support like Justice did.”

Curtis said pace made the difference.

“They played aggressive, and I had to play my game — score,” Curtis said. “We watched film and saw they are fast, so scoring before they get set was key.”

Butler added the team will prepare for Pima by reviewing a common opponent.

“We will review film and see how Pima played,” he said. “See how Window Rock played. We have the matchup with Window Rock so we will use them as the gauge to figure out how to get past Pima.”

3A Conference bracket set (subtitle)

The 3A state bracket is set. Five teams from the 3A North advanced or dropped into the bracket, leaving the conference fully represented along with Holbrook and Winslow from the 3A East.

After falling to Pima, Window Rock (19-9), ranked fourth in 3A, earned the No. 1 seed, and will host the Wednesday’s winner between No. 8 Monument Valley (12-14) and No. 9 Payson (20-7) on Saturday night.

Page (14-14) lost at Snowflake 59-44 and secured the No. 2 seed, awaiting the Wednesday’s survivor between No. 7 Chinle (17-14) and No. 10 Gilbert Christian (20-6) also on Saturday night.

Holbrook (15-13) earned the No. 11 seed and will travel to No. 6 Show Low (14-13), while Winslow (9-18) earned the No. 12 seed and will travel to No. 5 Pusch Ridge (18-5) on Wednesday night.

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