December 19, 2004
Playing perhaps its best game of the tournament Saturday morning, Marcos de Niza’s girls basketball team was rewarded in the afternoon with its easiest win of the season.
The Padres were declared winners of the annual Phoenix Union High School District Tournament after Phoenix Greenway opted to forfeit what ended up being the title game of the three-day event at Phoenix Camelback High School.
Marcos (12-5) and Greenway (10-7) were the only unbeaten teams heading into Saturday morning’s championship-bracket final.
The Padres were sharp compared to their semifinal performance Friday when they squeaked past Phoenix Trevor Browne. They dominated Greenway to the tune of 64-34 to earn an allimportant bye and some extra rest in a tournament that required six games in less than three days.
With the morning loss, Greenway dropped to the loser’s bracket and had to play two hours after losing to Marcos to get another crack at the Padres.
Greenway beat Phoenix South Mountain, 56-52, in a very physical game to earn a rematch.
But already down to eight players with a couple of others out with injuries and two more players battered in the South Mountain game, Greenway didn’t want to risk further depletion. If Greenway would have played and won, it would have had to play Marcos again 15 minutes after the afternoon meeting that never was.
‘‘Winning the morning game was important because I don’t think anyone wanted to play three or four games (Saturday),’’ Marcos coach Toby Greer said.
‘‘We came out ready to go this morning. We played hard again, as we did against Trevor Browne, but we played the way they were coached to play this morning. It was a collective effort.’’
Four Marcos starters scored in double figures in the morning romp over Greenway — Sarah Amos (13), Briana Gholston (13), Sam Chittenden 12 and Ashley Hardin (12).
The Padres’ bench supplied 16 points. Marcos completed the tournament with a 5-0 record.
