There can only be one champion per conference per year, but across all six conferences in Arizona boys high school basketball, the Fountain Hills High School team did something unique. They were the only team in Arizona to finish the regular season undefeated, at 25-0.

Head coach Jeff Bonner had his first 20-win season last year, and from the beginning of this season, the team held themselves to a high standard. There were 10 seniors to start the season, and they all wanted to end their high school careers on top. Unfortunately, they fell short of their ultimate goal, and now it’s up to the next generation of Falcon players to continue where they left off.

The Falcons set a tone early by winning four of their first six games by more than 30 points. They had several more blow outs this season, including a 75-12 win over Valley Lutheran, where sophomore Matthew Heaney scored 13 points and had his “best game.”

Heaney was the only underclassmen on the varsity team for the whole season. Sophomores Sam Barnard and Lucas Grieco moved up to varsity as the season progressed, but Heaney had the skills and mindset to practice with varsity right away.

“When [Bonner] said I could play, at the meeting after tryouts, I was like, ‘I’ll work and try to get as many minutes as I can, even if it’s in the fourth quarter’. Prove I can play and get more minute hopefully.”

Heaney spent the whole season working and earning as much time as he could. He will be relied on next year and hopes to be a captain as a junior, and if he can grow as much as junior Keaton Ort did between his sophomore and junior seasons, the Falcons will be in good shape.

Ort went from an all-region honorable mention last year to the region player of the year this year, and he was also named to the all-conference first team. Ort filled the shoes of Xavier Mike, who won region offensive player of the year last year, and Ort joined his father, Martin, as one of the few Falcons to earn region player of the year honors in school history.

“Honestly, [Mike] last year was obviously our main player, our main scorer, and he was gone,” Ort said. “Bonner told me that I’d have to put in some more work, try do some of things he did as a leader last year. Put it into the team this year. Even though I was one of the youngest on the team, he believed in me that I could be a leader of the team.”

Ort averaged 19.2 points per game, which was the best in the region and 10th best in the conference. He started the season averaging close to 24 points but cooled off scoring as his teammates started to find their rhythm.

Ort was a team captain and the offensive leader, but he wasn’t always the primary ball handler or the loudest voice in the huddle. The Falcons have steadily improved over the past five years under Bonner, and Ort plans to continue that trend by taking on more responsibilities.

“Just by being more vocal this upcoming year. Even though I was a captain, we kind of all were captains at one point, so I kind of let the seniors this year do all the talking,” Ort said. “I’ve know all the upcoming juniors pretty much my whole life…. They all respect me, so I think I can be a great leader for us next year and try to continue our program success.”

Even with leadership by committee, the Falcons found success against tough teams. They came from behind on the road to beat No. 9 Gilbert Christian 60-57. They beat the defending 2A champions twice, and they beat the No. 2 team in 2A this year, Phoenix Christian, 67-57. The Falcons also defeated Payson, their biggest school rival, in a home playoff game, 53-36, which extended their win streak over the Longhorns to 24.

“I think every team just wanted to beat us badly,” Ort said. “We were undefeated, we were the No. 2 seed, we were one of the best teams in 3A. Every team saw us and were like ‘we’re going to give them our best shot,’ and eventually Ironwood gave us their best shot and they beat us.”

The Falcons were a home grown squad this year, and they’ll be even more so next year. Senior Luke Bloedel transferred as a freshman, and senior Casey Osborne transferred as a junior, but everyone else had been playing with each other for years before that.

The junior varsity starters this year included Heaney, Barnard, Grieco and fellow sophomores Matthew Halvorsen and Michael Fitzherbert. That unit has been playing together under assistant coach Brent Olsen’s tutelage since the second grade, and they also went undefeated this year. Ort will be asked to lead this group as they try to repeat or improve on a 26-1 season next year.

The Falcons will lose seniors Aiden Logan, Deisel Giger, Tyler Cosman, Napherious Doka-Johnson, Jack Ervin, Spencer Nelson, Jake Zuberbuhler, Tory Johnson, Osborne and Bloedel to graduation. They were a huge part of the program for years, and they shared lessons with underclassmen before they left.

“Aiden kind of took me under his wing. He took me and Sam and taught us how to play pretty much like the way he plays,” Heaney said. “Like passing, you don’t need to score all the time. If you score four points, but you make the team win, it doesn’t really matter.”

Heaney and his underclassmen classmates learned a lot this year. Whether it was during games or practice, playing video games together or giving a ride home after practice, the seniors showed what it meant to be live by the “Falcon Way,” with their respect for each other and countless hours of hard work on and off the court.