The Fountain Hills High School boys basketball team didn’t give Payson any hope in the second half, and they sent the Longhorns home after beating them 53-36. Senior Luke Bloedel scored 10 of his team-high 14 points in the second half, and he dunked the basketball in the final seconds to put more emphasis on the win over his school’s biggest rival in the playoffs.

“So much excitement, so much energy,” Bloedel said. “The stands were packed. It’s the last home game of the season. When I dunked it, just feeling the eruption and feeling everything shake around me was just the most surreal feeling. I hope I can recreate this feeling one day.”

The win extends Fountain Hills’ dominating win streak over Payson in boys basketball. The Falcons are 3-0 against Payson in the playoffs since 2004, including the 2006-07 state championship, and 27-2 against Payson overall since ’04.

The Falcons defended home court in the second round of the state tournament, and they played No. 7 American Leadership Academy – Ironwood after press time yesterday, Tuesday, Feb. 21. If they win, they’ll play in the semi-finals and potentially the finals this Friday and Saturday, Feb. 24 and 25, at the Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum.

The Falcons got out to an early 11-3 lead over Payson, even without starting senior Aiden Logan in the game. The Falcons adjusted their game plan for his absence, and then foul trouble made them pivot game plans again.

Bloedel had two fouls in the first quarter, and at one point, the Falcons only had one starter on the court in the second quarter. Payson made it 13-9 after the first quarter, and they took a 16-15 lead with 4:40 to play until halftime.

Head coach Jeff Bonner had senior Napherious Doka-Johnson, who started in place of Logan, and junior Keaton Ort on the court at the same time, as well as seniors Casey Osborne, Jack Ervin and sophomore Sam Barnard. The combination didn’t score for several minutes, but they scored seven points and regained the lead in the last 80 seconds.

Barnard got things going with 1:12 left. He drove to the basket for two points, then Doka found Ervin for another two points. Payson hit one of two free throws with 15 seconds left, and then Barnard passed it to Ort in a corner, who nailed a three-pointer to take a 23-21 lead with one second left in the first half.

“Everybody has the potential to play up and be the next man, and it’s all mentality,” Ervin said. “We all put the work in and we’re ready whenever we get in. We go all out in the minutes that we get, and we try our hardest.”

The Falcons came out of the locker room hyped up, and they outscored Payson 20-6 in the third quarter. Payson hit a three pointer on their first possession, but Fountain Hills tightened up their defense quickly. By the end of the third quarter, Ervin and Barnard were back in the game, and senior Ty Cosman stole the ball on an inbounds pass and scored in the final seconds.

“We already had different starting lineup because Aiden couldn’t play this one, so what happened in the first half is we got into foul trouble,” Bonner said. “Guys that don’t normally have to step up and play minutes had to step up today and play. I think they did a great job.”

Bonner kept his starting five in the game for the fourth quarter, and Payson was too far behind to catch up. The Falcons were in control and Bloedel put the finishing touches on the score with his slam dunk in the last seconds.

“It’s always been a complete, giant rivalry in any sport against Payson,” Ervin said. “Everybody shows up, everybody shows out. Everybody on the team gives theirall.”

Ort had the second most points with 13, and Doka-Johnson scored 10 as a starter that night. Cosman added seven points, and fellow senior Deisel Giger scored four points. Ervin and Barnard added two each.

The Falcons practiced at the same time of day on Monday as their game on Tuesday to better prepare for ALA - Ironwood. Bonner said the Falcon’s still haven’t had a perfect game this season, and they can always find small improvements to make.

“At this time of year, it’s just making sure our guys are comfortable with everything we’ve been running,” Bonner said. “It’s not adding a whole bunch of stuff, it’s adding little wrinkles to the things that we’ve already done well.”

The winner of Tuesday’s match will face the winner of No. 3 Coolidge and No. 6 Monument Valley in the semi-finals on Friday, Feb. 24. Tickets can be bought through the Arizona Interscholastic Association website. Go to azprep365.com and find boys basketball in the sports tab at the top. Then click on brackets to find the 3A state tournament tickets.