Big second half propels Sunnyslope (Ariz.) to Classic at Damien championship

The Classic at Damien platinum bracket title game saw a pair of top-100 national programs go toe-to-toe on Tuesday night. Sunnyslope (Ariz.) came away with a tough 71-63 victory over Redondo Union (Calif.).

After a grimy start to the game, Sunnyslope, the No. 4 team in Arizona, put together an impressive 46-point second half to snatch the momentum en route to another big win. The Vikings got to the line plenty and they cashed in, making 27 of 30 free throws. Of those 27 makes, 17 came in the fourth quarter.

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They shot 52 percent from the floor in the second half. The duo of junior four-star center Darius Wabbington and junior three-star point guard Delton Prescott delivered once again.

Both finished with 22 points. Prescott was named tournament MVP. He shot 6-12 from the floor and also had five assists and four rebounds. Wabbington had another double-double, racking up a game-high 12 boards, six assists and two blocks.

Sunnyslope canned just four 3-pointers and trailed for 15 minutes. Converting from the charity stripe and leaning on its two stars helped it separate in the second half.

Redondo Union, now the No. 11 team in California, got a heroic performance from senior guard Chace Holley, who bolstered his stock in a big way at the event. In the loss, he went for 31 points on 11-18 shooting, making half of the Sea Hawks’ field goals on Tuesday.

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Star senior shooting guard SJ Madison, a Nevada commit, put together an 11-point, 10-rebound double-double. Redondo Union lost the rebound battle 35-29 but did outscore Sunnyslope in points off turnovers, 17-8. Its lead never grew larger than six points and a poor second quarter played a role in that as it went 3-16 from the floor in the period.

Sunnyslope’s title run also featured victories over three other California programs in Eastdale Roosevelt, St. John Bosco and Crespi. Before Tuesday’s loss, Redondo Union picked up wins over in-state Crean Lutheran, Clovis North and host Damien.

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