Head coach Mike Bibby and nationally ranked Phoenix Shadow Mountain (25-1) claimed their second consecutive state title, overcoming a 22-point deficit (17 to start the fourth quarter) to topple Tucson Salpointe Catholic, 83-79.
Arizona State bound point guard Jaelen House helped spark the turnaround, finishing with an absurd double-double: 30 points and 14 steals.
Bibby, who won a national championship at Arizona and spent 14 years in the NBA, called it the best comeback he’s ever been involved in, per USA Today:
“We started playing our defense,” said Bibby, who won Shadow Mountain’s first state title in 1996 as a senior point guard and now has four state titles since 2014 leading the Matadors from the bench. “The guys turned it around.
“We missed a lot of layups and free throws. We would have gotten over the hump earlier if we had made some of those layups.”…
“I told the guys, ‘I don’t think we’ve ever been down at halftime.’ For them to keep fighting, playing together and trying to get the crowd involved, it was a great feeling.”
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