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Going for a layup.
The 15th-ranked Superior boys’ basketball team maintained its hold on a potential playoff berth after splitting a pair of games last week against North Phoenix Prep Academy and No. 2-ranked NFL Yet Academy.
The state tournament, which begins Feb. 17 in Prescott Valley, will include 10 automatic berths and six at-large berths to form the 16-team field. The Panthers can assure themselves being one of the 10 automatic entries by reaching the 1A East Region Tournament finals. The six at-large qualifiers will be based on ranking.
In last Tuesday’s 52 – 38 win against North Phoenix Prep Academy, Marcos Bueno and Kale Major finished with 17 and 12 points, respectively. Bueno, a junior, also had nine rebounds in game, tying Jalon Murray for the team high. Major, a sophomore, had his highest scoring game of the season against the Gladiators.
With the win, the Panthers improved to 11 – 10 overall and 7 – 4 in region play.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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