by 
The Broncos’ Qujuan Steward (23) puts up a floater versus Williams Field at Talking Stick Arean on Dec. 22.
Poston Butte’s Kevin Johnson at the free throw line.
Southeast Valley Ledger
The Poston Butte boys’ and girls’ basketball teams took part in the Hoopin’ it Up at the Arena Series on Dec. 22. Sponsored in part by the Phoenix Suns, the annual event provides high school basketball teams an opportunity to play a game at Talking Stick Arena, the home of the Suns.
“A lot of our guys grew up in Arizona and are Suns’ fans too, so I think it’s great for them to be there and get that kind of experience,” Poston Butte boys’ head coach Noel Nafziger said. “We’ll do it as long as we can; as long as they’ll have us.”
Both teams played against Williams Field with the Black Hawks besting both the boys’ and girls’ team. The Broncos’ girls were defeated 41 – 33 while the boys were dealt a 62 – 41 loss.
In the boys’ game the Broncos’ were short-handed from the start, playing without injured shooting guard Preston Anderson and later without starting forward Josh Zaker, who was suffered a leg injury early in the third quarter and did not return.
Senior Qujuan Steward, who scored a game-high 25 points, almost single-handedly kept the Broncos in the game during the first half, which ended with the Broncos’ trailing, 29 – 23.
The Black Hawks’ pressure proved to be a problem for the Broncos’ in the second half, allowing them to open a 10-point lead midway through the third quarter. The lead continued to grow throughout the rest of the second half.
“Our problem is our guys don’t want to read defenses,” Nafziger said after the game about his team dealing with Williams Field’s pressure. “They just want to catch and dribble right away and when we dribble it’s usually with our head down and we don’t see passes.”
“We hung in there pretty well in the first half without Preston, but we can’t turn the ball over and expect to stop a team like (Williams Field) and that’s what happened in the second half.”
The Broncos played much of the second half with only two of their normal five starters on the floor. That definitely affected the Broncos’ performance in the second half, but Nafziger refused to use the excuse, instead he preferred to view as an opportunity for some other players.
“We need those guys to have a chance,” he said about his starters. “When they go down we talk about other guys stepping up. It was a good learning experience for the younger kids.”
In addition to Steward’s 25-point effort, sophomore Kevin Johnson finished with nine points and senior Zach Merrill contributed a team-high six rebounds.
Upcoming schedule:Jan. 6 at Dysart, Jan. 8 at Gila Ridge, and Jan. 11 at Higley. All games are scheduled for 7 p.m.
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.
by by