Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Prep Basketball:

Foothill falls to Canyon Springs

Foothill vs Canyon Springs1

Stephen R. Sylvanie / Special to the Home News

Falcons guard Kadeem Minor (right) dribbles while being covered by Canyon Springs guard Donald Anderson during a game at Foothill High School on Friday.

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Falcons players Cody Gomez (30) and Kadeem Minor (21) battle with Canyon Springs defenders Chris Willis (center), and Adrian Snow (back) to tip in a loose ball during the final seconds of a game against Canyon Springs at Foothill High School on Friday.

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Falcons forward Cody Gomez, (30) attempts to score while being tightly defended by Canyon Springs players Chris Willis (left), and Adrian Snow (45) late in the fourth quarter of a game at Foothill High School on Friday.

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Canyon Springs guard Terrance Stanley looks to shoot over Falcons defender Evan Roquemore during the first half of a game at Foothill High School on Friday.

Foothill boys basketball coach Kevin Soares didn't cut his team any breaks with its schedule to start the season.

In what was a rematch of last season's Sunrise Region semifinals, Foothill lost 63-54 to defending Northeast Division champions Canyon Springs on Friday night.

The loss came after Foothill (0-2) opened the season on Tuesday with a 78-54 loss to Cheyenne, a team favored to win state.

"It's not about getting wins early," Soares said. "It's about seeing where you are, gauging how your team play and what you need to do to improve. This is great for us and we can't do anything but get better."

Soares discovered his team's greatest weakness against Canyon Springs (3-0) to be ball control and turnovers. Foothill amassed 10 turnovers in the first half alone and gave up a six-point lead to go down 31-24 by the end of the second quarter.

Canyon Springs sophomore guard Michael Thompson was responsible for causing many of those turnovers and led all scorers with 19 points.

"I'm just impressed with our tenacity and ability to come back," Canyon Springs coach Daryl Branham said. "We kept it moving and played hard."

After falling to a 16-point deficit midway through the fourth quarter, the Falcons got within seven points with less than a minute remaining.

It was as close as they came to a comeback as Canyon Springs sealed the game with foul shots in the final seconds

"We turned the ball over too much and they took advantage of it," Soares said. "This was a good early season test for us and we will build off of it. Hopefully we can meet up with them in the playoffs again where it counts."

Despite the 0-2 start to the season, the coach hasn't lost any confidence.

Soares knows his team needs to be tested early on if it expects to repeat as Sunrise Region champions.

Foothill has a knack for winning games when they matter most. After upsetting Canyon Springs in last year's playoffs, the Falcons knocked off Eldorado to win the region.

The Falcons return a pair of starters from that team — guard Evan Roquemore and forward Cody Gomez — who join a small but athletic squad.

"Foothill is a very good team and they are very well-coached," Branham said. "I'm sure we will see them again in the playoffs."

Leading the way for Foothill to start the season is guard Kadeem Minor, who has scored 14 points in each of his first two outings.

Minor was disappointed with his team's first two losses, but said he prefers a tough pre-division schedule to start the year.

"You learn how to keep your composure under tight situations," he said. "We don't want to play any soft teams to get our confidence up for nothing."

Foothill begins Southeast Division play against Green Valley on Dec. 16.

Sean Ammerman can be reached at 990-2661 or [email protected].

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