Randy Walker’s return to Anthem took him to a tiny Christian high school that had never played varsity basketball.

Three years later, Walker and his North Valley Christian Academy players raised the gold ball as the Arizona Interscholastic Association’s 1A state champions.

Picking up the defensive intensity in the second quarter, North Valley Christian rolled  to a 65-48 victory over Bullhead City Mohave Accelerated Learning Center before a large crowd at Mesa Dobson High School.

Walker led Anthem Boulder Creek to the Division II (equivalent to 5A) championship in 2010. Last year, he took North Valley Christian to the 1A final in only its second year, falling to Fort Thomas.

The Lions finished this season on a 20-game winning streak, after losing its opener to defending 2A champion Scottsdale Rancho Solano Prep by a point.

Walker was concerned about Mohave Accelerated’s size, but, after the Patriots, led by guard Aden Honegger, went on an 11-2 run in the first quarter to build a 13-7 lead, the Lions settled down and gained control.

They tied it at 15 to close the first quarter, then held the Patriots to six second-half points while building a 29-21 halftime lead, even with senior Josh Walker, Randy’s son,  picked up his third foul early in the third quarter and went to the bench.

No problem.

Freshman Jesse Graves came in and did a good job defensively and showed poise on offense.

Braeden Roberts, Kai Marusteri, Austin Kraemer and Rayj Roman held it down for the Lions, keeping the Patriots from coming back.

MALC (22-2) managed only nine points in the third quarter, as North Valley Christian took its biggest lead, 41-28, on Kraemer’s 3 from a corner on a pass from Graves.

When Walker returned to start the final quarter, Graves stayed in, and hit a 3 in the first minute to give NVCA a 44-30 lead on a feed from Walker.

Walker picked up his fourth foul, sending him back to the bench with 4:43 to play.

Honneger and Josh Neal both hit 3s to bring MALC within 10 with more than five minutes to play.

Honneger’s second-chance basket cut it to 49-42 with four minutes left.

Roberts took over from there. He scored on layups on successive possessions. Graves scored on a reverse layup to make it 55-42

To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at [email protected] or 602-316-8827. Follow him on Twitter @azc_obert.

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