There were starts and stops, doubts and belief, a February frenzy of makeup games and no student sections, and, in the end Saturday, a gold ball.

Phoenix Sunnyslope players held their collective breath as Tru Washington let loose a 3-pointer that just missed, and they could celebrate a 63-62 victory over Phoenix Mountain Pointe for the 6A boys basketball championship at Gilbert Mesquite.

“This is our first time in 6A and we won it,” said junior guard Oakland Fort, who had 19 points and was steady down the stretch when the Pride put on massive pressure. “Not knowing if we were going to have a season or not, obviously that’s tough.

“But getting all the way here, and winning it, it’s very special.”

After opening the season with a win over 4A champion Phoenix St. Mary’s, Sunnsylope went into a 14-day COVID-19 quarantine.

That ruined the mood.

But the Vikings (21-1) stayed patient, and, after coming out of it, coach Ray Portela packed February with makeup games and even scheduled a game with tough 4A Tucson Salpointe Catholic.

The only blemish was an overtime loss to Mesa during a week cramming in games.

It had a tough win over 4A runner-up Surprise Paradise Honors and staved off red-hot Phoenix Brophy Prep in the 6A semifinals.

Then, when Mountain Pointe (15-6), with its athletes and big man Zereoue Williams battling in the paint with grit and strength, the Vikings let guards Fort and Malcolm Olexa, and 6-foot-8 bookends Elijah Saunders and Grady Lewis carry them down the stretch.

Olexa had 10 rebounds and made two free throws with 28 seconds left that gave Sunnyslope a 61-55 lead.

A little later, Saunders made two free throws.

But Jason Kimbrough Jr., made a driving shot and hit a 3 with 10 seconds left to make it a three-point game.

Olexa missed the front end of a one-and-one, and the Pride got the ball to its leading scorer all season.

Washington, a sophomore lefty, double clutched and shot as he faded away onto the floor. It missed, Kimbrough scooped it up for the two as the buzzer sounded. And the Vikings celebrated.

“I thought he was going to shoot it initially, but he pump-faked, and then shot it,” Fort said. “I felt like I contested it well, and he missed the shot. At the end of the day, we got the job done.”

Portela was relieved.

“It could have gone either way,” said Portela, who has led Sunnyslope to three state titles since 2017. “We made some free throws. Some of their shots didn’t fall. It was one of those games that could have gone either way. They’re well-coached, a very good team. Our guys showed some resilience. We didn’t have the best night offensively. But that’s a credit to their defense.”

Williams, regarded as one of the best defensive centers in the state, made it tough on Saunders and Lewis. He played with both in club basketball, so Williams called the game, “Family against family.”

“I was looking forward to going up against them,” said Lewis, who had eight points and eight rebounds.

Saunders had 16 points and six rebounds.

Sunnyslope’s guards crashed the board with Olexa grabbing 10 rebounds and Fort nine.

Kimbrough and Washington each had 16 points, and Williams had 11 rebounds and four blocked shots.

“In the beginning of the game, I couldn’t get shots to fall against Z,” Saunders said. “We just kept going. We knew it was going to come back around.”

Mountain Pointe opened the fourth quarter on a 7-2 run to take a 50-48 lead, before Fort answered with a 3. Fort made 3 of 11 3-pointers.

Mountain Pointe led 54-53 with 3:50 left on Mark Brown’s two free throws. The Pride went nearly five minutes in the quarter without making a field goal before Kimbrough scored with 21 seconds left.

Before that, Saunders hit a midrange jumper and Fort scored inside for a 57-54 lead.

Mason Taylor was big off the bench for Sunnyslope, scoring seven of his 10 points in the first half. He was 4 of 5 shooting, including banking in a crucial 3.

“I’ll do whatever I can do to contribute to the team,” Taylor said. “I’ll take charges. I’ll play defense. I don’t care if I score. I’ll do whatever it takes to win the game.”

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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