Bears punch ticket to first State title game with shutout win
SEMIFINAL BLOG: 12/3/22
The Basha Bears used their dual-threat quarterback, kicking game, and a strong 48-minute defensive effort on Saturday to advance to the Open Division State Championship Game for the first time in their 19-year history with a 13-0 victory over Chandler.
It was an odd evening at Dick Pallas Field on the campus of Dobson High School in Mesa as rain began to fall shortly before noon and never really stopped as it continued throughout the game. Fortunately, DHS has a turf field, so there was no mud buildup, puddles, or destruction of the grass.
Basha's defensive line was ready from the outset. Seniors Tyson Simmons and Kaden Bancroft each had sacks on Chandler's first possession.
"From the get go, our coaches were telling us that we've got to get after them," Bancroft said. "We've got a linebacker down (Wyatt Milkovic) and that weight shifts to us. We had to take on the quarterback and hunt."
The elements played a role early as one of Basha's sacks came from a mishandled snap. Basha tried a field goal on its first drive, but the slick ball was kicked too low and it was blocked.
The next Chandler possession resulted in the first of two turnovers for the Wolves. Outside linebacker Jack Bleier and Simmons converged on the quarterback forcing a fumble. Bancroft pounced on it at the Wolves' 45-yard line.
Basha converted a fourth down in the only touchdown drive of the night. Senior Deshaun Buchanan gained the two yards necessary to move the chains.
Basha cashed in on the turnover as quarterback Demond Williams Jr. faked the handoff, kept it, found running room on the right sideline and dove and found the pylon for a 7-0 lead. It was his fifth rushing TD of the season.
"(Due to the weather) We knew we were going to do a lot more quarterback run game," Basha head coach Chris McDonald said. "It favored us because we have a quarterback who can really go."
The rest of the half featured three punts and another blocked field goal (by Chandler). This one was largely due to a high snap.
Simmons had three sacks in the game, giving him six for the season. The 6-3, 235-pounder is strong and has run a 4.6 laser-timed 40. He was wrecking the line of scrimmage.
Chandler (9-3) only had two drives end in Basha territory. One was in the second quarter when the Wolves had fourth-and-two at the Bears' 39-yard line. Ca'lil Valentine, who returned from an ankle injury, picked up the necessary yardage, but a penalty flag backed CHS up to fourth-and-15 and the Wolves punted.
"I've got some young kids on the offensive line," Chandler head coach Rick Garretson said. "We just couldn't make things happen, and then when we got going, we stubbed our toe and had a couple of key penalties and you just can't do that in semifinal games."
At the half, Chandler (which came in averaging 40.8 points per game) was limited to just 48 yards (21 rushing and 27 passing).
"We've got a really good defensive line," McDonald said. "Coach (Zach) Griffin is going to get his due. He's done a good job for a long time."
Griffin, who previously coached at Mountain Pointe during its championship game run, was hired by McDonald when he became the Bears' head coach in February of 2018.
The other possession by the Wolves which crossed midfield ended at the Basha 36-yard line midway through the third quarter. Facing fourth-and-five, Chandler called a timeout to discuss the play call. An incomplete pass followed. With no penalty flags (it was questioned by some on the Chandler side for pass interference), Basha had the ball again.
Williams Jr. led the Bears into scoring range late in the third quarter with a 24-yard run. This time, there would be no problems in the special teams and junior Timothy Tynan booted a 31-yard field goal for a two-score advantage.
After one more defensive stop, Basha (11-1) continued to move the ball and more importantly, consume clock. Normally, the Bears play no-huddle and get up to the line and go. With the lead, they milked much of the time off. A 14-play drive resulted in a second field goal for Tynan. It also took seven minutes.
The last gasp for Chandler came with the Wolves trying a gadget play. Junior Dylan Raiola, who was 12-of-21 for 83 yards, lateraled to Blake Heffron. The pass was intercepted by Miles Lockhart and that ended it.
Basha had seen Chandler in late-October (a 14-7 win) and the secondary knew what it was up against with the Ohio State commit.
"We had a good taste of how good he is and how he can put the ball where most quarterbacks can't," Basha cornerback Cole Martin said. "It was a big focus in practice that we could contain him and our secondary could do our thing out on the field."
Martin, who is an Oregon commit, said the work for the 2022 season actually began in November of 2021. It was a day after getting eliminated in the first round of the Open by Liberty.
"It started the day after (the loss)," Martin said. "It was huge for us to work on what we didn't have set since that loss."
Chandler had played in six straight title games, including all three years of the Open playoffs. While the Wolves will have experience returning next year at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, and along the O-Line, this was the end for some of their top defensive players.
"My kids on defense played really well," Garretson said. "Roman (Kupu), A'Mauri (Washington), and Dominic Hanger. Those guys played hard and laid it out there."
Basha will face the defending Open Division champion Saguaro next Saturday night at 6 p.m. at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe. The Sabercats rallied from a 42-28 fourth-quarter deficit to defeat top-seeded Liberty, 43-42. Saguaro scored a touchdown with just over a minute to go and was successful on a two-point conversion for the win. It will be the first-ever meeting between the schools in Scottsdale and Chandler and will also be a dynamic dual-threat showdown between Williams Jr. and Devon Dampier.
"It feels great (to make the championship) because the kids work so hard," McDonald said. "Quite frankly, anything less than playing for the gold ball, I would have felt like a failure to them."
First Quarter:
Basha - Demond Williams Jr. 25 yard run (Timothy Tynan kick), 2:16
Second Quarter:
No Scoring
Third Quarter:
Basha - Tynan 41 yard FG, 2:00
Fourth Quarter:
Basha - Tynan 37 yard FG, 3:22
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