ARCHIVES 2008

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2007-08 TIGER VARSITY ROSTER

#	PLAYER	HEIGHT	WEIGHT	CLASS
10	Chris Barlow	5’ 10 1/2”	150	Senior	PROFILES
12	Quincy Lee	6’ 0”	160	Senior
14	Daniel Carter	6’ 0”	150	Senior
20	Francisco Ahumada	6'3"	180	Junior
22	Eric Donzella	5’ 11 1/2”	155	Junior
24	Daryl Clarke	6’ 5”	190	Senior
30	Kevin Soliz	6’ 2”	185	Senior
31	Elliott Clark	5’ 11 1/2”	175	Junior
32	Jon Stevens	5’ 11”	165	Senior
34	Colin O’Brien	6’ 0”	160	Senior
40	Brandyn Farrell	6’ 1”	160	Senior
44	Elliot Fletcher	6’ 6”	175	Senior
50	Tait Neilson	6’ 2”	175	Senior
54	Shawn King	6’ 3”	175	Sophomore

STAFF		TEAM COLORS: BLACK & GOLD MASCOT: TIGERS
Head Coach	Jay Caserio
Assistant Coach	Gordon Rutledge
Assistant Coach	Justin Hastings
Manager	Tanner Hall
Video	Nick Laursen
Statistics	Tommy Lemmons
ADMINISTRATION
Principal	Dr. J. Charles Santa Cruz
Athletic Director	Steve McDowell
Athletic Secretary	Dayna Sheets
LOCATION
1101 E. Elliot Rd. ● Gilbert, AZ 85296 Phone ● (480) 497-0177 Ext. 169

Left to Right - Top Row: Head Coach: Jay Caserio - #50/Tait Neilson - #20/Francisco Ahumada - #24/Daryl Clarke - #44/Elliot Fletcher - #30/Kevin Soliz - #40/Brandyn Farrell - Assistant Coach: Justin Hastings - Assistant Coach: Gordon Rutledge

Left to Right - Bottom Row: #22/Eric Donzella - #54/Colin O’Brien - #14/Daniel Carter - #10 /Chris Barlow - #31/Elliott Clark - #32/Jon Stevens - #12/Quincy Lee

Left to Right - Top Row: Head Coach Greg Ream - Matt Alvarado - Seth Taylor - Landon Hicks – Shawn King – Austin James – Greg Krahenbuhl – Chad Heathcoat – Assistant Coach Andrew Laursen

Left to Right - Bottom Row: Kody Boyle – Jon Knott – Riley Chowning – Jesse Brantley – Beau Harris – Jimmy Smith – Michael Holden

Left to Right - Top Row: Head Coach: Brian Loe – Mitch Reber – Kyle Eyster – Larz Huerta – Alphonso Crawford – Chance Howard – Zach Regier – Connor Schweinfurth – Manager: Tanner Hall

Left to Right - Bottom Row: Stuart Dougherty – Young Tanner – James Wirthlin – Zach Berajano – KJ Fellenz – Vince Guido – Brian Gentile – Drew Stankiewicz – Assistant Coach: Tom Bennett

2007-08 TIGER SCHEDULE

NOVEMBER		TIME	LOCATION	OPPONENT	RESULT	RECORD
11/20	Tuesday	4:45	Tourney	Dobson	58-63	0-1
11/21	Wednesday	4:45	Tourney	Desert Mountain	67-33	1-1
11/24	Saturday	4:45	Tourney	Mesquite	67-58	2-1
11/27	Tuesday	7:15	Home	Mesa	65-37	3-1
11/29	Thursday	7:15	Away	Marana Mountain View	49-40	4-1
11/30	Friday	7:15	Home	Corona Del Sol	65-63	5-1
DECEMBER
12/04	Tuesday	7:15	Away	Buena	52-55	5-2
12/07	Friday	7:15	Home	St. Mary's	66-54	6-2
12/11	Tuesday	7:15	Home	Desert Ridge	62-51	7-2
12/14	Friday	7:15	Away	Basha	45-58	7-3
12/17	Monday	7:15	Away	South Mountain	43-31	8-3
JANUARY
01/02	Wednesday	TBA	Tourney	PUHS Tourney - Maryvale	74-61	9-3
01/03	Thursday	TBA	Tourney	PUHS Tourney - Trevor Browne	63-61	10-3
01/04	Friday	TBA	Tourney	PUHS Tourney - Precision	67-55	11-3
01/05	Saturday	TBA	Tourney	PUHS Tourney - Desert Ridge	52-50	12-3
01/08	Tuesday	7:15	Home	Chandler*	68-49	13-3
01/11	Friday	7:15	Away	Hamilton*	43-38	14-3
01/15	Tuesday	7:15	Away	Desert Vista	36-48	14-4
01/18	Friday	7:15	Home	Highland*	38-65	14-5
01/22	Tuesday	7:15	Away	Mesquite*	58-35	15-5
01/25	Friday	7:15	Away	Chandler*	39-42	15-6
01/29	Tuesday	7:15	Home	Hamilton*	58-47	16-6
FEBRUARY
02/01	Friday	7:15	Home	Mesa Mountain View	49-47	17-6
02/05	Tuesday	7:15	Away	Highland*	72-58	18-6
02/08	Friday	7:15	Home	Mesquite*	72-44	19-6
SPECIAL EVENTS
*	Denotes Fiesta Region Game
02/01	Parents Night
02/08	Senior Night
02/11	Fiesta Region Tournament Starts
02/18	State Tournament Starts

2007-08 GAME RECAPS

●●●GILBERT - MOUNTAIN VIEW (STATE TOURNAMENT)●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #28- February 20, 2008
Third quarter's the charm for Toros - By Les Willsey, East Valley Tribune

Third quarters haven't been Mesa Mountain View's forte much this season, but Wednesday night it produced a near-flawless one. That period was the impetus to the 15th-seeded Toros knocking off No. 2 seed Gilbert High, 68-53, in the first round of an incredibly wild night in the 5A Division I boys state basketball tournament at Gilbert High.

"We've had some real stinkers this year," Mountain View coach Gary Ernst said of his team's third quarters. "Tonight we played very well. The kids were very focused that quarter. It was a great time to have a solid quarter."

Mountain View (21-9), winning its 13th consecutive state tournament game, advances to Saturday's quarterfinals. The Toros get a rematch of last year's title game and another chance in pursuit of a four-peat against No. 10 seed Phoenix St. Mary's at St. Mary's. The Knights knocked off No. 7 seed Tucson Wednesday.

Senior guard Brendon Lavender led Mountain View with 20 points, 15 coming in the second half. Nathan Murphy, who did not play against Gilbert when the teams met Feb. 1 in the Tigers' 49-47 win, added 19 points. He kept Mountain View afloat with 13 of his points coming in the first half. Jordan McLelland also scored in double figures for the Toros, adding 10 points.

How good was Mountain View's third period? The Toros outscored Gilbert, 20-8. They did not commit a turnover. They connected on 8 of 11 field goals, including their first five shots of the quarter to take control of the contest. Meanwhile, Gilbert, which closed the season 20-8, turned the ball over five times in that stanza. It took one minute for the Tigers to lose their halftime lead of 24-23 for good.

Mountain View took a 43-32 lead to the final quarter and decided to work the clock with the lead and Gilbert's foul trouble. The Toros took just six shots in the final period and made five. From the free throw line in the quarter, they were 15 of 18 to blunt any idea Gilbert had of making a comeback.

Ernst was particularly pleased with Murphy, who had his best game since coming back from illness two weeks ago. "He had a great game in all phases," Ernst said. "He made 3s, played great defense and kept us in the game in the first half with his shooting."

Senior guard Daniel Carter paced Gilbert with 11 points and teammate Shawn King came off the bench to add 10 points.

GILBERT
MOUNTAIN VIEW

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Clarke	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Soliz	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Clark	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Fletcher	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Neilson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Kevin Soliz applying pressure against Toros

●●●GILBERT - HIGHLAND (FIESTA REGION CHAMPIONSHIP)●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #27- February 15, 2008
The Gilbert Tigers fell to the Highland Hawks in the championship game of the Fiesta Region Tournament on Friday night by a score of 66-49. The Hawks came out firing early and scored twenty points in the 1st quarter, capped by Nick Witherill’s long three point shot to beat the buzzer. The Tigers found themselves down by double digits in the 2nd quarter, but refused to go away. They began to dig their heels in defensively, share the ball offensively, and cut the Hawk lead in the 2nd quarter to three points. Gilbert had possession of the ball with less than thirty seconds to go facing a five point deficit and attempting to get the last shot of the half, however a costly turnover, followed by a dunk and free throw by Highland’s Nick Johnson just before halftime, swung the momentum back in the Hawk’s favor as the teams went to the locker room.
The third quarter began much like the first as the Hawks scored the first six points of the second half. After a Gilbert timeout, Highland went into their spread offense for the rest of the game and maintained their advantage. The Tigers never gave in, scrapping and fighting until the bitter end, but the Hawks were the better team on this evening and snapped Gilbert’s moderate five game winning streak. The story of the game was points in the paint, where Gilbert was beaten badly. Highland got much of its scoring from shots right at the rim, while the Tigers mostly settled for outside jump shots. Highland’s inside presence, Chris Johnson, finished with a game high seventeen points. Kevin Soliz played a solid game for the Tigers, rebounded well, and scored thirteen points to pace the Tigers.

SCORING
Gilbert: Soliz 13, Clark 10, Carter 6, Fletcher 4, Nielson 4, Donzella 3, Farrell 3, Lee 2, Clarke 2, King 2.

Highland: C. Johnson 17, Carlino 16, N. Johnson 13, Witherill 12, Toolson 4, Lewis 2, Wardrop 2.

GILBERT	11	14	11	13	49
HIGHLAND	20	13	16	17	66

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Clarke	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Soliz	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Clark	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Fletcher	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Neilson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

●●●GILBERT - CHANDLER (FIESTA REGION SEMI-FINALS)●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #26- February 13, 2008
The postseason got off on the right foot for the Gilbert Tigers on Wednesday night as they defeated the Chandler Wolves 78-62 in a semi-final game of the Fiesta Region Tournament at Highland High School. The first half was marred by sloppy play by the Tigers as they committed fourteen turnovers against Chandler’s array of pressure man and zone trapping defenses. Gilbert also struggled to keep Chandler’s dribble penetration and offensive rebounding under control. After such a poor performance in the first half, the Tigers felt lucky to only be down by two points (33-31) at halftime.

The Tigers were sparked in the second half by the shooting of junior guard Elliott Clark. Clark led the Tigers with thirty-one points, which included some difficult three point shots and spin moves to the basket. Eli Godinez did his best to keep the Wolves in the game by scoring a game high thirty-two points, but it was not enough as the Tigers slowly pumped the tournament life out of Chandler in the second half. Gilbert was happy to avenge a tough loss to the Wolves earlier in the season

GILBERT	13	18	22	25	78
CHANDLER	12	21	14	15	62

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Clarke	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Soliz	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Clark	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Fletcher	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Neilson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

●●●GILBERT - MESQUITE●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #25- February 08, 2008
Friday night was senior night in “The Jungle.” The Gilbert Tigers gave their seniors and fans a night to remember as they played a solid game and soundly defeated the Mesquite Wildcats in their final regular season game by a score of 72-44. To honor the seniors, Coach Caserio delivered an inspirational and genuine speech before tip-off. After tip-off, the team delivered one heck of a performance. Simply stated, the game was a total team effort, with every Tiger carrying his share of the load.

The game was still competitive at halftime, as the Tigers held a twelve point advantage. However, after the intermission, Gilbert went on an offensive tear en route to a thirty-one point quarter that officially put the game out of reach for the Wildcats. Junior Elliott Clark continued his streak of hot shooting and finished with a game high 17 points. The story of the game though was the balance and teamwork that the Tigers showed on offense. They pushed the ball in transition and when they had to execute in the half court, their patience and unselfishness were superb. Way to go Tigers and “thank you” seniors! We have enjoyed each of you immensely.

SCORING
GILBERT- Clark 17, Carter 10, Soliz 10, Clarke 8, Donzella 7, Barlow 5, Farrell 5, King 4, Lee 3, Fletcher 2, Neilson 1.

MESQUITE: Nolen 14, Zepeda 10, Sahina 6, Armstrong 5, Krueger 3, Tilley 2, Strong 2, Usewitch 2.

GILBERT	16	14	31	11	72
MESQUITE	08	10	15	11	44

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Clarke	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Soliz	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Clark	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Fletcher	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Neilson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

●●●GILBERT - HIGHLAND●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #24 - February 05, 2008
The Gilbert Tigers not only avoided a season sweep by Highland on Tuesday night, but exacted some revenge for the thumping they received by the Hawks in “The Jungle” last month. The Tiger offense was firing on all cylinders in the 1st half as they geared up their running game and really put the Hawks on their heels from the outset. If not for the three point shooting of Highland guard Nick Witherill, the Tigers would have had a double digit lead after the 1st quarter. Junior guard Elliott Clark was a sparkplug for the Tigers all evening. Clark nailed four three point shots in the 1st half en route to a game high 19 points. Several of Clark’s shots were timely as they enabled Gilbert to hold on to the momentum in the game.

The second half of the game saw more of the same from the Tigers… hard-nosed defense and fluid offense. Highland attempted to get the game turned in their favor by extending their defense and zone trapping the Tigers. With few exceptions, the Tigers handled the Hawk’s pressure and traps efficiently, found the open man, and finished at the basket. Senior Elliot Fletcher, who sat out much of the 1st half with two fouls, was on the receiving end of several nice passes from his teammates as they broke through the Hawk’s zone trap. Fletcher scored 13 second half points, punctuated by two tomahawk dunks in the closing minutes. Not to be overlooked was the defense of Danny Carter and Elliott Clark who drew the defensive assignments on Witherill and Matt Carlino respectively. Both players worked extremely hard to keep Highland’s two talented guards under wraps.

SCORING
GILBERT- Clark 19, Fletcher 17, Soliz 9, Carter 9, Donzella 6, Clarke 6, Neilson 3, Ahumada 2, Farrell 1

HIGHLAND - Witherill 14, Carlino 12, C. Johnson 8, Wardrop 6, Toolson 6, James 6, N. Johnson 3, Farr 2, Nicholls 1

GILBERT	19	15	21	17	72
HIGHLAND	10	14	14	20	58

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	1-1	0	0	0	0	0	2
Lee	0	0	0	0	1	0	0
Carter	0-2	3-4	0	3	2	2	9
Ahumada	1-1	0	0	0	0	0	2
Donzella	3-5	0-2	0	1	1	5	6
Clarke	2-3	0	2-2	2	3	1	6
Soliz	2-5	1-1	2-2	5	2	1	9
Clark	0-5	5-7	4-5	7	3	6	19
Stevens	0	0	0	1	1	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Farrell	0	0	1-2	1	1	1	1
Fletcher	8-10	0	1-4	5	0	1	17
Neilson	1-1	0	1-2	3	0	0	3
King	0-1	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	17-33	9-14	11-17	28	14	18	72

●●●GILBERT - MOUNTAIN VIEW●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #23 - February 01, 2008
Friday night’s home game against the Mountain View Toros started of with a heartfelt “thank you” to the parents of the players and ended with an exciting 49-47 victory for the Tigers. Gilbert survived an offensive onslaught by University of Arizona bound Brandon Lavender in the 4th quarter. Lavender, who had a game high 27 points, scored 17 of those points in the 4th quarter, including several three pointers from just outside the Gilbert High parking lot.
Nevertheless, the Tiger’s team defense was outstanding all evening, as only three other Toros were able to get in the scorebook. The Tigers balanced scoring attack was led by Danny Carter’s 14 points. A real key to the game for the Tigers was the play of their bench. Brandon Farrell gave a great defensive effort in trying to hold down Lavender. Moreover, Darryl Clarke and Shawn King provided some playmaking and needed offensive punch with 8 and 9 points respectively.

After a quick start to the game, the Tigers found themselves in a bit of an offensive rut from the middle of the 1st quarter until early in the 3rd quarter. After a 30 second timeout early in the 3rd quarter, Gilbert got their transition game going and their offensive rhythm returned. The Tigers had a solid grip on the game with about four minutes to go when Lavender began to take over for the Toros. In fact, if it weren’t for some solid offensive execution, including a huge clutch jumper and two free throws from Elliot Clark, the game may have finished differently for the Tigers

SCORING
MOUNTAIN VIEW - Lavender 27, Meo 8, Hunt 7, Ellsworth 5
GILBERT- Carter 14, King 9, Clarke 8, Fletcher 7, Clark 6, Farrell 3, Soliz 2\

GILBERT	11	07	13	18	49
MOUNTAIN VIEW	05	12	11	19	47

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	2-3	3-5	1-2	2	1	1	14
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0	0	0-1	2	4	2	0
Clarke	2-4	1-3	1-1	3	1	2	8
Soliz	1-4	0	0	3	1	1	2
Clark	1-4	0-1	4-4	0	0	2	6
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0-2	1-1	0-1	1	1	0	3
Fletcher	3-7	0	1-3	3	1	2	7
Neilson	0-1	0	0	5	0	0	0
King	2-3	1-1	2-2	3	0	2	9
TOTALS	11-28	7-12	9-14	24	9	12	49

●●●GILBERT - HAMILTON●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #22 - January 29, 2008
The Gilbert Tigers defended their home court on Tuesday night and defeated the Hamilton Huskies by a score of 58-47. The Tigers jumped on the Huskies early, outscoring them 10-2 in the first quarter. Hamilton got themselves back in the game in the second quarter by getting some easy baskets in transition and by doing a nice job on the offensive glass.

The halftime break was filled with a simple message to the Tigers, “Trust each other, be patient, and share the ball.” The Tigers took control of the game in the third quarter as they continued to play solid defense, pushed the ball in transition, and took the advice of Coach Caserio to heart as they played patiently and together on offense. Indeed, the third quarter exhibited what the Tigers are capable of when they play for each other and “make the extra pass.” Besides a lull in boxing out and rebounding on defense in the fourth quarter, Gilbert did a nice job of maintaining their lead and putting the game away.

SCORING
HAMILTON - Evans 17, Hambsch 13, Henderson 8, Jackson 5, Witt 4

GILBERT- E. Clarke 15, Soliz 13, Donzella 10, King 8, Nielson 7, Carter 4, Farrell 1

GILBERT	10	15	20	13	58
HAMILTON	02	17	12	16	47

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	1	2	0	0
Carter	0	1-2	1-3	1	1	4	4
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	4-5	0	2-2	7	2	4	10
Clarke	0	0	0	1	1	0	0
Soliz	4-7	1-2	2-2	2	2	3	13
Clark	5-7	1-3	2-2	3	2	0	15
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0-1	0	1-2	2	0	2	1
Fletcher	0-3	0	0	6	2	1	0
Neilson	3-3	0	1-4	6	1	1	7
King	2-3	1-1	1-1	1	4	1	8
TOTALS	18-29	4-8	10-15	30	17	16	58

●●●GILBERT - CHANDLER●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #21 - January 25, 2008
After a promising victory against Mesquite on Tuesday, the Gilbert Tigers struggled to score on Friday night and fell to the Chandler Wolves by a score of 42-39. The Tigers, who failed to get into any kind of offensive rhythm, were plagued by Chandler’s 17 offensive rebounds and by their own missed free-throws (13/24), turnovers (15), and foul trouble.

Devirous Johnson and Sam Dohm hammered the Tigers on the offensive glass all evening. In fact, the Wolves out rebounded the Tigers by a margin of 40 to 26. Dohm’s offensive rebound put back off of a missed free-throw in the closing minute was a fitting “nail in the coffin” for the Tigers. Gilbert shot poorly from the field (23%), including (18 %) from behind the 3 point arc. Moreover, Elliot Fletcher, their inside scoring presence, was in foul trouble the entire second half, fouling out in the 4th quarter with only 7 points. Eli Godinez made all the big offensive plays down the stretch for the Wolves and finished with a game high 17 points. Gilbert had several chances to regain the lead in the final minute, but was unable to execute down the stretch. Kevin Soliz made some big offensive plays for the Tigers in the 4th quarter to keep them within striking distance.

SCORING
GILBERT:- Soliz 9, Fletcher 7, Carter 6, Donzalla 5, Clark 5, Neilson 3, King 3, Clarke 1

MESQUITE: Godinez 17, Johnson 11, Gibson 6, Dohm 4, Edwards 2, Williams 2

GILBERT	08	11	07	13	39
CHANDLER	06	15	04	17	42

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	0-6	1-6	3-4	3	2	0	6
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	2-4	0	1-3	0	2	1	5
Clarke	0-1	0-1	1-3	4	3	1	1
Soliz	3-6	1-1	0-1	6	3	1	9
Clark	1-7	0-3	3-6	6	5	1	5
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0-1	0	0	2	0	0	0
Fletcher	3-10	0	1-3	6	0	1	7
Neilson	1-2	0	1-1	3	0	1	3
King	0-4	0	3-4	6	1	0	3
TOTALS	10-41	2-11	13-25	26	16	6	39

●●●GILBERT - MESQUITE●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #20 - January 22, 2008
The Gilbert Tigers got back in the win column Tuesday night against their cross-town rivals, the Mesquite Wildcats. After consecutive losses to two of the most highly touted teams in the state, the Tigers were hungry to get their season back on track. They responded in a strong way with a solid 58-35 victory.

After struggling to find their rhythm offensively in recent games, the Tigers did a better job of pushing the ball in transition, attacking the basket, and sharing the ball offensively. Elliot Fletcher was a solid presence in the paint for the Tigers all evening, finishing the game with 22 points and 12 rebounds (6 offensive). Gilbert did a nice job of making the extra pass and finding the open man as they assisted on 15 of their 23 field goals. Moreover, the Tigers did an excellent job defending and rebounding against the Wildcats. They held Mesquite to 23% shooting and out-rebounded the Wildcats by a margin of 36 to 20. In sum, the game was a total team effort and the Tigers lived up to the program motto: defend, rebound, execute.

SCORING
GILBERT:- Elliott Fletcher 22, King 8, D. Clarke 5, Carter 5, Lee 4, Donzella 4, E. Clark 4, Farrell 3, Barlow 3

MESQUITE: Armstrong 8, Sepeda 8, Bower 7, Nolen 5, Rudd 4, Fahina 2, Montoya 1

GILBERT	16	15	17	10	58
MESQUITE	09	04	14	08	35

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0-2	1-1	0	0	1	0	3
Lee	2-2	0	0	2	2	0	4
Carter	1-2	1-4	0	3	1	2	5
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	1-2	0-1	2-2	2	1	4	4
Clarke	1-4	1-5	0-1	5	1	0	5
Soliz	0-1	0	0	0	2	1	0
Clark	2-3	0-1	0	3	1	3	4
Stevens	0	0-2	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0-3	1-2	0	2	0	4	3
Fletcher	9-12	0	4-6	12	1	1	22
Neilson	0-1	0	0	4	3	0	0
King	3-4	0-1	2-2	3	3	0	8
TOTALS	19-38	4-17	8-11	36	16	15	58

●●●GILBERT - HIGHLAND●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #19 - January 18, 2008

Gilbert Highland boys basketball coach Mark Carlino said that he had some concerns just before his team played a road game against Gilbert. “I was worried that we wouldn’t keep our composure,” he said.

No need to worry, coach, your team’s composure was definitely maintained. Matt Carlino scored 15 points and Nick Witherill added 14 points as the Hawks overcame a sluggish start to defeat crosstown Gilbert, 64-38, in a Fiesta Region game Friday night in front of an equally divided crowd.

The Tigers started the game on an 8-2 run, highlighted by two 3-pointers from Daniel Carter. But then Highland responded with 12 unanswered points, six of which came from Carlino, to close out the first period, 14-8.The situation didn’t get much better for the Tigers in the second period. They missed their first three shots before Daniel Carter hit a 3-pointer with 5:42 remaining. The Tigers fell behind by 17 in the quarter but scored six consecutive points to pull within 11. But Chase Wardrop’s layup as time expired gave the Hawks a comfortable 30-17 lead at the half.

Highland opened the third period with a 10-3 run, taking advantage of three Gilbert turnovers. Brett Lewis scored seven points for the Hawks in the third. Chris Johnson capped a 14-5 run in the fourth quarter with a slam dunk, thrilling the visiting fans. The 6-foot-6 junior finished with four points.

Daniel Carter scored 13 points and Elliot Fletcher contributed seven points for Gilbert (11-4). K.C. Toolson chipped in with 13 points and Witherill grabbed a game-high seven rebounds for the Hawks, who improved to 11-3, 4-0 in region play. “I was pleased to see that we were able to play well against a capable team like Gilbert,” Mark Carlino said.

GILBERT	08	09	13	08	38
HIGHLAND	14	16	19	15	64

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0-2	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0-1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	4-6	2-6	1-2	4	5	1	15
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0-1	0-1	0	3	0	2	0
Clarke	0	0-1	0	1	0	0	0
Soliz	2-7	0	0	3	2	4	4
Clark	0-2	0-2	0	0	2	0	0
Stevens	0	1-2	0	1	0	0	3
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0	2-3	0	2	0	2	6
Fletcher	4-6	0	0	2	2	0	8
Neilson	0	0	0	4	2	1	0
King	1-2	0	0	0	1	0	0
TOTALS	11-25	5-17	1-2	20	16	8	36

Coach Caserio gives instructions to the team
during a time out in the game against Highland.

●●●GILBERT - DESERT VISTA●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #18 - January 15, 2008
Phoenix Desert Vista didn’t just weather the storm Gilbert started early, it reversed it into a drought. The No. 3 Tigers (14-4) jumped out to a 14-6 lead after the first quarter, but scored only two points in the next 12 minutes and the No. 2 Thunder (15-3) went on to a 48-36 win in a 5A-I boys basketball non-conference tilt on Tuesday night at Desert Vista. After the early eight-point deficit, Desert Vista used a 21-2 run to take control.

The Tigers had two points in the second quarter, and didn’t get on the board in the third until Elliot Fletcher hit a pair of free throws with 3:56 remaining. Even after the cold spell, Gilbert closed to within five points when Daniel Carter hit a shot with 5:50 left in the fourth quarter. Fletcher kept the Tigers in the game by scoring 10 straight points in the third quarter. Gilbert had possession of the ball down five, but turned it over. Back-to-back dunks by Michael Proctor and a bucket by Barret Robbins then put the game away for Desert Vista.

“All those teams in the Fiesta Region make you play ugly like that,” Desert Vista coach Doug Harris said. “It’s a slowdown game, very methodical and deliberate. “I expected that coming into tonight.” Harris said the Thunder had trouble getting the ball inside early, but turned to reserve guard Austin Gardner for a boost. Gardner scored eight points in a row for Desert Vista in the second quarter, including a 3-pointer with 3:56 left that tied the game at 16-16. “Austin Gardner was huge for us tonight,” Harris said. “When his opportunity came he was there. He provided a great spark for us tonight.” Carter hit a pair of 3-pointers late to cut an 11-point deficit to seven with 1:19 to go, but the Tigers could get no closer. Josh Lowery was fouled on four consecutive possessions at the end of the game and made 7 of 8 free throws. Gilbert’s Fletcher led all scorers with 14 points. Proctor had 13 for Desert Vista.

GILBERT	14	02	10	10	36
DESERT VISTA	06	15	13	14	48

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	1-3	3-5	5-6	5	3	3	11
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0	0	0	0	4	1	0
Clarke	0-1	0-2	0	4	1	1	0
Soliz	1-4	1-2	0	1	0	1	5
Clark	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0-1	0-1	0	1	0	2	0
Fletcher	6-10	0-0	2-3	5	3	1	14
Neilson	0	0	0	1	1	0	0
King	3-7	0-3	0	1	1	0	6
TOTALS	11-26	4-13	2-3	18	13	9	36

Elliot Fletcher of Gilbert High, left, and Barret Robbins of Desert Vista fight
for a rebound during basketball action at Desert Vista Tuesday night.
(Photo-Thanks to Julio Jimenez, East Valley Tribune)

●●●GILBERT - HAMILTON●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #17 - January 11, 2008
The Tigers won a hard fought Fiesta region contest on the road Friday night at Hamilton by a score of 43 – 38. Neither team shot the ball especially well, but the Tigers were able to make some key hustle plays and timely free-throws down the stretch to seal the victory. The Tigers’ Tait Neilson was a stud Friday night by getting on numerous loose balls and pulling down 10 huge boards. Late in the third quarter with the Tigers up 23 – 20,

Daryl Clarke hit two crucial threes to put Gilbert ahead by nine going into the final quarter. Daryl’s threes were the turning point of the game. Hamilton crawled back within 4 points by the play of Ryan Evans (17 points), but Kevin Soliz and Daniel Carter went 7 for 8 from the charity stripe late in the fourth to help seal a win on the road. The Tigers were led in scoring by Daniel Carter’s 13 points and Kevin Soliz’s 11 points, nine which came in the fourth. The Tigers up their region record to 2 – 0.

GILBERT	10	09	10	14	43
HAMILTON	11	04	05	18	38

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	4-10	0-1	5-6	5	2	2	13
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0-1	0-1	0-1	5	3	1	0
Clarke	0	2-2	0	1	2	0	6
Soliz	3-6	1-3	2-2	5	4	0	11
Clark	2-5	1-3	0	4	2	0	7
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0-1	0	0	1	0	2	0
Fletcher	1-4	0	0	3	1	1	2
Neilson	1-1	0	0	10	0	1	2
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	12-32	4-10	7-9	35	14	8	43

●●●GILBERT - CHANDLER●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #16 - January 08, 2008
The Tigers opened up region play at home on Tuesday night with a good win against the visiting Chandler Wolves by a score of 68 – 49. The Wolves outplayed the Tigers for the first quarter and a half by getting most of the loose balls and out-rebounding the Tigers. After a timeout with about four minutes left before halftime the Tigers went on an 10-0 run to close the first half up by 10 points. In the second half the Tigers continued to battle on the boards and continued to work for good shots against Chandler’s trapping defense.

Elliott Clark had one of his best games of the year by making some great offense plays and hitting some big shots for the Tigers. Kevin Soliz was a stud on the boards as he ripped down 10 rebounds and was all over the floor throughout the game. The Tigers also got another huge effort by Tait Neilson as he continually gives Gilbert a spark off the bench by his hustle and determination. The Tigers will try to win a big road game this Friday as they take on the Huskies of Hamilton.

GILBERT	21	14	13	20	68
CHANDLER	16	09	08	16	49

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0-1	0	0	0	1	0
Lee	1-1	0	0	1	1	0	2
Carter	3-4	2-2	2-4	1	6	1	14
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0-5	1-1	2-4	2	2	1	5
Clarke	0-1	1-1	0-1	2	2	1	3
Soliz	2-7	0-1	3-4	10	4	6	7
Clark	2-4	2-3	2-4	2	3	5	9
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	1	0	0
Farrell	0	0	2-2	2	1	0	2
Fletcher	7-9	0	1-1	5	3	1	15
Neilson	0	0	2-2	0	2	0	2
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	15-31	6-9	14-22	25	25	16	68

●●●GILBERT - DESERT RIDGE GAME # 15 (TOURNAMENT GAME 4)●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Buzzer-beater lifts Gilbert to tourney title
Andrew Nordmeier
East Valley Tribune
Jan. 6, 2008

The Jacksonville Jaguars won on a last-minute field goal in football. The Mesa Desert Ridge Jaguars boys basketball team lost on a last-second field goal Saturday, falling 52-50 to Gilbert High in the finals of the Phoenix Union Holiday Classic at Central High School. With 11.4 seconds left, Gilbert coach Jay Caserio drew up a play and sent his Tigers out to execute it. Kevin Soliz in-bounded the ball to Daniel Carter behind the timeline.

"We had a play set up for man-to-man, and they went to a zone and we had to improvise after that," Caserio said.

The switch didn't bother Carter. He drove into a small pocket of space between four defenders just outside the lane and let his shot go before the horn sounded. It rolled around the rim once before dropping in and providing an exciting finish to a tight game.

"I saw there was only a couple seconds left, so I drove to the basket and then shot it and it went in," Carter said about the final play.

Desert Ridges Nate Bohy scored 18 points. He kept the Jaguars close and scored six of their final eight points, including a game-tying basket at 50-all with 42 seconds left.

"They played really hard, and we knew they were going to have that intensity, and we were ready for their pressure," Carter said.

Carter and Eric Donzella led Gilbert with 12 points each. Desert Ridge was stung at the foul line, missing eight of 14 shots.

"This is a pretty big game, and the next time these guys are in this kind of situation again this will help them," Caserio said.

Gilbert captures PUHS tournament
Richard Obert
The Arizona Republic
Jan. 5, 2008 11:38 PM

Senior guard Daniel Carter's leaning shot at the final buzzer hit the rim, banked off the glass and fell in the basket Saturday night, giving Gilbert a 52-50 victory over Mesa Desert Ridge and the championship of the fifth Phoenix Union High School District Boys Basketball Classic at Phoenix Central High.

"He's a good player," Desert Ridge coach Robb Floco said. "We had one guy hanging on him and another who tried to take a charge. The ball was in and out and in."

Two Gilbert district schools beat Phoenix schools on their way to the championship game.

Desert Ridge led 26-24 at the half, and overcame a four-point deficit in the final 1:30 to tie it, before Carter scored his 13th and 14th points.

"I think it was a good Gilbert district game," Floco said. "There is a lot of mutual respect. The kids on both sides played hard.

"After the game, they gave us an ovation and we gave them an ovation back. It was very respectful."

Desert Ridge (10-5), led by Nate Bohy's 18 points, tried to push tempo, but Gilbert (12-3) got Desert Ridge into a half-court game in the second half.

"It was a good, physical game; a good, fundamental defensive game," Floco said. "They ran spread (offense). They led by four with a minute and a half and we forced three turnovers to get back. They got enough stops."

●●●GILBERT - PHOENIX PRECISION - GAME #14 (TOURNAMENT GAME 3)●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Gilbert reaches tourney final

Richard Obert
The Arizona Republic
Jan. 5, 2008 12:00 AM

Unheralded Gilbert will gladly slice up the most talented, athletic, hyped teams with a textbook spread offense that creates easy back-door plays.

It did it again Friday night, handing Class 2A powerhouse Phoenix Precision its first loss this season in Arizona, 67-55, in the semifinals of the fifth annual Phoenix Union High School District Boys Basketball Classic at Gilbert.

Gilbert will play either Phoenix Goldwater or Mesa Desert Ridge in the final tonight at 8:30 at Phoenix Central High.

Precision (12-2) had lost only to a top California team in Hollywood, before Gilbert (11-3) basically ran a clinic in the final four minutes of the first quarter with a 14-0 run that opened up an 18-5 lead.

"That was definitely part of the game plan, you can tell," first-year Gilbert coach Jay Caserio said of starting the game in a spread.

This spread wasn't employed to slow the game but rather exploit Precision's athletes, who had a tendency to overplay on defense.

"We saw previously how (Precision) came out and really pressured other teams," said senior guard Daniel Carter, who scored on a 3-pointer and on a couple of inside feeds to the basket during that devastating 14-0 spurt. "We knew if we spread them out, we could get to the basket and get wide-open shots."

Precision, trying to make a statement to the big schools after beating Phoenix Cesar Chavez and Phoenix Camelback in the first two rounds, was down by 20 points after Kevin Soliz made a 3-pointer with four minutes left in the second quarter.

Gilbert led by as many as 21 points late in the third quarter, before Precision tried to make it respectable, coming to within 11 with 1:47 left.

Precision had a chance to make it a single-digit deficit, but Rayvonte Adams missed a 3-pointer with 1:32 remaining.

"The second half, we didn't do a very good job of it (running the spread offense)," Caserio said. "They come on and really guard you hard. We just felt that if we could spread them out, show them the basketball and get some lanes, we'd get some baskets with the back cuts."

Soon, Gilbert will battle top-ranked Gilbert Highland with its sudden infusion of summer talent in a Fiesta Region game that will have a rivalry feel for the first time in a while.

"That only fuels the fire," Carter said of Highland's talented transfers and newcomers.

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	2-7	1-2	1-2	3	2	2	7
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	1-5	0	0	5	6	8	2
Clarke	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Soliz	5-8	2-2	0	5	3	2	16
Clark	0-2	0-2	3-4	2	1	3	3
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0-1	0	0	1	0	0	0
Farrell	0-1	0	1-2	1	1	1	1
Fletcher	8-11	0	1-2	8	1	2	17
Neilson	1-2	0	0	1	0	0	2
King	4-6	0	11-12	4	2	0	19
TOTALS	21-43	3-6	16-21	30	16	18	67

GILBERT	18	20	15	14	67
PRECISION	06	15	15	19	55

Gilbert - Precision Review

"Sports do not build character. They reveal it" - John Wooden

This was another great HS game to watch for a fan of the game in the PU Tourney Semi-finals. With two contrasting styles of play colliding in heated battle there were some great basketball lessons to be learned. The greatest of all lessons are always about "character" or what a man or a team is really made of inside and how he or they can improve it.

The most important quality of character is honesty and there is nothing like an honest assessment of a situation to help a man or a team build more character. I think Coach Mims said it best when he stated that "Execution beats athleticism every time", a very honest assessment of a very tough loss for Precision.

And boy can Gilbert execute.... They constantly moved the ball quickly around the floor looking for the open shot while cutters slashed in and out working hard to get open off of picks. They found the open man almost every time it seemed and got a lot of very high percentage shots. They didn't miss much either.

It was a disastrous 23-4 run early on by Gilbert that did the Panthers in during the first and early part of the second quarter. It was sparked by Daniel Carter's trey and then an immediate steal and a dish for two as well as a couple of chips from the paint from him and a trey and a slash by Kevin Soliz. Precision was playing man at the time instead of their usual 2-3 zone. I had SIX different guys scoring for the Tigers on that early run which is a great sign of teamwork and ball movement.

Elliot Fletcher then stepped up and hit two medium range Js to push the lead to 20 at 27-7 and then they just stayed in the spread and executed.

Precision came back strong and cut the lead to 13 behind two treys and a three point and one from Ray Adams. Gilbert continued to patiently run the spread and got two easy Js from 10 feet in the paint to push the lead back to 17 at the half.

After the half the Tigers went to Elliot Fletcher inside and he scored back to back and the lead was back to 21. Ricky Calvin ended the third with a another swat and a monster slam on a put back. 53-36 Tigers.

Gilbert then began to falter somewhat behind furious pressure D by Precision early in the fourth and the Panthers got within 11 with 3 minutes left. The Panthers were diving all over the place for loose balls and it was obvious they still believed they could win with a final push.

Ray Adams then misfired twice with open looks for threes and Gilbert hit 3 of 4 FTs (by #54) to make it 64-50 before Gilbert lost composure and got hit with a costly T right after a foul on Tyrell Stewart who hit one of two before Calvin stepped up on the Ts and hit them both to cut it to 11 again at 64-53 but they couldn't convert on the possession. 54 then had another chip in the paint for Gilbert and then Calvin ended it with another slam and it was over. 67-55 Gilbert Tigers.

Had Precision avoided falling behind by so much early the outcome of this game could have been very different. Gilbert nearly cracked under the withering pressure by the Panthers and with tremendous athletes like they have giving their all and flying all over the floor ANY team in AZ would come close to breaking down. Gilbert just stayed cool enough and ran a system that Tom Bennett would have been proud of. I didn't see him AT the game but I saw the old master IN the game as his old coaching staff really shined in this test....

Coach Mims shined as well with an incredible sense of the warrior spirit that he has instilled in his team while teaching them to control themselves and retain their composure. Most teams down by 20 against Gilbert would have packed it in but Precision stepped up the pressure even more and rose to the challenge. They fell short last night but they have a chance to make a lot of people proud if they can take third place tonight in a very tough 5A field.

●●●GILBERT - TREVOR BROWNE GAME #13 (TOURNAMENT GAME 2)●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Prep Highlights: Soliz leads Gilbert past Trevor Browne

From Staff Reports
East Valley Tribune

Kevin Soliz scored a team-high 21 points and played an important defensive role in the fourth quarter to help the Gilbert High boys basketball team hold on and beat Phoenix Trevor Browne 63-61 at the Phoenix Union Holiday Classic on Thursday.

After the Tigers (10-3) jumped out to a 10-point halftime lead, Trevor Browne mounted a furious comeback behind leading scorer Mario Denogean. Soliz then began to defend Denogean in the final quarter and shut him down as the Tigers held on for the victory.

Daniel Carter scored 18 points, including a free throw with 14 seconds to play, to give the Tigers a two-point cushion.

GILBERT	21	12	16	14	63
TREVOR BROWNE	13	10	21	17	61

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	1-3	5-8	1-3	4	0	3	18
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	3-5	0-2	0	1	1	4	6
Clarke	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Soliz	8-9	1-2	2-2	3	2	1	21
Clark	4-6	0-3	2-2	3	0	4	10
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0	0-1	0	2	0	1	0
Fletcher	4-5	0	0	2	1	1	8
Neilson	0-3	0	0	2	0	0	0
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	20-31	6-16	5-7	17	4	14	63

●●●GILBERT - MARYVALE - GAME #12 (TOURNAMENT GAME 1)●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Prep Highlights: Gilbert boys top Maryvale in Phoenix tournament

From Staff Reports
East Valley Tribune

Elliot Fletcher scored 18 points and Daniel Carter pitched in with 17 Wednesday to lead the Gilbert High boys basketball team to a 74-61 victory over Phoenix Maryvale in the first round of the Phoenix Union High School Tournament at Gilbert.

A 21-9 third-quarter advantage helped the Tigers put away from the Panthers (7-4), who were led in scoring by Marcus Ayala and Dorian Jones, both with 23 points.

With the win, the Tigers improved to 9-3 on the season and will play Phoenix Trevor Browne at 7:30 p.m. today at Gilbert.

GILBERT	17	23	21	13	74
MARYVALE	10	20	09	22	61

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0-3	0	1	1	2	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	6-10	0-2	2-2	3	3	3	14
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0-1	0	0-2	4	2	5	0
Clarke	0	3-4	0	3	0	3	9
Soliz	0	2-3	0	2	0	3	6
Clark	1-6	1-3	0	3	1	0	5
Stevens	0	0-1	0	2	2	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	2	2	0	0
Farrell	1-2	2-2	0	2	2	1	8
Fletcher	9-11	0	0	6	1	2	18
Neilson	1-2	0	4-4	7	0	2	6
King	2-5	0-1	4-4	4	3	1	8
TOTALS	02-37	8-19	10-12	37	17	23	74

●●●GILBERT - SOUTH MOUNTAIN ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #11 - December 17, 2007
The Gilbert Tigers traveled to South Mountain High School on Monday December 17th and came away with a 43-31 victory. The first half of the game was marred by sloppy play by both teams. By game’s end, the teams had combined for 38 turnovers (15 by the Tigers). South Mountain was very patient offensively in the first half and gave the Tiger defense trouble with their screen and roll based offense. Even though the Tigers struggled at times they still clung to a 16-10 halftime lead.

The turning point in the game came in the third quarter as the Tigers did a nice job of implementing and executing some half time adjustments. First and foremost, Gilbert defended the Jaguars pick and roll game much more effectively. Secondly, the Tigers intentionally sped the game up by pushing the ball up in transition after South Mountain misses and turnovers and also by extending their man to man defense up the court on the Jaguar point guards. When the speed of the game picked up, the Tiger offense got rolling behind some solid three point shooting (4/8) by senior guard Danny Carter. DC finished the night with a game high 15 points and also added 3 assists. Senior forward Brandyn Farrell also contributed a solid and well balanced effort. Birdie played excellent defense against the Jaguar pick and roll game by forcing 3 turnovers and taking a charge. He also contributed some solid passing (3 assists), 3 rebounds, and 2 points. The Tigers led 35-23 after three quarters and controlled the game through the final frame by executing well against South Mountain’s full and half court trapping defense.

GILBERT	09	07	19	08	43
SO. MOUNTAIN	07	03	10	11	31

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	1	0	0
Carter	1-2	4-8	1-2	2	1	3	15
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	2-4	0-1	1-2	0	2	0	5
Clarke	0-1	1-1	0	1	0	0	3
Soliz	1-2	0-1	1-2	1	1	1	3
Clark	0-2	0-2	0	1	4	1	0
Stevens	0	0-1	2-2	0	0	0	2
O’Brien	0-1	0	0	1	1	0	0
Farrell	1-3	0	0-1	3	1	2	2
Fletcher	3-6	0	2-2	6	0	1	8
Neilson	2-2	0	1-2	2	1	0	5
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	15-23	5-14	8-13	18	12	8	43

●●●GILBERT - BASHA●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #10 - December 14, 2007
The Gilbert Tigers suffered their third loss of the season Friday night at Basha High School. Not only did the Tigers shoot miserable from the field, they combined that with multiple turnovers and numerous mental mistakes. Basha capitalized on Gilbert’s poor play right from the tip as they continuously penetrated to the paint for layups and kick-out threes.

Brandon Farrell and Kevin Soliz did a good job neutralizing Tyler Miller, one of Basha’s main scorers, but had no answers for Nash and James as they both netted 17 points apiece in the win. The Tigers will try to get back on the winning track as they get right back at it next Monday night as they take on the South Mountain Jaguars on the road.

GILBERT	10	14	11	10	45
BASHA	12	16	14	16	58

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	3-6	0-1	4-4	2	1	3	10
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	1-7	1-3	2-2	1	5	3	7
Clarke	0-1	1-3	0	1	3	0	3
Soliz	3-7	0-3	0	1	3	0	3
Clark	0-1	3-8	1-2	1	0	0	10
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	1	0	0
Farrell	2-2	0	0	1	0	1	4
Fletcher	1-2	0	2-2	2	2	1	4
Neilson	0	0	1-2	0	0	0	1
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	10-26	5-18	10-12	10	13	9	45

●●●GILBERT - DESERT RIDGE●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game # 9- December 11, 2007
The Gilbert Tigers were able to pull out another home win Tuesday night after defeating a highly motivated Desert Ridge team. The Tigers started off well as they got to a 21-13 first quarter lead. Desert Ridge came back with a good second quarter behind Nathan Bohy’s 11 first half points.

The Tigers were able to control the boards and Kevin Soliz held Bohy scoreless in the second half to allow the Tigers to pull away with a 61 – 50 win. The Tigers were led in scoring by Elliot Fletcher’s 17 points and Kevin Soliz’s 11 points. The Tigers also got a huge effort from Brandyn Farrell as he scored 9 points and was strong on the boards and defensively.

GILBERT	21	09	16	15	61
DESERT RIDGE	13	12	13	12	50

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	2-2	0	2	0	2
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	1-4	0-3	0	3	2	4	2
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	3-7	0-1	0	5	3	5	6
Clarke	1-1	2-2	0	6	2	2	8
Soliz	4-8	1-2	0-1	7	1	1	11
Clark	0-1	1-2	2-2	3	4	1	5
Stevens	0	0	0	1	2	1	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	1-2	1-1	4-4	3	1	2	9
Fletcher	7-10	0	3-4	4	2	1	17
Neilson	1-5	0	0	3	1	1	1
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	18-38	5-11	11-13	35	20	18	61

●●●GILBERT - ST. MARY'S●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #8 - December 07, 2007
After not handling pressure well in its last game, Gilbert High took what it practiced the last two days and put it to use Friday in netting a win over visiting Phoenix St. Mary’s. The fifth-ranked Tigers outscored the Knights 17-5 in the third period to break open a tight game and post a 66-54 victory in a 5A Division I boys basketball game.

“Tuesday (vs. Sierra Vista Buena) we had a 10-point lead and lost it — and the game — because we kind of puckered to their pressure,” first-year Gilbert coach Jay Caserio said. “St. Mary’s pressures you, too. We did a much better job handling that tonight.”

Gilbert (6-2) got 19 points each from 6-foot-2 swingman Kevin Soliz and 6-6 post Elliot Fletcher and controlled St. Mary’s big man Byron Fulton long enough that what he produced in the final period didn’t matter. Fulton tallied a team-high 16 points. Eight came in the final period when Gilbert had pulled away and stretched a 31-30 halftime lead to 52-35 with seven minutes left.

“Kevin’s only 6-2, but he’s had to guard the other team’s big guy every game and has done a great job,” Caserio said. “He never lets the ball go directly to their big guy. We defended the big guy well.”

Gilbert limited St. Mary’s (2-2) to one field goal in the third period (1-for-11) and shot 50 percent from the floor at the other end. Soliz scored six points and reserve Elliot Clark netted five of his eight points to rebuild the Tigers a double-digit lead they enjoyed much of the first period and a good portion of the second. Fletcher was solid all night, going 9-for-11 from the field with a soft touch inside. Junior guard Eric Donzella, who added 10 points for Gilbert, was instrumental in fending off St. Mary’s pressure.

GILBERT	21	10	17	18	66
ST. MARY'S	12	18	05	19	54

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	2-10	0-1	4-4	1	2	1	8
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	3-6	1-1	5-9	4	2	3	14
Clarke	1-1	0-2	0	0	2	0	2
Soliz	9-12	0-1	1-2	2	2	2	19
Clark	1-3	2-3	0	1	1	3	8
Stevens	0	0	0-2	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	2	1	1	0
Farrell	0-1	0-2	0	2	0	1	0
Fletcher	9-10	0	1-5	8	2	0	19
Neilson	0	0	0	2	0	0	0
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	25-43	3-10	11-22	22	12	11	66

●●●GILBERT - BUENA●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #7 - December 04, 2007
The Tigers lost a tough game in Sierra Vista Tuesday night against a athletic and tough Buena Colts team. The Tigers’ offense in the first half was clicking as Daryl Clarke and Elliot Fletcher combined for 25 of the Tiger’s 31 points and led by a solid ten points.

The second was a different story as Buena started to press full court and put the Tigers back on their heals limiting their quality shots. The Colts changed the momentum and took a three point lead after three quarters. Both teams executed precisely in the fourth quarter, but a steal and lay-up by Buena with 15 seconds in the game sealed the win.

GILBERT	18	13	06	15	52
BUENA	10	11	19	15	55

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	2-3	0-1	1-3	2	5	0	5
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0-1	1-3	3-4	3	2	6	6
Clarke	1-2	3-3	1-2	2	0	1	12
Soliz	2-7	1-1	0	3	2	1	7
Clark	1-3	1-3	0	3	1	1	5
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0-2	0	0	0	0	1	0
Fletcher	6-8	0	1-2	4	0	1	13
Neilson	2-5	0	0	4	0	2	4
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	14-29	6-11	6-11	21	10	13	52

●●●GILBERT - TEMPE CORONA DEL SOL ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #6 - November 30, 2007
Elliot Fletcher had 21 points as Gilbert (5-1) outlasted Tempe Corona del Sol 65-63 at home in overtime Friday in a 5A Division I boys non-region basketball game. Kevin Soliz added 10 points for the Tigers.

Leland Devlin scored 21 points and Nick Timpone contributed 14 points for the Aztecs.

GILBERT	19	11	16	12	07	65
CORONA	18	08	12	20	05	63

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	3-3	1-4	1-2	1	0	1	10
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	3-5	0-1	2-2	5	2	5	8
Clarke	1-2	0-2	0	3	1	0	2
Soliz	4-7	0-1	2-2	6	1	4	10
Clark	4-4	0-4	1-2	1	0	1	9
Stevens	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	1-2	0-1	0	1	3	0	2
Fletcher	10-11	0	1-2	6	1	2	21
Neilson	2-2	0	0	0	0	0	4
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	28-36	1-13	7-10	23	8	13	65

●●●GILBERT - MARANA MOUNTAIN VIEW ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #5 - November 29, 2007
The Gilbert Tigers were able to get their 4th straight victory on Thursday night defeating Marana Mountain View in Marana by a score of 49 – 40. The Tigers blasted out of the gates with an early 18 –6 first quarter lead and stretched their lead to 17 points in the second quarter by hitting eight threes.

The Tigers struggled a bit offensively in the second half due to Marana’s constant pressure, but continued to fight through and pull out a solid win. Elliott Fletcher led the Tigers in scoring with 14 points on the night. The Tigers also earned their second straight sweep of the year as all three levels were able to come out on top.

GILBERT	18	16	04	11	49
MARANA M.V.	06	11	09	14	40

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0-1	1-2	0	0	1	1
Lee	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	0-6	2-5	0	4	0	4	6
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	2-2	0-1	0	2	2	3	4
Clarke	0-1	3-3	0	2	0	1	9
Soliz	2-5	1-2	0	2	0	1	7
Clark	0-1	1-2	0	0	3	3	7
Stevens	0	0-1	0	1	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Fletcher	7-9	0	0-2	3	1	2	14
Neilson	0-1	0	1-2	3	0	0	1
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	11-25	7-15	2-6	18	6	15	49

●●●GILBERT - MESA ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #4 - November 27, 2007
Gilbert played their first home game of the season on Tuesday night against a tough and physical Mesa Jackrabbit team and came out on top by playing stingy defense and rebounding like crazed dogs. The final score was 65-37. Gilbert’s defense was fueled by quality shooting as they knocked down eight threes. Again, great ball movement with strong ball handling created great shots for the Tigers as they jumped out to an early 12-0 first quarter start. For the third game in a row the Tiger’s scoring was a balanced attack. Three-year varsity player Daniel Carter led the Tigers with 17 points, and Elliott Clark and Elliot Fletcher chipped in with 13 and 10 respectively. Eric “Rondo” Donzella continues to improve with each game and did a great job of finding open shooters and running the team. He had an all around great game as he almost notched a triple-double. The key to the game though was Gilbert’s smart defense and constant effort on the defensive glass by limiting Mesa’s potent offensive rebounding pressure. Gilbert focused a lot of their attention defensively on Mesa’s all-state big man, Aaron Fuller. Kevin Soliz had the assignment and played like a warrior limiting Fuller to just 11 points and making each possession as difficult as possible.

GILBERT	23	14	20	08	65
MESA	11	03	13	10	37

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0-1	2-2	2	1	1	2
Lee	1-2	0-1	0	1	1	0	2
Carter	4-5	2-4	3-3	3	0	5	17
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	2-7	1-1	2-4	7	2	7	9
Clarke	0	0	0	4	0	3	0
Soliz	2-7	1-4	0	1	0	1	7
Clark	2-2	2-7	0	1	0	1	10
Stevens	0-1	0-1	0-1	0	0	1	0
O’Brien	0-1	0	0	2	1	0	0
Farrell	0-1	1-2	0	1	0	0	3
Fletcher	5-5	0	0	4	0	0	10
Neilson	1-1	0-1	0	3	1	1	5
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	17-32	7-25	7-10	29	6	20	65

●●●GILBERT - MESQUITE ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #3 - November 24, 2007
The Gilbert Tigers finished strong in the Mesa Shootout Thanksgiving Tournament Saturday night with a win against cross-town rival Mesquite by a score of 67 - 58. Playing in the fifth-sixth place game Gilbert's lack of quality ball movement and poor shooting allowed Mesquite to take a commanding 21 - 13 lead in the first half. Late in the second quarter the Tigers' defense stiffened and they were able to claw back within two points, but a driving missed lay up by Marty Armstrong was tipped in by Alex Rudd at the buzzer to make the halftime score 24-20. In the second half the Tigers really started to move the ball sharply which stretched Mesquite's defense. The Tigers were able to find lanes to penetrate and open shooters on the perimeter. Gilbert was able to hit four three pointers in the third quarter, two by Daniel Carter who finished with 14 points and two by Daryl Clarke who finished with 13 points. The Tigers were able to net eight three pointers total for the game. Mesquite was able to stay close as they hit key three-pointers of their own, including three by Ryan Mickelson. In the fourth quarter the Tigers were able to pull away for good by scoring 29 points, including 10 out of 11 from the free throw line. The Tiger's scoring attack was very balanced as they had four players in double figures and was led by Elliot Fletcher coming off the bench to score 16.

GILBERT	11	09	18	29	67
MESQUITE	15	09	12	22	58

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	1-3	0	0	0	0	3
Lee	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Carter	2-5	2-7	5-6	3	3	4	15
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0	1-1	5-6	2	1	6	8
Clarke	2-2	3-6	0-1	4	2	2	13
Soliz	1-4	0-1	0-1	3	3	1	2
Clark	3-3	1-3	2-2	6	3	1	11
Stevens	0-1	0	0	0	0	0	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	1-3	0-1	0-1	2	1	1	2
Fletcher	5-5	0	4-6	4	1	3	14
Neilson	0-1	0	0	4	0	2	0
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	14-24	8-20	16-23	28	14	20	67

●●●GILBERT - DESERT MOUNTAIN ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #2 - November 21, 2007
The Tigers got off to a slow start against a well coached Desert Mountain team, but were sparked by the play of Eric Donzella coming off the bench and battled for a 67-33 victory. The Tigers used a 15-0 scoring run to close out the first quarter to take a commanding 17-5 lead.

The Tigers' on-ball defense and their ability to get into the passing lanes helped limit good offensive possessions by Desert Mountain and ignited the Tiger's offensive transition game. Gilbert shot the ball well from behind the arc by hitting 7 three's in the game and were led by Elliot Fletcher's 15 points off the bench. Gilbert also got some scoring help from Elliott Clark (11), Eric Donzella (9) and Daniel Carter (8).

GILBERT	17	19	15	16	67
DESERT MT.	05	09	10	09	33

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	1-3	0	0	0	2	3
Lee	0-1	0	0	0	0	0	0
Carter	1-7	2-5	0	3	2	2	8
Ahumada	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Donzella	3-5	1-2	0	1	1	4	9
Clarke	0-1	1-1	0	1	1	0	3
Soliz	2-3	0-3	2-2	3	1	1	6
Clark	1-2	2-4	3-4	1	0	2	11
Stevens	2-2	1-4	0	1	0	0	7
O’Brien	1-2	0	0	1	0	2	2
Farrell	0	0	0	0	2	1	0
Fletcher	7-10	0	1-1	10	1	1	15
Neilson	1-1	0	1-1	4	2	0	3
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	18-35	7-22	7-8	26	10	15	67

●●●GILBERT - DOBSON ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Game #1 - November 20, 2007
Gilbert opened the season in the Mesa Shoot Out on Tuesday afternoon and gave a talented Mustang team all they could manage for most of the game. Taylor Johnson scored 16 points and added nine rebounds as Dobson (1-0) defeated Gilbert (0-1), 63-58 in the first round of the Mesa Jackrabbits Tournament at Mesa High Tuesday.

Dobson trailed the Tigers by six at the half, but Ashon Dowdell sparked the Mustangs with three key 3-pointers in the third quarter as the Mustangs pulled away with a 25-point quarter. Dobson had four players in double digits, including John Baily (12) and Ian Wallace (10). Daniel Carter and Daryl Clarke led the Tigers with 12 points each.

GILBERT	16	16	14	12	58
DOBSON	16	10	25	12	63

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Barlow	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lee	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Carter	3-4	1-4	3-3	3	3	3	12
Ahumada	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Donzella	0-3	1-2	0	1	2	1	3
Clarke	0-3	4-6	0	2	1	2	12
Soliz	2-4	1-3	0	2	0	1	7
Clark	4-4	1-3	0	1	0	4	11
Stevens	0	0-3	0	0	0	1	0
O’Brien	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Farrell	0-2	1-1	0	0	0	2	3
Fletcher	3-5	0	0-2	3	2	0	6
Neilson	2-3	0	0	3	1	1	4
King	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
TOTALS	14-28	9-22	3-5	16	9	15	58

2007-08 TIGER STATISTICS
(Through Game #24 - February 05, 2008)

PLAYER	2 PT	3 PT	FT	RBND	TO	ASST	PTS
Chris Barlow	1-3	3-13	5-6	4	6	7	16
Quincy Lee	4-7	0-1	0	5	21	0	8
Daniel Carter	49-118	38-93	38-54	66	50	56	250
Francisco Ahumada	1-1	0	0	1	0	0	2
Eric Donzella	38-88	8-26	27-45	64	62	84	127
Daryl Clarke	11-29	26-50	5-11	51	29	20	105
Kevin Soliz	66-134	115-41	20-27	83	42	42	197
Elliott Clark	39-84	25-75	29-39	52	38	43	182
Jon Stevens	2-4	2-15	2-5	5	6	2	12
Colin O’Brien	1-5	0	0	9	6	4	2
Brandyn Farrell	7-31	10-19	9-15	34	19	26	53
Elliot Fletcher	128-184	0	27-51	120	30	27	283
Tait Neilson	19-37	1-2	13-20	76	15	14	54
Shawn King	23-52	2-9	23-25	30	18	9	75
TOTALS	388-776 50%	130-357 36%	198-299 66%	600	342	334	1364

2008 FIESTA REGION TOURNAMENT

GILBERT	HIGHLAND	HAMILTON	CHANDLER	MESQUITE

TIGERS	HAWKS	HUSKIES	WOLVES	WILDCATS

2008 STATE TOURNAMENT


	Daniel Carter	Gilbert Tigers		Elliott Clark	Gilbert Tigers
	Ryan Evans	Hamilton Huskies		Devirous Johnson	Chandler Wolves
	Eli Godinez	Chandler Wolves		John Jackson	Hamilton Huskies
	Matt Carlino	Highland Hawks		Alex Rudd	Mesquite Wildcats
	Nick Witherill	Highland Hawks		K.C. Toolson	Highland Hawks

	Elliot Fletcher	Gilbert Tigers		Nick Witherill	Highland Hawks
	Kevin Soliz	Gilbert Tigers		Ryan Evans	Hamilton Huskies
	Jason Edwards	Chandler Wolves		(Voted Co-Players of the Year)
	Jason Edwards	Chandler Wolves
	Fabrice Nolen	Mesquite Wildcats	Coach Jay Caserio Gilbert Tigers
	Chubby Henderson	Hamilton Huskies
	Chris Johnson	Highland Hawks
All STATE HONORS Congratulations to Danny Carter, (Sr., G) and Elliott Clark, (Sr., G) for earning Class 5A All-Tribune Honorable Mention and to Danny and Elliot Fletcher for earning Class 5A-Arizona Republic State Honorable Mention Awards.

Left to Right: Greg Ream (JV Head Coach) - Gordon Rutledge (Varsity Assistant) - Andrew Laursen (JV Assistant) - Justin Hastings - (Varsity Assistant) - Jay Caserio (Varsity Head Coach) - Tom Bennett (Freshman Assistant) - Brian Loe (Freshman Head Coach)

2007-08 TIGER COACHING STAFF PROFILES

JAY CASERIO
Head Coach

This is Coach Caserio's first season as the Varsity head coach here at Gilbert High School and he is extremely excited to continue working with the staff and players at Gilbert. Coach Caserio spent the last five years as either the Freshman or Junior Varsity head coach here at Gilbert.

He went to college at Northern Michigan University and moved to Arizona soon after to find a teaching and coaching position. He has also completed his Master's Degree from Northern Arizona University. His family Includes his understanding and patient wife Christy and two daughters Madison and Meisha.

JUSTIN HASTINGS
Assistant Coach

Coach Hastings serves as a varsity assistant coach for our program. He is entering his 14th season of coaching high school basketball. Coach Hastings' ability to teach the details of the game and his passion for basketball make him an outstanding coach. His knowledge and determination will be vital for the daily progression and improvement for the members of our program. A graduate of Arizona State University with a degree in secondary education (history), Justin's family includes his wife Nicole, son Thomas, age 5 and daughter Emily, age 2.

GORDON RUTLEDGE
Assistant Coach

A 1976 graduate of GHS, Coach Rutledge has volunteer coached at Gilbert High for 6 years. He attended Northern Arizona University and Arizona State University before founding and managing his own insurance agency. A prolific scorer and outstanding player while a Tiger, Coach Rutledge brings respect, knowledge and maturity to Gilbert’s basketball program.

GREG REAM
Head Coach

This is Coach Ream’s first year at Gilbert High School. He is teaching World Studies and coaching the junior varsity basketball team. Coach Ream comes from Michigan and went to college at Grand Valley State University. He moved to Arizona six years ago and has had teaching and coaching experiences at Miami High School, as well as at Greenfield and South Valley Junior High Schools in Gilbert.

ANDREW LAURSEN
Assistant Coach

This is the second year of coaching for Andrew Laursen. Coach Laursen will be an assistant coach for the Junior Varsity team this year. A 2005 graduate of Gilbert High, Andrew played for the Tigers for 3 years during high school. Andrew brings enthusiasm and energy to the program and we are excited and happy to have him with us again this year.

BRIAN LOE
Head Coach

This is Coach Loe’s first year as the freshman coach at Gilbert High School. He is in his second year of teaching 8th grade Social Studies at South Valley Junior High School. He is a graduate of the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, North Dakota. He spent his years in College coaching Junior High Basketball. He is married to Ashley, who teaches at Greenfield Junior High School. Coach Loe is passionate about the game of basketball, and is very excited to be part of Gilbert High Schools’ quality program.

TOM BENNETT
Assistant Coach

We are extremely excited to welcome back Coach Bennett to Gilbert High School’s boys basketball program. Coach Bennett is entering his 43rd season as a basketball coach in Arizona. In those years, Coach Bennett served as the head coach at Mesa Community College for 19 years, at Gilbert High School for 7 years, and at Westwood High School for 7 years. At Mesa Community College, Coach Bennett oversaw a program that won 9 ACCAC championships and made it to the NJCAA national tournament 6 times. He was named the NJCAA Coach of the Year in 1990. In 2003, Coach Bennett led the Gilbert Tigers to the 5A State Championship. Coach Bennett is a member of the following 4 basketball halls of fame: NJCAA Basketball Coaches, Wabash College Sports, City of Mesa Sports, and Indiana Basketball. This season, Coach Bennett will serve as an assistant coach for our freshman team. Coach Bennett is married to his wife Silvia and has two children, Cathy and Randy.