The 13th annual Yvonne Johnson Memorial Shootout turned out better than expected for the Camp Verde High School girls basketball team, who claimed the tournament title for the fifth time.
“We played pretty well and except for one game, we played decent defense. We also got good minutes off the bench,” longtime Camp Verde Head Coach Mark Showers said.
In the first two games of the tournament Dec. 28, Camp Verde beat Seligman High School 50-33 and 51-35.
Central High School didn’t make it to the tournament, causing the Cowboys to play the same opponent twice.
Junior center Lila Hickey scored 20 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in the first 50-33 victory over Seligman while sophomore Amanda Showers had 18 points, seven steals and two assists. Sophomore forward Katie Wilson had 15 points and six steals as well.
Freshman guard Marissa Flores was the star of the show in game two against Seligman, scoring 13 points while pulling five rebounds and recording three steals in the 51-35 win.
“We were able to get many of our bench players in the second game and I was pleasantly surprised with their performance,” Showers said.
Sophomore Donnie Buss chipped in with 10 points and three steals while sophomore Shelby Mulcaire had eight points and four steals.
“I figured Shelby [Mulcaire] would eventually do some good things for us down the road but for her to play well in this tournament was a welcome surprise,” Showers said.
On Dec. 29, Camp Verde had a battle with Red Mesa High School. Showers stated his Cowboys had a “billion” turnovers, but were still able to pull it out, 55-50.
Hickey had 23 points and 12 rebounds while Buss had six points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals in the win.
In the championship game, Camp Verde led 44-22 with three minutes to go before Showers pulled his starters. Although Bradshaw Mountain High School made a late run to cut the lead to 10, the win was never in doubt.
Camp Verde’s 44-34 win over Bradshaw Mountain cemented the team’s fifth tournament title in 13 years of Yvonne Johnson Memorial Shootout play.
Amanda Showers scored 21 points to lead all scores while Hickey had 14 points and 12 rebounds to go along with her four blocked shots.
Wilson chipped in 10 rebounds with her six points and helped the Cowboys finish a perfect 4-0 at their own tournament.
Hickey and Showers received All-Tournament team awards.
With the tournament now complete, Camp Verde’s record stands at 13-2 overall this season. The Cowboys are ranked No. 8 in the Arizona Interscholastic Association power point polls, which were released Monday, Jan. 3.
Camp Verde was in action again Tuesday, Jan. 4, when they played host to Mayer High School. Results were unavailable at press time.
Next up, the Cowboys travel south Friday, Jan. 7, to play Scottsdale Christian Academy. The Eagles are ranked No. 2 in the AIA power point standings. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.
