Saguaro shook off a poor shooting performance in the first half, hitting six of its final eight shots to help it win 41-40 and snap Bradshaw Mountain’s 30-game win streak in the final game Tuesday of the Division II girls basketball state quarterfinals at Jobing.com Arena.

Saguaro didn’t take its first lead until Naomi Reyes nailed a three-pointer with 2:41 remaining in the game. That was one of four 3-pointers Saguaro converted, including two by Jelani Huma, in the final 5:10 of the game.

“We were due,” said Saguaro coach Chris Young about his team’s final shots. “It came at a good time.”

Casey Rarrik, Saguaro’s leading scorer (19 points per game), also got off to a slow start but chipped in 11 points in the second half.

Bradshaw Mountain tied the game at 38 with 1:20 remaining after a pair of free throws by Kylie Morris (22 points). But Huma answered with a three-pointer on Saguaro’s next possession.

Bradshaw Mountain (30-2) led by as many as nine points twice in the third quarter, but Saguaro got hot at the right time to knock off the No. 1 seed in the D-II state tournament. No. 8 seed Saguaro (24-9) advanced to face No. 5 Liberty on Thursday at Jobing.com Arena, with a trip to Saturday’s state final at stake.

Seton Catholic also survives

Junior Julia Barcello tallied 21 rebounds, including 16 on the defensive end, to help leave Seton Catholic two victories shy of winning its fourth consecutive state championship.

Seton Catholic never trailed in its Tuesday 41-38 D-II quarterfinal victory over Campo Verde, but Seton Catholic had a more difficult time putting away its opponent this time around. Campo Verde had lost its previous two games to its state quarterfinal opponent by a combined 31 points during the regular season.

But Seton Catholic has been playing without its injured veteran point guard, Anne Marie Holter, for the past week or so.

“I think my kids responded remarkably well, considering that Anne Marie Holter has been running the point for three years straight, and we’ve had a to train a new point guard in a week,” Seton Catholic coach Karen Self said.

Seton Catholic (30-4) had opportunities to put this game away down the stretch but allowed Campo Verde to stick around, and Campo Verde had a chance to win this game with 1.8 seconds left.

But a desperation heave came up way short. The marquee battle in this quarterfinal matchup at Jobing.com Arena was the inside duel between Barcello and Campo Verde’s leading scorer, forward Stephanie Orji.  

But Barcello helped limit Orji to just nine points, five points below her season average. Seton Catholic’s Heather Heild led all scorers with 13 and Barcello and Susan Spinner each added 12 points.

Up next for Self’s No. 2 seeded team is Flowing Wells in Thursday’s semifinals at Jobing.com Arena. Barcello now is up to 1,010 rebounds in her career.