Highland guard Sevey Alva offered a taste of what he had in store for Desert Vista in the first quarter Tuesday night. In the second half, he unloaded and he and the Hawks ran away from the Thunder.

Alva produced big time off the bench by scoring 18 points -- 11 in the third period -- helping Highland topple Desert Vista, 72-59, in a Division I boys game at Highland High.

Highland, fifth in the D-I power-rankings entering the contest, improved to 12-5 overall and 7-2 in power ranking games. Desert Vista came in at No. 7 and was fresh off a victory last Friday over Corona del Sol. The Thunder fell to 10-8, 6-4.

"We've been waiting for that from him," Highland coach Derrick Donaldson said of Alva. "He can shoot the ball. With us it seems to be a different guy every night. Whatever five guys we have on the court, they can contribute. They're not out there just to pass."

Alva, a 5-foot-10-inch junior, hit a three in the first quarter shortly after checking in to start Highland back from a 10-4 deficit. With only a few seconds left in the quarter he made a steal at midcourt and a layup followed ust before the buzzer to give the Hawks an 11-10 lead. Alva's 18 points are a season high and the sixth time he's scored in double digits in 2015-2016.

Highland never trailed again, but held only a 25-21 lead at halftime. Alva didn't start the second half, but returned to the floor in the first minute of the third period when starter Ilisia Washington picked up his third foul. Alva teamed up with consistent, steady senior Tim Fuller  to guide Highland to a double-digit edge post haste. Fuller and Alva sank back-to-back threes to push the Hawks' lead to 31-22. The margin reached as many 13 with Alva adding eight more points in the quarter via another three and two baskets in the paint. Fuller, signed to play at Weber State next season, finished with a game-high 23. Jake Pandrok, who struggled a bit offensively in the first half, chipped in with 15 points.

Desert Vista managed to cut the lead to 51-44 with 6:20 to play, but Highland protected the lead the rest of the way. Highland's second-leading scorer, Jake Pandrok, scored nine points in the final period and Washington added a three and a dunk to seal the outcome.

Poor shooting from the free-throw line by Desert Vista in the first half contributed to its defiicit at intermission. The Thunder made 1 of 9 free throws the first 16 minutes. Caleb Simmons and DJ Hamilton paced Desert Vista with 17 points apiece. Tarik Cool, one of the primary holdovers from last year's D-I final along with Simmons, had 10 points.

Highland's win continues the D-I boys saga so far this year of Team A beats Team B, Team B beat Team C and Team C beat Team A (i.e. Highland beat Desert Vista, Desert Vista beat Corona del Sol and Corona del Sol beat Highland).

"Who wins it is up in the air," Donaldson said. "That's a good thing for all of us. A lot of good teams out there."