Gilbert claims McClintock Shootout crown

December 30, 2021 by Les Willsey, AZPreps365


Gilbert High added its second invitational title this season taking the top spot at the McClintock Holiday Shootout. (Azpreps365 photo).

Two invitationals in the 2021-2022 season. Two first-place trophies for Gilbert's boys basketball team.

The Tigers added the McClintock Holiday Shootout to their triumphs on Thursday night. They knocked off Hamilton, 48-42, in the tourney final at McClintok High.

Gilbert was led by seniors Nikko Pentelute and Reed Shuey, both of whom earned all-tournament honors. Pentelute was accorded tournament Most Valuable Player recognition. Gilbert also won its own Welcome to the Jungle Invite during the Thanksgiving break. The Tigers are 15-2 for the season and Hamilton is 14-3.

Pentelute led all scorers Thursday in the title game with 21 points. All his points came via threes (five) or free throws (6 of 6). All six free throws were tallied in the final 42 seconds as Hamilton opted to foul to get the ball back trailing, 41-39, with 45 seconds to go. Shuey added 14 points, doing his usual scoring in the paint.

Hamilton trailed virtually the entire game and by as many as eight points (35-27) late in the third period. The Huskies entered the final quarter down 37-34 and managed one brief lead in the fourth, 38-37. They scored back-to-back baskets (Daimon Denning and Jalen Lee) for that advantage that lasted 25 seconds. Shuey scored his final basket of the night with 5:27 to go and the Tigers were never headed again.

All-tournament selection Quincy Adams paced Hamilton with 16 points, all of those in the first three quarters. Adams fouled out with 1:09 to play after picking up four consecutive fouls trying to get Gilbert to the free-throw line. Daimon Denning also scored in double figures for the Huskies with 15 points.

Six players comprised the all-tournament team announced after the title game. Joining Pentelute, Shuey and Adams were Apollo's Ahamed Mohamed, Basha's Torin Bosch and McClintock's Jaylen Wesley.

In the other games played on Day 4 in the Shootout, the host Chargers claimed fifth place with an 88-65 win over Highland. Basha defeated Mesa High, 66-42, for the consolation title and Apollo bested Ironwood, 60-41, for third place.