Prior to the last three years, Cottonwood was generally a team that struggled. Before the 2022-23 season, the last time it had won a region title was in 2007 when it shared it with Olympus, and its last outright region crown was in 2003.

Things started to change with the 2022-23 season, when the Colts finally took home another region title. They continued their success with a region title last year and then earned their third consecutive region crown with a 49-44 road win over Hillcrest on Tuesday.

It was a do-or-die senior night game for Hillcrest, as a loss meant the Huskies no longer could win a region title. However, Cottonwood was keen on spoiling the home team’s night.

The Colts earned a quick lead, largely thanks to their defense. Cottonwood held Hillcrest to just five points in the first quarter and 10 in the second.

Meanwhile, Cottonwood’s second-chance opportunities allowed it to build a substantial 30-15 halftime lead.

“We played good help defense,” said Cottonwood head coach Marc Miller. “We worked on switching everything because they’re not a big team. They’re a quick team and they can all handle the ball so we were switching one through five.”

Despite its large deficit, Hillcrest came into the second half with a chip on its shoulder. The Huskies played tight defense and forced nine second-half Cottonwood turnovers.

Those turnovers allowed Hillcrest to get out into transition, and the Huskies capitalized with a 6-0 run to start the third quarter.

“They understand that we sometimes get a little lax,” said Miller. “I think sometimes we take for granted that we’re up 15 and we chase things we shouldn’t be chasing like points and so forth.”

Trouble continued for the Colts as Hillcrest continued its comeback into the fourth quarter, and the Huskies got to within a single point at 45-44 on a 3-pointer from Anton Mahler with 90 seconds left.

For the first time since the opening tip, Hillcrest had a chance to take the lead.

But with about 35 seconds left, Cottonwood’s Luka Cecez was fouled and made both free throws to extend the Colt lead to three. Cottonwood then had a strong defensive possession and a score to hold on for the 49-44 win.

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Cecez and Luke Park each scored 14 points to lead the Colts.

“I was a little nervous,” Cecez said. “You hear the crowd, and you love these moments because you want to be prepared. You want to know that when the playoffs come around you could do the same thing.”

Tuesday’s win capped off a strong three-year stretch of in-region dominance from Cottonwood. Not only have the Colts won three consecutive outright region titles, but they’ve done so with a region record of 35-1.

“The thing we preach the most is team basketball,” Miller said. “We just work and work on getting kids to share the ball, being happy when their teammates score, finding each other when they’re open, and I think that has kind of led to our success.”

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