The Winslow Bulldogs played well and won three games while losing one in the Red Rock/Pagos Pizza Classic Tournament at Sedona. They will take a 5-1 record into the Pepsi Invitational Tournament in Flagstaff this week. Last weekend’s tournament was won by the Lee Williams Volunteers who defeated the Prescott Badgers 73-47 in their final game to stay undefeated.
In their first game on Friday, the Bulldogs defeated the Show Low Cougars, 78-40. The Bulldogs led 17-10 after the first quarter and a commanding 42-19 at the half. The margin was 61-30 after three quarters. Four Bulldogs were in double figure scoring led by Tyrell Young with 25 points; Darius James with 13 points; Elias Stewart, 12; and Dustin Richard with 10. Show Low was led by Aahron Villalba with nine points.
In their second game on Friday, the Bulldogs suffered their first loss of the season falling to the Lee Williams Volunteers from Kingman 57-51. The Volunteers led 17-8 after the first quarter, 26-19 at the half and 38-32 going into the final period. James took game high honors with 17 points for Winslow and Richard scored 14 for the Bulldogs. Lee Williams had three players in double figures with Jayden Hooper scoring 14 points; Kade Juelfs, 12; and Diego Narvarte with 10.
On Saturday, the Bulldogs defeated the Copper Canyon Aztecs 71-45 in their first game that day. Winslow led 14-13 after the first quarter but pulled away in the second period for a 43-25 halftime lead. They stayed in control and led 63-33 after three quarters. James took scoring honors with 23 points for Winslow. DeAngelo Lewis with 17 points and Stewart with 10 were also in double figures for the Bulldogs. Copper Canyon had three players in double figures led by Frankie Canales with 16 points. Kamal Abdul-Hakim and Daniel Torres each scored 10 points for the Aztecs.
The Bulldogs defeated the Tuba City Warriors 68-53 in their final game of the tournament on Saturday. The game was close in the first half with Winslow leading 21-20 at the quarter and 37-34 at the half. The Bulldogs pulled away to a double-digit 53-39 third quarter lead. Winslow had four players in double figures including Zachary Wagner with 18 points; Richard, 13; James, 11; and Elias Stewart with 10. Jeremiah Byjoe took game high honors with 20 points to lead Tuba City. Tyler Williams was also in double figures for the Warriors with 10 points.
The Bulldogs will play in the Pepsi Invitational Tournament this week. Their first opponent will be the Mingus Marauders on Thursday, Dec. 6. They will play at least three games in the tournament.
The next regular season game for the Bulldogs is on Wednesday, Dec. 12, against the Tuba City Warriors at Winslow. They will play at Chinle on Friday, Dec. 14, and host Window Rock on Saturday, Dec. 15, and Ganado on Monday, Dec. 17, to complete the 2018 portion of their schedule. The first game in 2019 will be in Show Low on Tuesday, Jan. 8.
