Joseph City had an 11-day layoff from their final 1A central region tournament game to their first round of the 1A state tournament when they met up with Dishchii’bikoh in the opening round.
The Wildcats entered the bracket at the fifth seed and took down the 12th seeded Wildcats from Cibecue, 78-66. The game was close throughout, with the Wildcats leading by 5 after the first quarter, then by just 2 at the half. That lead was 3 going into the final quarter where they pulled away for the 12-point win.
Eli James led the way with 25 points. Kase Fish added 22; Trenton Deets, 2; Cort Miller, 8; Heston Miller, 6; Jaimen Tsosie, 3; and Jaxon Arnell finished with 2.
That win moved them forward in the bracket where they faced fourth seeded Gregory School in the quarterfinal round on Friday night. Playing at Desert Edge High School the Wildcats played well in the first half, holding a 32-26 halftime lead against the higher seeded Hawks. The second half went the other way. The Gregory School won the third quarter 20-9, then pulled away in the fourth to end Joseph City’s season with a 70-56 loss.
