#15 Chandler Storms Back To Defeat #18 Cactus Shadows in Open Division Round of 32

In the first round of the Open Division bracket, the Chandler Wolves defeated the Cactus Shadows Falcons 64-59.

However, things were not always pretty for the Wolves.

To begin the game, every single starter for the Falcons was able to put the ball in the bottom of the basket. 

Taking over in the first quarter was junior guard Terrell Fair, who had nine points, one of which was a three-pointer towards the end of the opening quarter. 

The Falcons would bring that momentum into the second quarter as well. 

Once again, it was Fair making shot after shot.

Cactus Shadows was able to get multiple turnovers, which led to easy layups for Fair. 

Chandler head coach Jonathan Rother wasn’t pleased with his team's start to the game and wanted them to get more shots in the paint. 

“[Cactus Shadows] came out swinging,” Rother said. “That’s the thing about the Open Division, everybody is 0-0. At the end of the day, we finally got the ball inside.” 

A switch flipped for Chandler to close out the first half. 

After trailing 30-18, they would proceed to go on a 16-4 run to close out the second quarter. 

Leading the way on the run was Chandler sophomore forward Donovan Palmer, who used his height and size to score nine points in the second quarter. 

Not only did Palmer feast in the paint, but he also had a block and played great defense to keep the Falcons within reach. 

Palmer noted his team has had struggles getting off to a fast start, but was proud of the way his team responded. 

“We have been having rough starts,” Palmer said. “We had a talk that we just had to get stops and gotta have more energy.”

Early in the third quarter, Chandler would claim their first lead of the contest. 

Chandler junior guard JT Mercado pushed the ball down the court and finished through contact to get the and-one basket and the lead. 

Both teams would exchange baskets in the third quarter, as there were five lead changes. 

For the Falcons, it was Fair who kept fighting to keep the game close as he had 7 third-quarter points. 

Chandler junior guard Tahli El-amin closed out the third quarter strong with back-to-back baskets that included a corner three-pointer. 

The Wolves held a one-point lead heading into the final eight minutes. 

The Falcons would rely on one of their guards to get hot from deep. 

Cactus Shadows junior guard Myles Godfrey hit two three-pointers early in the fourth quarter to keep the game tight. 

In the middle of the fourth quarter, though, the Wolves would have their biggest energy play of the game. 

Chandler junior forward Jamir Smith went coast-to-coast and put down a monster dunk to get the crowd going at Chandler.

Then Palmer would once again get the job done down low and continued to get baskets to allow his team to hold onto the lead. 

Every time his team needed him, Palmer delivered, and that's a tribute to the type of competitor he is. 

“He is a competitor,” Rother said. “He’s got so much grit; he plays great. He had a good game.” 

Towards the end of the game, the Wolves would hit crucial shots to close out the game. 

Chandler senior guard Brandon Stapleton hit a corner three-pointer to extend their lead to five points with two minutes left in the game. 

Down the stretch, Cactus Shadows would turn over the ball multiple times and allowed Chandler to hold on and win the game.

Getting a big win over Cactus Shadows in round one of the Open Division bracket, Chandler will now go to Goodyear and face #2 Millennium in the Round of 16. 

Chandler has a tall task ahead when they face Millennium Friday night, but they are going to rely on one another to keep it rolling.  

“We have a thing it’s called energy, effort, enthusiasm,” Palmer said. “It’s all we have to do. We all have to play together and come to us.” 

Next up: #15 Chandler visits #2 Millennium. #18 Cactus Shadows awaits its seeding & matchup in the 4A bracket after the conclusion of Friday's Open Divison Round of 16 games.