Gilbert Dominates Desert Vista in Final Game Before Region Play Begins

On Wednesday night, the Gilbert Tigers took home a 60-24 win over the Desert Vista Thunder to put themselves back over .500. 

From the jump ball, the Tigers took control of the game and never looked back. 

Only a few seconds into the game, sophomore guard Contessa Ivy made an opening statement as she drained a three-pointer. 

The Tigers then relied on their bread and butter for the rest of the game as they played physical defense and caused a plethora of turnovers. 

Playing great defense allowed Gilbert to get out to a 15-0 lead to begin the game. 

Some of the key plays Gilbert had included a steal and a fastbreak layup by freshman guard Eva Speed. 

Sophomore guard Tylaiah Wily quickly soon after made virtually the same play, which was another steal that turned into a fastbreak layup.

Wily had multiple steals and finished the game with 20 points, and she notes that their strong defense helps their team out on the offensive end. 

“Our defense contributes to our offense,” Wily said. “That’s how our offense gets so many points, it’s from our defense.” 

For the rest of the first half, Gilbert was able to do everything and anything as they held all the momentum. 

Junior guard Milan Silvera made an athletic play on defense to snag a steal, then immediately dish it to Wily, who was able to score an easy layup to close out the half. 

At halftime, Gilbert was up an astounding 37-6 over Desert Vista. 

Gilbert head coach Savannah Bix has instilled a defensive culture into the program that has helped them be so dominant at certain points of the season. 

“Your shot is not always going to fall, but you can always hang your hat on your defensive energy,” Bix said. “If you can’t play defense, you can’t come to Gilbert.” 

Even though they held a huge lead, it didn't stop the Tigers from continuing to lean into their identity. 

The Tigers continued to play suffocating defense in the second half, as they only allowed four points in the third quarter. 

Ending the third quarter for Gilbert was once again Wily, snatching the ball away from Desert Vista, and was able to find Silvera, who scored the easy basket. 

With such a large lead, Gilbert was able to chew a lot of the remaining time as they put up a running clock and came away with a huge win over Desert Vista. 

It hasn’t been easy the whole season for Gilbert, though, as they have played in some of the top tournaments in the country and faced some of the best teams there are. 

However, they feel as though playing such tough competition has made them ready for the rest of the regular season and a playoff push. 

“We got beat pretty bad in the TOC (tournament), we got beat pretty bad in the Las Vegas Classic, but we played some of the best teams in the country,” Bix said. “Being battle-tested has made us ready to play other Arizona opponents.” 

The Tigers seem like they have things clicking now, though, as they have won three straight games and are above .500. 

With the playoffs coming up in about a month, Gilbert has their eyes set on making it back to the biggest stage. 

“We’re getting ready for state,” Wily said. “We’re trying to go back to state.” 

Next up: 8-7 Gilbert will look to continue their win streak as they face off against 2-10 Desert Ridge. 3-11 Desert Vista will look to get back in the win column as they will play 7-7 Pinnacle.