AJ Dybantsa, Prolific Prep defeat Jamari Phillips, Dream City Christian: Live score, updates of Crush in the Valley (1/20/24)
With 17 games over three days, the Crush in the Valley high school basketball showcase is sure to provide plenty of excitement.
The excitement at Contra Costa College should reach its peak Saturday night when nationally-ranked squads Prolific Prep (California) and Dream City Christian (Arizona) square off.
Prolific Prep, ranked No. 4 in the SBLive Power 25 national rankings, and No. 20 Dream City Christian feature a combined 11 players ranked four or five stars, including four potential McDonald’s All-Americans.
Can the Eagles pull off an upset in the Bay Area, or will the Crew further solidify their status as a top five team in the country?
The game is being streamed by Tanager Sports and is scheduled to tip off at 6:15 p.m. PT/9:15 p.m. ET. Follow SBLive's Mitch Stephens (@MitchBookLive) for updates and more Crush in the Valley coverage
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FINAL: PROLIFIC PREP 83, DREAM CITY CHRISTIAN 79
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AJ Dybantsa, the nation's No. 1 overall recruit in the class of 2025, drives the lane during a Dec. 19 win over Utah Prep in St. Louis, Missouri.
Nate Latsch, SBLive Sports
FOURTH QUARTER
-- Prolific Prep wins 83-79. The Crew trailed by double digits late in the third quarter, but they stepped up when it mattered most and earned a win over another top 20 team.
-- Ikenna Alozie keeps Dream City alive with a quick three pointer, but Winters Grady knocks down a pair of free throws at the other end for Prolific Prep. It's 83-79 in favor of the Crew with 2.6 seconds left, so it looks like the No. 4 team in the country will hold on for the comeback victory.
-- Diallo has ice in his veins. The five star goes 2-for-2 at the free throw line again, and the Crew have an 81-76 lead with 7 seconds left.
-- Zoom Diallo goes 2-for-2 at the free throw line and makes it a two-possession game. Prolific Prep leads 79-74 with 16 seconds on the clock.
-- Dream City Christian isn't going away. Alejandro Aviles shows off his touch with a floater, and following a stop on defense, Gabe Pickens scores on a fast break to make it 77-74 with 23.5 seconds remaining.
-- Winters Grady is clutch. The four-star junior, who has been playing most of the fourth quarter after AJ Dybantsa left with an apparent injury, knocks down a corner three to give Prolific Prep a 77-70 lead.
-- Mikey Lewis finishes a circus layup through a foul, and the St. Mary's commit hits the free throw to convert the and-one. Prolific Prep leads by six, 74-68, with a little over two minutes left in the quarter.
-- Coming out of the inbound pass from the technical free throws, Grady drains a three to give Prolific Prep a 68-64 lead. With the initial Stokes putback plus two free throws and a three-pointer by Grady, it goes down as a seven-point possession for the Crew
-- Tyran Stokes cleans up a missed layup by Zoom Diallo with a putback dunk. A technical foul is called on Dream City after a player shoves Stokes, so sharpshooter Winters Grady comes to free throw line and sinks two shots. Prolific Prep leads again for the first time in a long time, 65-64, and the Crew retain possession of the ball.
-- Zoom Diallo shows off his finishing ability in transition. The Washington-bound five star adds two buckets to reach 15 points tonight. The Crew trail by three, 64-61.
-- Jamari Phillips drains another three for Dream City, and the Eagles' lead is back up to eight points, 64-56. The Arizona commit has been huge for Dream City tonight.
-- Zoom Diallo keeps the Prolific Prep run going with a scoop layup on the first possession of the quarter. The Crew have cut the deficit to one point after trailing by double digits about three minutes ago.
THIRD QUARTER
-- Prolific Prep ends the third quarter on an 11-4 run, and just like that it's only a three point game heading into the quarter. Dream City Christian leads 57-54.
-- Coming off a Dream City three pointer from Jamari Phillips, the Crew respond with two on a tough finish by Zoom Diallo. It's 53-43 with three minutes left in the quarter.
-- Dream City is leaving some points at the free throw line. Emmanuel Stephen goes 1-for-2 at the line to give the Eagles a 50-39 lead, but they had missed three straight free throws before that.
-- Travis Torain hits a three for Dream City. The Eagles, up 49-39 halfway through the third quarter, are receiving strong contributions tonight from several players.
-- Sherrell hits a three late in the next possession. The Alabama commit is leading the way for Prolific in scoring tonight and now in double digits.
-- After nearly three minutes without scoring to start the half, Aiden Sherrell goes 1-for-2 at the free throw line for Prolific Prep. The Crew trail by eight, 40-32.
SECOND QUARTER
-- What a first half between these top 20 teams. National No. 20 Dream City Christian leads 40-31 against No. 4 Prolific Prep at halftime.
-- SportsCenter Top 10 alert? Ikenna Alozie soars to throw down a lob from Jamari Phillips, and the crowd goes crazy. Dream City is up 40-29 on Prolific Prep.
-- Now Jamari Phillips drains a three pointer. Dream City's lead grows to 38-29. A timeout is called by Prolific Prep with 43 seconds left in the half.
-- Five-star Ikenna Alozie hits a three pointer and, following a stop on defense, scores in transition. The sophomore is heating up, and Dream City has its biggest lead of the night, 35-29.
-- Alejandro Aviles converts the and-one, and the game is tied up again at 26 apiece. Aviles is now in double digits in the scoring column.
-- Here comes Tyran Stokes. The nation's top-ranked sophomore checks in the game for the first time and gets a quick bucket. Prolific Prep leads again, 22-21.
-- Alejandro Aviles knocks down a three for Dream City to cut the lead back to one. The four-star forward scores from the post on the next possession to give the Eagles the lead, 21-20. Prolific Prep hasn't scored through two minutes in the second quarter.
-- On to the second quarter, with Prolific Prep leading 20-14. Both teams are starting to find their groove offensively after defense dominated early in the game.
FIRST QUARTER
-- Arizona signee Jamari Phillips checks in for Dream City and immediately scores in transition. The Eagles trail by one, 12-11, with a couple minutes left in the first quarter.
-- Luke Coughran banks in a three off the glass to give Dream City its first lead of the night, then Winters Grady nails a three on the other end for Prolific Prep to quickly tie the game back up, 9-9.
-- Aiden Sherrell gets the scoring started for Prolific Prep with a dunk after Alejando Aviles goes 1-for-2 at the free throw line for Dream City.
-- Starting lineups are being introduced now. For Dream City it's Ikenna Alozie, Gabe Pickens, Alejandro Aviles, Travis Torain and Emmanuel Stephen. Prolific Prep goes with Mikey Lewis, Winters Grady, AJ Dybantsa, Zoom Diallo and Aiden Sherrell. Looks like Arizona commit Jamari Phillips and five-star sophomore Tyran Stokes will come off the bench tonight for the Eagles and Crew, respectively.
PREGAME READING
6:15 p.m. Saturday (PT) | Contra Costa College, San Pablo, CA
Prolific Prep will be without injured five-star Derrion Reid (Alabama commit), but the loaded Crew still have five-stars Zoom Diallo (Washington), Aiden Sherrell (Alabama), AJ Dybantsa (No. 1 overall junior) and Tyran Stokes (No. 1 overall sophomore).
Dream City Christian boasts a pair of Arizona Wildcats signees in guard Jamari Phillips and center Emmanuel Stephen. The Eagles also have four-star junior Alejandro Alives in the frontcourt and five-star sophomore Ikenna Alozie in the backcourt.
The Crew and the Eagles met up in November, and the Crew won 87-80 behind Dybantsa’s 31 points and nine rebounds.
Last season when these two teams faced off at the same event, unranked Dream City Christian handed No. 1 Prolific Prep its first loss of the season.
-- Zach Shugan | zshugan@gmail.com | @SBLiveSports
