Monitor Photo/Russell Slaton
Conner Posey sets the Trinidad offense during his team’s District 24-1A home contest Jan. 24.

Monitor Photo/Russell Slaton
Colby Brown of Trinidad, who scored 12 points versus Coolidge, eyes the bucket around a defender.

Monitor Photo/Russell Slaton
Zakadrine Thirkhill of Trinidad focuses on a 3-pointer during Jan. 24’s home game against Coolidge.

Monitor Photo/Russell Slaton
Jonah Hornbuckle, who led Trinidad with 18 points versus Coolidge, drives into the lane Jan. 24.

TRINIDAD–The Trinidad Trojans fell behind early to the Coolidge Yellowjackets, who came into the Jan. 24 game as the No. 1 team in District 24-1A, falling 86-42.
The Yellowjackets surged to an 11-0 lead before Jonah Hornbuckle got Trinidad on the board with 4:54 left in the first period. Fifteen seconds later, Colby Brown's layup had Trinidad within 11-4, after which the Yellowjackets went on a tear for a 22-4 lead. With 1:55 left in the first period, Hornbuckle hit a Trinidad 3-pointer to get his team within 22-7. The Yellowjackets then closed out the first period with seven-straight points for a 29-7 advantage.
Coolidge continued in the second period with four more unanswered points. With 4:52 left in the second, Jack Stephens made two Trinidad free throws to stop the run and get the Trojans within 33-9. Seventeen seconds after that, Stephens added a bucket underneath to further reduce Coolidge's advantage to 35-11. Brown added another Trojan basket 23 seconds later to get Trinidad even closer at 35-13.
Another Yellowjacket run, this time of 14 consecutive points, put Coolidge up 49-13. Trinidad regrouped with two Stephens free throws, three Hornbuckle layups, a Stephens runner in the lane and another Stephens basket late in the second period, all of which got the Trojans within 49-25. Coolidge got in one more bucket with 2.5 seconds left in the first half to take a 51-25 intermission lead.
Thirty seconds into the third period, Brown grabbed an offensive rebound and followed with a Trojan bucket to get Trinidad even closer, at 51-27, but seven quick Coolidge points (including a Yellowjacket 3-pointer) put them up 58-27. With 5:22 left in the third, Brown's bucket got the Trojans to 29 total points.
A Coolidge 3-point play off a foul, a 3-pointer and a Yellowjacket steal and bucket allowed Trinidad's visitors to go up 66-29. With 2:52 remaining in the third, Stephens of Trinidad hit a basket from the corner after taking a blow to the face, but Coolidge struck quickly with a 3-pointer to give them a 69-31 advantage. Trinidad traded a Coolidge bucket with a free throw of their own, then with 51 seconds left before the fourth period, Brown snagged an offensive rebound and added the bucket, which made the score 70-35, Coolidge. The Yellowjackets soon followed that with a 3-pointer and a layup, a scoring streak broken by Hornbuckle's Trinidad free throw with 3.31 seconds left in the third.
Now leading 75-36, Coolidge scored the first five points of the fourth period. With 4:35 left in the game, Hornbuckle hit a hoop off the glass, then 1:32 later, Hunter Martin found Hornbuckle in the paint with a long pass for a bucket, all of which allowed Trinidad to get within 82-40. Hornbuckle drove the lane for a basket with 23 seconds left in the game for Trinidad's final bucket.