Pinnacle protected its No. 2 seed in a very methodical manner Tuesday night in the Division I boys basketball tournament.

The Pioneers notched their 30th win of the season by stopping Perry's run at a final-four spot with a convincing 64-46 victory at ASU's Wells Fargo Arena.

Pinnacle (30-3) advances to Thursday's 6 p.m. semifinal against Cesar Chavez at Jobing.com Arena. Chavez eliminated Red Mountain with a 64-51 triumph. Perry, which qualified for state as the No. 23 seed, had won two games, including beating the No. 10 and No. 7 seeds. Perry finished 19-9.

Cody McDavis led Pinnacle with 22 points and had plenty of help from his starting teammates. Drew Bender added 14 points, Dorian Pickens had 10 and Chris Klima 8.  Pinnacle led 16-9 after the first period and built on that lead through three periods. The Pioneers held a 32-16 advantage at halftime and was in no danger after three quarters with a 52-31 edge.

Lucas O'Brien topped Perry in scoring with 12 points and Jordan Howard added nine. Perry had knocked off North and Basha in its first two tournament games.