At first you don't succeed, try again. Centennial did just that Tuesday night, taking the 2022 championship trophy rather than runner-up it earned in 2021 in the 5A boys basketball title game against Gilbert High.

Fifth-seeded Centennial overcome a 10-point, fourth-quarter deficit with an 18-1 closing run in topping #2 seed Gilbert, 46-39, in the 5A championship game at Arizona Veteran's Memorial Coliseum.

Centennial (26-5), which knocked off three higher-seeded squads in its four tournament triumphs (#4 Sunrise Mountain, #1 Buena and Gilbert), had a trio of players score in double figures to secure the coveted gold ball. The Coyotes were led by senior guard Jake Lifgren. Lifgren tallied 17 points, 12 in the second half and 10 of those in the final period. Sophomore Gage Galbreath added 14 points and season scoring leader and junior Emery Young chipped in 11. Gilbert was paced by seniors Reed Shuey (10 points) and Nikko Pentelute (8).

Gilbert (26-4), which knocked off #15 Ironwood Ridge, #7 Apollo and #3 McClintock (the latter two hard-fought wins), led 25-20 at intermission and 33-27 after three quarters. A 5-1 start the first 1:45 of the fourth put the Tigers on solid footing with a 38-28 advantage. Lifgren, Galbreath and Young then went to work.

Galbreath sank two free throws with six minutes left and Gilbert answered with a free throw and its final point of the night via a KJ Perry free throw at the 5:42 mark. Centennial scored the next 16 points - all by Lifgren and Young. A banked-in three by Young with 51 seconds left gave the Coyotes their first lead since the opening minute of the second quarter. Lifgren sank 6 of 6 free throws in the final 28 seconds to seal the deal.

While Centennial was doing its part to rally, Gilbert didn't help itself with a disappointing finish. After Perry's free throw, the Tigers missed two shots from the field, five consecutive free throws from the 4:27 mark to 43 seconds left and committed four turnovers (two when it mattered). Two of the free-throw misses were the front-ends of one-and-ones.

Gilbert led throughout the second and third quarters after the teams settled for a 10-10 first-quarter tie. The Tigers maintained the edge in the third quarter thanks to blue-collar work in the paint from Shuey. Shuey scored eight of his 10 points and grabbed five of his 10 rebounds in the quarter.

Gilbert and Centennial players watch the flight of shot in the 5A championship game. (Azpreps365 photo)