Arizona's AIA high school boys basketball playoff brackets, results and schedules

March 1, 2026 · Yahoo Sports

Arizona's AIA high school boys basketball playoff brackets, results and schedules originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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The first boys basketball state champions have been crowned in Arizona in the state's two lowest classifications while the upper classifications continue to progress toward next week's state championship games.

In the AIA's Conference 1A tournament, the Fort Thomas Apaches defeated the St. David Tigers, 77-45, with Damarae Dosela leading the way with 26 points. The Pima Roughriders then claimed the 2A championship trophy in a 40-29 win over the North Valley Christian Academy [Phoenix] Lions.

The Conference 3A championship game is also set as the Palo Verde [Tucson] Titans will take on the Coolidge Bears next week with the final details yet to be confirmed.

STREAM: Watch Arizona's AIA boys basketball playoffs on the NFHS Network

The postseason picture is also becoming clearer in the Grand Canyon State's top four brackets. The state's unique process allows qualifying schools from the top three classifications – i.e., Conference 4A, 5A, and 6A – to compete in one 32-team Open Division bracket in order to crown a true state champion. But the losers in the first two rounds aren't eliminated entirely from postseason competition as they drop back into their respective conference tournaments. The top eight teams continue on to the Open Division quarterfinals in which the losers are eliminated for good.

This setup led to some controversy last week when the Central [Phoenix] Bobcats were accused of "tanking" in a 91-77 loss to the O'Connor [Phoenix] Eagles in order to avoid moving into the Open Division quarterfinals. Ultimately, the Bobcats were allowed to take their place in the Conference 5A tourney where they overwhelmed the Independence [Glendale] Patriots, 109-65, on Wednesday.

They followed that performance by eliminating the Carl Hayden Community [Phoenix] Falcons, 71-44, to move into the semifinals set for Tuesday, March 4, against the Willow Canyon [Surprise] Wildcats.

The state's Open Division, meanwhile, is one of the top state association brackets in the entire nation, featuring two teams ranked in the latest edition of The Sporting News High School Boys Basketball Top 25. The semifinals will feature the No. 19 Sunnyslope [Phoenix] Vikings against the Basha [Chandler] Bears while the No. 24 Millennium [Goodyear] Tigers will take on the St. Mary's [Phoenix] Knights.

If Sunnyslope and Millennium both win in those games scheduled for Wednesday evening, they'll meet for the third time this season on Saturday night, March 7, for the AIA Open Division state championship. The two powerhouses split their first two meetings with the Vikings winning, 61-57, on January 21 with the Tigers avenging that loss in overtime with a 77-71 win on February 10.

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