Jesus Ramos barely broke a sweat in easily dispatching Jesus Bojorquez with a second-round TKO on Saturday. Now is the time to start getting him better competition.

The high school basketball season is racing forward, as the regular season ends Friday. While some teams battle for playoff positioning, others try to close out their season by making a strong impression. Here’s a look at the latest PinalCentral boys basketball power rankings.

SIGNAL PEAK — Following a strong start in Saturday’s game at Eastern Arizona, the No. 22 Central Arizona College women’s basketball team was outscored 19-2 in the third quarter and 21-14 in the fourth as the Gila Monsters rallied for a 63-50 victory.

SIGNAL PEAK — With just one run and three hits through five innings, the opener of Saturday’s doubleheader clearly was an anomaly for a Central Arizona College baseball team that averaged 9.8 runs and 9.5 hits in its first 10 games.

SIGNAL PEAK — When COVID-19 canceled her senior season nearly a year ago, Jessica Mercado was deeply upset because she didn’t get her senior night and that final moment of playing in front all the people who supported her throughout her high school career at Casa Grande Union.

CASA GRANDE — Vista Grande has had an up and down girls basketball season, but on senior night, the Spartans had a feel-good victory over winless Scottsdale Coronado on Friday.

CASA GRANDE — It’s been an interesting season for the Casa Grande Union girls basketball team, with a new coach, a new conference and also a global pandemic added to the mix.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Jesus Ramos has a birthday coming up soon, and the early present he wants most is a spectacular knockout victory in his fight Saturday.

CASA GRANDE — Early shooting woes and a lack of rebounding led to a slow start for the Casa Grande Union boys basketball team, and a second-half rally came up short in a 66-56 loss to Tucson Ironwood Ridge on Tuesday.

SIGNAL PEAK — After going 10-0 in nonconference play to begin the season, the next phase figures to be a bit more challenging for the Central Arizona College baseball team.

SIGNAL PEAK — After starting off the season playing seven games in three days, Central Arizona College had a two-week break before Saturday’s doubleheader against Eastern Arizona College.

With a pandemic-shortened regular season in high school basketball, there are just a handful of games left for most teams before the playoffs begin. Here’s a look at the latest PinalCentral boys basketball power rankings.

CASA GRANDE — As high school basketball hits the halfway point of the season, things are finally starting to come together for the Casa Grande Union boys basketball team.

CASA GRANDE — After all the drama, momentum shifts and big plays, Hank Bias couldn’t remember how many overtime periods his team just played.

When Coolidge’s Nick Harrison hit a dramatic 3-pointer at the buzzer to send Friday’s game against rival Florence into overtime, all I could do was smile and shake my head.

SIGNAL PEAK — Devon Dixon’s RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning sent the Central Arizona College baseball team to a 4-3 victory over Salt Lake (Utah) on Sunday at CAC Field and completed a second straight four-game series sweep for the 10th-ranked Vaqueros.

SIGNAL PEAK — Opponents are still looking to collect their first hit off Mat Olsen this season.

As the high school basketball season barrels toward mid-February, it’s a good time to take a look at the top teams in Pinal County. Here’s PinalCentral’s first power rankings of the season for girls basketball.

The high school basketball season is now well underway, and with a pandemic-shortened regular season, the playoffs will be here in the blink of an eye. Now that most teams have at least a handful of games under their belt, here’s a look at the first PinalCentral power rankings of the season,…

CASA GRANDE — The coach who will lead Vista Grande football into a new era is a man with Casa Grande roots.

CASA GRANDE — Someday soon, a large number of colleges will realize what Angel Flores brings to the table as a quarterback and leader. Until then, he’s pushing forward and meeting every challenge in his own way.

On the reservation, basketball is more than a sport. It’s a way of life. Affectionately known as rezball, it’s a celebration of Native American culture. In Arizona, high school basketball wouldn’t be the same without it.

SIGNAL PEAK — The 10th-ranked Central Arizona College baseball team is 4-0 after a series sweep of Colorado Northwestern at CAC Field last week.

Super Bowl matchups don’t get much better than what’s on tap Sunday. But two men will determine the outcome of the game, and it’s not the two you think.

CASA GRANDE — Based on their first meeting of the season, the rematch between the Combs and Vista Grande boys basketball teams should have been competitive. Instead, Combs dominated a depleted Vista Grande squad and came away with a 66-36 road win Friday night.

SAN TAN VALLEY — It was another nail biter game between the Vista Grande and Combs girls basketball teams Friday night, with an almost exact outcome, as the Coyotes won 49-44.

CASA GRANDE — It hasn’t been the ideal start to the season Casa Grande Union has been hoping for, but with each game they have been competing and improving. In a matchup with Tucson Sahuaro, CG Union kept it close throughout the entirety of game but lost 59-54 on Thursday.

CASA GRANDE — Alcurtis Turner has been running youth basketball camps for several years, and now he’s bringing his knowledge and experience to Casa Grande.

CASA GRANDE — After squeezing by into the Class 4A play-in round as the final seed a year ago, the Casa Grande Union boys soccer team is hoping to build off that success. It will be an uphill battle for the Cougars.

CASA GRANDE — There must be something in the water in Iowa. Many Pinal County athletes from different sports continue to find their way to the Hawkeye State.

SIGNAL PEAK — When the starting pitcher hurls four no-hit innings before departing and the offense erupts for 20 runs, it’s one heck of a way to begin a baseball season.

SIGNAL PEAK — When the 2020 season ended prematurely on March 16 because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Central Arizona College baseball team was denied the chance to repeat as NJCAA champion.

CASA GRANDE — Despite two losses to open the season, Kevin Hubbard is seeing positive signs of improvement from his Casa Grande Union girls basketball team.

SIGNAL PEAK — Having five pitchers on the roster is a rarity in softball’s upper echelons. Central Arizona College will have that luxury when the season begins Feb. 4.

SIGNAL PEAK — Anthony Gilich remembers March 16, 2020, the day when the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) announced it was canceling the remainder of the spring sports seasons due to COVID-19.

CASA GRANDE — With a second-place finish at the Arizona Interscholastic Association state qualifier competition on Saturday, the Casa Grande Union High School Cougar Spiritline is headed to the state finals.

CASA GRANDE — Basketball games aren’t often won in the first quarter, but it may have been the most important quarter for the Vista Grande boys in their home opener against Poston Butte on Friday.

CASA GRANDE — High school coaches often talk about having young teams, but it’s hard to think of many teams that will be younger than the Vista Grande girls basketball squad.

SIGNAL PEAK — There is no benefit to having a “what-if” mentality.

CASA GRANDE — Kevin Hubbard knew he would face many firsts coming in as the new head coach of the Casa Grande Union girls basketball team. But he never could have envisioned this.

PHOENIX — Just four days after the Arizona Interscholastic Association’s executive board voted to cancel the winter sports season, that decision was reversed.

SIGNAL PEAK — In a normal season, the Central Arizona College men’s basketball team would have been about three-quarters though its schedule in late January.

PHOENIX — In a move that came out of nowhere for many, the Arizona Interscholastic Association executive board voted to cancel the winter sports season Friday morning.

CASA GRANDE — If anyone knows the boys on the Casa Grande basketball team well, it’s Chad Howell. After all, he coached most of them in middle school.

CASA GRANDE — Hank Bias has been coaching basketball for 40 years, and he’s never been more excited for the season to begin.

The high point of the 2020 season for the Arizona Cardinals was the Hail Murray against the Buffalo Bills on Nov. 15. Why couldn’t they sustain that momentum? Look no further than the head coach.