The early morning wake-up call didn’t have Combs sleep walking during the game.

Same goes for Tempe minus its fourth quarter.

Their back-and-forth contest was entertaining as soon as it tipped off at 10 a.m. Monday at Tempe Corona del Sol. But in the fourth quarter, Combs pulled away for a 60-53 victory in the 2023-24 opener of the fourth annual Martin Luther King Dream Classic.

Combs went to a 1-3-1 late in the third quarter to help keep Tempe without a field goal until 3:38 remained in the game. Tempe did get its share of good looks, but the shots just didn’t fall like they did in the first three quarters.

“We took care of them (Tempe) not getting offensive rebounds,” Combs coach Hosea Graham said. “And we had to be a bit more patient on offense. We got our pick-and-rolls going, and I think that was part of our success also.”

Tempe had the height advantage, but Graham’s team neutralized that strength as well.

Four of Graham’s starters (guards Kamren DuBose, Logan Tuckfield, Jae Lujan, Jaimin Amador) scored in double figures, with Amador’s 14 points leading the way.

Alejandro Navarro and Arthur Murphy each tallied 10 points for Tempe (7-13).

“We just started settling and didn’t attack the paint a lot,” said former Basha high star Devin Kirby, Tempe’s coach, about his team’s fourth quarter struggles. “We need to do a better job of that. We’ll learn from it. We’ve got another one (game) tomorrow.

“We want to finish strong. We are senior dominant. We want them to have a great finish to their regular season.”

Besides the early tip off, Combs also hadn’t played a game since losing to Eastmark on Jan. 10.

Its Jan. 11 match-up against American Leadership Academy Gilbert North was cancelled due to, according to a school district statement, the highly sensitive nature of recent events, coupled with the heightened level of commentary and concern shared by community members. Coach Graham and his boys are coping with some very raw emotions.

Preston Lord, a beloved teammate, died two days after being beaten at a Halloween party last year. The undersized yet determined Combs squad is doing its best to honor its fallen teammate.

Its next win will match last season's victory total (14) with nine regular season games left to play.

“The kids are playing with a lot of emotions right now, considering the circumstances,” Graham said. “I can’t break them, but I can bend them. But I know that they are going to step up. We have to continue to work hard on our defense and keeping the other teams off the board. We may not be taller than other teams, but we will be tougher.”

Saguaro also a morning team

Saguaro’s players also are morning persons.

The team trailed 9-6 during the second game of the MLK Dream Classic at Corona del Sol but kicked it into another gear and then some after that. The Sabercats kept attacking the basket during a 26-9 run to finish the first half, allowing it to defeat Marcos de Niza 67-39 Monday.

“I think it started on defense honestly,” Saguaro coach Lucas Ramirez said. “Our press sped them up a little bit and forced some turners. I think their energy went down a little bit and ours picked up. From there, the offense just got on a roll and were able to do it consistently.”

That stout defense limited 7-11 Marcos de Niza to just two second quarter field goals.

Saguaro also made six three-pointers, including a buzzer beater by Justice Hinds to end the third quarter, giving Saguaro a 54-26 advantage. Prior to the trey, Saguaro’s Joe Miller exited the game and was greeted with well-deserved high-fives from his coach and bench players.

His defense in the low post against Marcos de Niza’s big was a bright spot. Even Miller was caught off guard by how well he played.

“It was good, but I was even surprised by it myself,” said Miller about his defensive outing. “I held him (Marcos de Niza’s big) down and did my job.”

The 6-4 sophomore center also scored a team high 15 points.

James Stewart led Marcos de Niza with 14 points.

“I think this is the first game that we played consistently for 32 minutes with intensity,” said Ramirez, whose team is 6-11 but lost four winnable games. “We actually didn’t shoot the ball that well in my opinion. But it was still a really good day for us.”