Millennium ready for next big step towards Arizona Open Division basketball title
The University of Notre Dame fight song is pulsating inside Goodyear Millennium's gymnasium as the Tigers begin basketball practice on Wednesday afternoon.
Coach Ty Amundsen likes to change up the play list and turn up the volume. This, he figures, will give his team a little extra pep, knowing what's next.
It's not the Fighting Irish, but Scottsdale Notre Dame Prep that will be playing host to Millennium on Friday night in what is now being billed as the Arizona high school boys basketball game of the regular season.
So much is riding on this.
Millennium is ranked No. 1 in all of Arizona, all conferences combined, by The Arizona Republic. Notre Dame is ranked No. 2 by The Republic.
More: Arizona Republic's boys basketball high school rankings: Super 10 through 1A, Jan. 28, 2024
But the Tigers are ranked No. 11 and Notre Dame No. 1 by the Arizona Interscholastic Association in this week's 32-team Open Division playoff seeding, the fallout of dominating a week 5A region.
With Notre Dame twice and Scottsdale Desert Mountain next week, along with a rematch with Waddell Canyon View, Millennium will find out how high it can surge to get a ranking that will land it at least two games at home in the Open playoffs.
"It's big," Amundsen said of Friday's game at Notre Dame, the first time he's taken a team to play there. "It's big for power points, everything like that. We're battle tested. We've been ready for games like this all season long."
Millennium (17-4) is the only team in the state not to lose to an Arizona team this season. Its losses have come against formidable out-of-state competition, including the final of the Thanksgiving Hoopfest in Texas against Stony Point. The Tigers went 2-2 in the City of Palms Classic in Florida, losing one of those games to Paul VI, which is 19-2 and ranked second in the country by MaxPreps.
Take away the out-of-state competition, Millennium is 13-0 against in-state competition, winning by an average of 89-44. The Tigers have surpassed 100 points six times, beating Avondale La Joya by scores of 118-34 and 118-41.
Notre Dame will be Millennium's best challenge since the Tigers rallied to beat Phoenix Sunnyslope 65-62 in overtime on Nov. 30 in the Hoophall West at Scottsdale Chaparral.
That was senior guard Sabien Cain's breakout moment, letting Arizona he was ready to make a big splash since moving from Indiana.
Cain's 3-point shooting and steals in the final four minutes of regulation helped Millennium wipe out a nine-point deficit against Sunnyslope. Cain had to get used to AIA's shot clock, something he said Indiana high schools didn't have when he left.
But for a team like Millennium, it usually needs only 10 seconds or less to put shots up.
"I like the team," Cain said. "They were very welcoming in the beginning. Coach Ty and his program are great. I fit in really well. The camaraderie is great. We just have some little things to fix before going into the playoffs. So far it's been great."
This is Amundsen's deepest roster. He's got six players, he said, averaging in double figures score.
Cameron Holmes, a 6-foot-7 sophomore sensation, garners most of the headlines. But he's as unselfish as the next guy on the team. He is averaging close to 21 points against the out-of-state teams. His defense and ability to get to the rim and make long-distance shots has many high-major college programs recruiting him hard.
"The addition of Sabien, adding him, it means a lot to me," said Holmes, whose brother DaRon was twice the Gatorade Arizona Player of the Year at Millennium and is now starring for Top 25 Dayton. "He helps with spacing the floor more.
"Every one of our starting five can score."
Kingston Tosi, a 6-7 junior forward, is averaging a double-double. He entered the 1,000-point club this season. He's good at finishing around the rim and popping shots from the arc.
Guards Quincy Everson and J.T. Amundsen, 6-5 sophomores Brayden Barrett and Dylan Coday and freshman guard Adrian Higuera are all capable shot makers.
Combined with his scoring in Indiana, Cain, who will be playing in college at Cal State Northridge, recently went over 1,000 points. J.T. and Quincy are both at 700 points in their careers. Holmes is closing in on 1,000 points and he's only a sophomore.
"Everybody has their role," Ty Amundsen said. "Quincy and J.T., you've got to play them tight because they can knock down shots. But they're distributing it so well."
Last year, Millennium got bounced from the Open in the second round, losing to Peoria Liberty. That dropped the Tigers back into the 5A tournament, where they had to reset mentally after the disappointing early Open exit. They ended up reaching the 5A final before losing to Gilbert Campo Verde 61-48.
"I remember we played Sandra Day O'Connor in that first (5A tournament game) and it went into overtime," Amundsen said. "I'm like, 'Hey, you guys want to play in this?' We ended up pulling that out."
The finals loss to Campo Verde left the Tigers with an unfulfilled feeling for the third time five years.
Millennium lost 5A championship heart breakers in 2019 to Gilbert (38-37) and 2020 to Glendale Ironwood (78-70) under Amundsen's watch. The school has won one state title in its history in 2008 out of 4A-I.
Amundsen has won three straight state titles as a coach, leading Goodyear Estrella Foothills to 2008, '09 and '10 3A championships.
This might be one of the best big-school teams in Arizona high school basketball history. But the Tigers need these tough games in the last week to show they can contend in an Open that will be wide open, without a clear favorite.
"As soon as we play them, we're going to win," Tosi said. "We're looking to win. We always go with that mind set. After we do that, we'll move up (in the AIA rankings)."
To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert atrichard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter:@azc_obert
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Millennium basketball eyes Arizona Open Division high school playoffs
