Deron Orr Jr. is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Carl Hayden for AZPreps365.com

The Maryvale Panthers travel to Phoenix on Thursday night to face up with Carl Hayden Community. This will be Maryvale's second time playing Carl Hayden this season. 

MaxPreps has Maryvale (9-11) ranked No.173 among all high school basketball teams in Arizona. 

Maryvale on Tuesday beat the Alhambra Lions, 56-36. Maryvale's win against Alhambra has put the Panthers in position to improve their record as they head into the final stretch of the season.

The last Maryvale-Carl Hayden matchup was close with Carl Hayden defeating the Panthers, 53-50. Marvyale junior guard Bryan Ucles averages 11.4 points. He will try to rally his team to a victory Thursday night. 

MaxPreps has Carl Hayden Community (16-7) ranked No. 79 among all teams in Arizona. Coach Rodney Brown might sound familiar to some people. Brown was on the Phoenix St.Mary's 2005 basketball state runner-up team.

Brown replaced Argie Rhymes after Rhymes retired in 2020. Brown hopes to continue the success at Carl Hayden after Rhymes won four state championships. With the experience he gained in 2005, Brown hopes he can put it to use with the team he coaches.

“Making sure the boys are locked in,'' he said. "Holding everybody accountable from the last man on the bench to the first man, making sure we do the little things to get to the state championship." 

With Carl Hayden's success this season, fans are seeing that Brown is continuing to create a winning culture. Around this time last year, Carl Hayden had a record of 11-12. With so many improvements and changes, Hayden is looking much better and hungry to get to the big stage.

“The boys are taking it more seriously now,'' Brown said. "Last year compared, we had Covid (the) year first and we got to play last year. They were just happy to be out there on the court, you know what I mean? Our leadership is different and the boys are more hungry now, so they are not just taking basketball for granted. Some of them know this is their ticket out."

Adrien Armstrong averages a team-high 15.4 points, shooting 51 percent from the field. As a senior, he is continuing to push to become  better every game along with pushing his teammates to do better as well.

 “I try to get the younger guys to learn from my mistakes,'' Armstrong said. "Everything I messed up on I don't want them to mess up on, and I try to communicate with them as much as possible." 

The work is paying off. As it enters the season's final stretch, Carl Hayden has many players that are ready for anything that comes their way, and the leadership in the locker room seems strong. 

“I feel like I lead the team with great energy,'' Armstrong said. "I feel like l’m a vocal leader on the court or like another coach. I've been in the coach system for a while, I know what he wants on the court and what he wants us to bring."

Carl Hayden and Maryvale are scheduled to tip-off at 7 p.m. Thursday at Phoenix Carl Hayden's gym.