George Matthews scored 23 points, and St. Mary’s beat Pinnacle 63-47 Tuesday, keeping their state tournament hopes alive.

St. Mary’s (13-9), ranked 16th in the power rankings, has three games left to sure up a spot in the state tournament. The top 16 teams make it.

While Matthews’ scoring helped St. Mary’s defeat Pinnacle (14-10), stifling team defense was the key to the win. Within the first minute of play, senior forward Jordan Didier, who added 13 points, set the tone of the game with a blocked shot on an attempted layup in the paint.

The defensive effort was even more noticeable in the second half as the defending Class 5A Division I boys basketball champs held Pinnacle without a field goal for the entire third quarter. Pinnacle converted its first field goal of the second half with five minutes left in the game.

“They did what they were supposed to do,” St. Mary’s coach David Lopez said. “We were able to take Pinnacle out of their offense.”

St. Mary’s needs to stay focused for the last three games of the season if they hope to continue their run at the state tournament, Lopez said.

“We need to play harder,” he said. “We’re a real talented team, but sometimes we lose our focus.”

St. Mary’s dominated Pinnacle in the key with offensive rebounding and second-chance points.

“Like coach told us: nobody in the state can really stop us down low, so our focus was crashing the boards,” Matthews said. “Get as many second and third chances as possible.”

Matthews started the fourth quarter strong, converting a break away dunk while being fouled. St. Mary’s never allowed Pinnacle to get within striking distance.

“I’m just trying to lead my team and keep the energy intense, keep everyone intense,” Matthews said. “I’m trying to lead by example. If I do it, then they’ll do it.”