BOYS BASKETBALL: Class 2A Weekly Update
By kevin on Jan 25, 2012 with Comments 18
Top ten members Peyton and Byers collide this Friday in an important contest inside District Eight and the matchup between the 3rd ranked Panthers and 8th ranked Bulldogs highlight the 2A schedule for this week. Both teams are battling Limon and Evangelical Christian for the top four seeds for the district tournament scheduled for late next month.
Peyton sits at 8-2 on the season and winners of five straight since a loss to highly ranked Manitou Springs (3A). They’ve beaten four district opponents thus far but only the win over Calhan last Saturday counts toward the district seeding. Coach Brian Green’s club will face Colorado Springs, Fountain Valley and Kiowa again in February and those games will represent the district matchups.
Byers is not in the Black Forest conference so they play district opponents only once during the regular season and each outcome will determine the Bulldogs post-season positioning. With wins over Evangelical Christian, Vanguard, Calhan and Colorado Springs, Coach Jeremy Kerns’ club is already 4-0 and virtually a shoo-in to be playing at home in the district quarterfinals. That right is reserved for the top four seeds.
Peyton is outscoring the Bulldogs by about 11 points a game so they’ll push the tempo a bit more. Ethan Abello dropped in 31 points in the win over Calhan and he reached that total on just 16 shots because he was 11 of 12 from the foul line. It was his third game over 30 points this year and the junior leads the team in scoring (25.0). Second leading scorer Jared Watkins (11.2) did not play against Calhan but Chris Epps (17) and Kyle Gowen (14) easily picked up the slack. Watkins’s status for this weekend is unknown.
Byers carries a ten game winning streak to the weekend and recently they’ve been boosted by the return of junior wingman Ryan Imber. Playing in his last five games, his outside shooting ability has freed up even more space for the inside power of Jake Eikleberry and Jared Martin. Imber fired in three three-pointers and totaled 15 points in the Bulldogs last win over Colorado Springs. That pushed his season average to over six points a game.
Eikleberry and Martin though remain options one and two. Eikleberry leads the team in scoring (18.7) and rebounding (9.7) and has scored between 14 and 17 points in each of the last four games. He was held to just nine points in limited minutes during a blowout of Woodlin but that’s the only game this year he’s failed to score at least 14. Martin was in serious foul trouble in the game we watched against Calhan and didn’t see much court time but he’s averaging 12 points and 8 rebounds and totaled 24 points in last week’s wins over Flagler and Colorado Springs.
Evangelical Christian and Calhan hook up in another important District Eight game Saturday afternoon. As mentioned, the Eagles (9-2) already have a district loss to Byers so if they wish to earn the top overall seed, winning out is probably a must. Calhan is in more dire straits. The Bulldogs are 3-3 against district opponents but only the three losses have counted toward the district seeding. They’ve beaten Vanguard, Colorado Springs and Fountain Valley but play the Coursers, Kodiaks and Danes again with those results impacting the district standings.
As in the past, ECA will push tempo especially this game against a Calhan team with more size. Cam Dillavou (13), Caleb Dillavou (10) and Vincent Bracket (10) are all double figure scores and many times they get easy looks from forced turnovers against the Eagles press. Calhan snapped a three game skid by beating Fountain Valley 62-50 on Tuesday.
2nd ranked Limon is another contender for the top seed in District Eight. The Badgers (12-0) take a break from both the district and Union Pacific races by heading to Simla on Thursday. The Cubs are ranked sixth in Class 1A and the game will mark a much needed test for both clubs. Limon beat Deer Trail and Colorado Springs by ten points apiece but every other wins has been by at least 15 points. Simla represents the first ranked opponent the Badgers will face and for Simla, the Cubs haven’t played a top ten team since losing to Peyton in the season opener.
The Badgers top player is Jason Brown with 15 points and nearly ten rebounds a game. He leads an offense averaging over 72 points a game but he gets plenty of help from teammates Cameron Dohe, Gavin Liggett, and Tyler Koehn who are all averaging 11 points a game. That balance makes it difficult for defenses to concentrate on just one player.
Denver Christian (#1) and Resurrection Christian (#6) played the most important game of last week with the Crusaders cruising to an easy 65-46 road victory. The win solidified the Crusaders’ hold on the number one ranking but the Cougars fell three spots to sixth this week. Both were on the court Tuesday in their first action since the head-to-head matchup and both posted impressive wins. Denver Christian rolled 3A Kent Denver 73-56 while Resurrection Christian moved past Heritage Christian 65-52. The Cougars had beaten Heritage by just three points early in the season so the win marked a ten point improvement. Denver Christian jumped on Kent 23-11 in the first quarter and then outscored the Sun Devils by five points over the final three quarters. Austin Lefebre went for 24 points and Alex Terpstra 19. Terpstra had two treys in the win but Connor Kroshus hit four from beyond the arc to finish with 14 points. Wyatt Simon had a big day for Resurrection. The junior poured in a season best 21 points including all three of the team’s three-pointers for the day.
Denver Christian heads to Middle Park on Saturday and then hosts Alexander Dawson next Tuesday. Resurrection Christian visits Longmont Christian Friday evening and will be favored in each remaining game until a rematch with Denver Christian to close the season on February 17th.
Sanford is a third top ten team that was on the court Tuesday night. Stepping up a class to visit Pagosa Springs, the Indians ended a six game winning streak with a 60-52 loss. They now sit at 10-2 with both losses to 3A opponents (Alamosa and Pagosa). They return to action inside the district at home against Cripple Creek this Friday.
With eight wins in ten games, West Grand has been among the biggest surprises in the classification. In fact, the Mustangs could lose seven of their final eight games and still finish better than the 8-8 mark they posted a year ago. Even though they face a pair of 1A opponents this weekend, the Mustangs face their most difficult back-to-back games of the season when they host Vail Christian on Thursday before visiting Plateau Valley in Colbrann on Friday.
One of the two losses by West Grand came at the hands of Vail Christian and the Saints won in impressive fashion (72-49). Robby Bowles led four Saints in double figures as they posted the win. West Grand picked up 24 points from Travis Gore and 14 from Casey Gore but the rest of the team managed only 11 points combined. They’ll need better balance and more pressure defensively to offset the 24 point margin from game one.
Travis leads the Mustangs in scoring for the season (19.9) including a 31 point night in the quality win over Hayden. He’s reached double figures in his last five games. Casey is scoring eight points a game but has not reached double digits over the last five outings.
Plateau Valley has won three straight since a 17 point loss to Meeker. The Cowboys are 7-2 and have a common opponent with West Grand in Soroco. Plateau Valley beat the Rams by 19 compared to the one point victory posted by the Mustangs.
The West Grand defense must focus on Teddy Grundy who is scoring almost 42 percent of Plateau Valley’s points (24.7). He’s scored at least 20 points in all but one game this year as he ended up with only 17 in the latest loss to Meeker. The senior is coming off an explosive weekend where he combined for 54 points in wins over Soroco and Ridgway.
Two of the most prolific scorers in Class 2A face off Friday when 10th ranked Akron entertains Holyoke. Sophomore Brady Baer is averaging 28 points for the Rams with Senior Reid Baumgartner at nearly 22 for the Dragons. Both have the ability to take over a game at any moment and each has the ability to string points together in bunches.
Recently, Baer has been more accurate from beyond the arc than inside hitting 19 of 39 three pointers in his last four games compared to 22 of 51 from inside. The guard scored exactly 30 points in three straight games before “settling” for 25 in the win over Yuma. Baumgartner pushed his average over 21 points with a solid week against quality opponents totaling 26 in a loss to Yuma and 30 in the road win at 9th ranked Wiggins.
Both teams have also been up and down of late in a season filled with inconsistent results for the 2A teams in the Lower Platte. Akron opened 6-0 but has split their last four. They lost to Wiggins by 28 points and then lost the rematch to Haxtun (61-57) last Friday. They had beaten the Bulldogs by three earlier in the season. Akron responded by beating Yuma 65-55 the next night.
Holyoke meantime has lost twice to Yuma but split a pair of games with Wiggins. On January 7th, they lost at home to Wiggins by 18 points but then as mentioned rallied to beat them on the road 74-72. Yuma and Wiggins have been equally inconsistent and if you throw in Burlington and an improving team in Wray, it should make for one crazy district tournament next month.
Speaking of the Indians and Tigers, they met in Wiggins Tuesday night with Yuma scoring a 53-41 decision. The Tigers trailed 17-8 after the first quarter and never really recovered as only four players hit the scoring column. Yuma improved to 9-4 overall with their fourth win in five games. Stats for the Wiggins win have yet to be reported but Matt Bowland (12.5) tops the team in scoring for the season but guard Brody Bueltell runs the attack and is a close second with 11 points a night. Sophomore Jaden Koenig continues to get more minutes each game and has raised his average to 8.6 points game. Dalton McMurphy also chips in eight a night.
The win at Wiggins started off in a good way an important stretch for the Indians who challenge three-time defending 1A champion Caliche this Friday. They also meet Hi Plains, Haxtun and Akron over the next two weeks and will use the hefty slate to prep for the post-season push. Yuma finished third at state a year ago beating Ignacio on a last second shot in the third place contest.
Wiggins also has another tough date with Haxtun on Saturday. Comparative scores go out the window in this one as well. Wiggins blasted Akron 90-62 with Haxtun splitting two tight games with the Rams. The Tigers have dropped two straight at home since the impressive Akron win. Haxtun (6-5) has not won more than two in a row or lost two straight all season. They’re coming off a loss to Chase County Nebraska (43-39) on Tuesday.
Filed Under: Boys Basketball • Weekly Previews
Why dont u ever mention Ignacio?? There in the top ten have been the last 4 years have not lost a home game in 3 years.U sure can talk about all the other schools but have yet to talk about Ignacio but that is ok u will see them make another great run this year!!! No LOVE for the Schools on the western slope that how it always is with this site!!!
Ignacio isnt what we’ve been in the past. They walk through districs easy but regionals could be scary. I think whoever comes to town from District 5 possibly West Grand is gonna be tough. District 6 could be either Rocky Ford or Crowley County and depending on how they play/scout they could be a tough out. This team is young and you know that.
We’ll see where we’re at against Pagosa.
Regarding Ignacio…I would say that Kevin does give them their due respect. the problem with Ignacio and other Western Slope schools when trying to write an article titled “2A Weekly Update” is that they (Ignacio) don’t get to play many 2A schools (at least in the capacity of the battles that take place weekly in Eastern Districts/leagues). Ignacio is a shoe in to win the district tourney every year and thus, probably isn’t a lot to report on. They win, don’t have much competition in 2A during the regular season. Kevin mentions them, ranks them..Reporting on their 40 point victory vs. league foe Mancos or Telluride…isn’t much of a newsworthy story…as opposed to Limon vs. Byers…Akron vs Wiggins etc.
I think that we all know that Ignacio is very good..year after year.and I think that we all expect them to be in Pueblo year after year.. It is just tough to tell how good they really are when there is not much in the way of common opponents to compare them to. They play NM schools in order to get more tested during the regular season.
all this cite does is talk about eastern teams and thats how it probably alwasy will be
narri a mention of the Meeker Cowboys either. Undefeated in the state of Colorado and ranked 7th. The Smith brothers, Cooper (sr 6’3 20ppg) and Gable (soph 6″5 point guard 8ppg), are giving every opponent trouble. Maybe flying under the radar will be to their advantage. But they should be getting pub.
It’s simply impossible for us to mention every team in every class every week. We simply try to pick the top five to ten best matchups (in our opinion) each week and preview them. Some teams in the top ten have easier weeks than others and that’s why we mention different teams each week. Concerning the talk about Eastern Colorado teams from Football Fan 37….the area routinely produces state championship contenders and winners and since the top teams match up on a regular basis, that’s why they receive attention. For example, Caliche has won three consecutive state titles in basketball, Yuma boys finished third in 2A last year and Holyoke won a state championship what two years ago? On the girls side, Simla is the defending state champion and Fleming finished second with Pawnee in the state tournament each of the past three years. Sanford is the defending state champion and they’ve been getting good coverage on the website but when they play teams that are struggling and won’t challenge the Indians, we don’t spend much time focusing on that contest. When Crested Butte made a run to the state finals a few years ago, they received plenty of attention on the website and on the radio program so when teams step up and compete for a state title, they receive plenty of coverage. We also understand that if we don’t give a certain team complete exposure and publicity each week, some fans will be disappointed but there is simply not enough time in a week to get every team the coverage fans feel they deserve especially when we’re out visiting games two, three or four times per week. Hope you all understand!
Thank you for all that you guys do. I think that there is plenty of coverage for the big guys in the Denver Post and other places, but we little guys really appreciate the coverage. Unfortunately, with near 60 teams in each division of boys and girls playing at least 2 games a week, I totally understand that this site cannot cover evvery single game for every team. Thanks for covering those that you do!
What high school did they go to in Madison? I have lived in Wisconsin, and follow Wisconsin HS basketball from afar….some great basketball in Wisc. And great coaching in Jerry Pettigoue, Forrest Larson, Steve Klaas etc.
i agree with 16hp Ignacio is always a great team and am sure we will see them at state again but as far as playing 2a teams in colorado they dont have any one good to play and it not there falt, i can just see why kevin talks about the byers peyton game instead of the dolores ignacio game that will probably be a 20 plus point win for ignacio
I will say this about Kevin and this site. Being a small school fan/parent myself. You will find NOBODY in the state…press coverage or otherwise, that does more research, homework, than Kevin does. There is no comparison when one looks at the Denver Post coverage…or even our local paper (Colorado Springs Gazette).. When it come to covering players, teams etc.
He is going to report on the newsworthiness of what is going on each week. He has mentioned both Ignacio and Meeker…and will surely talk about them more and more as we get closer to post season…but again, Caliche vs. Yuma, Limon vs. Simla…Byers vs. Peyton ..Wiggins vs. Holyoke…etc….top ten teams playing each other (both colorado preps ranking, and Denver Post).. Is a bigger game to report on and discuss and has bigger ramifications on the State rankings than does Ignacio vs. Telluride. Or Meeker vs. Vail Mountain.
Wisconsin vs. Iowa ….in college gets more attention than Murray State vs. Morehead State…even though Murray is undefeated and. Ranked.
When it comes to reporting on high school sports…Kevin is second to none in my opinion. I’m glad that he doesn’t talk about my team too much…we need to sneak up on people….Hahaha
I just want to piggy back on what 16hp said. I think this is the best site in Colorado for the sports fan in the high school ranks. I think Kevin gives props to more kids and teams than anyone does in Colorado and I think he does do a pretty good job of covering the whole state. It doesn’t matter where you are from if you are consistently good you get ranked and if you are part of an important game Kevin tries to cover it. It doesn’t make sense to spend a lot of time writing about games that most likely will be blow outs between good teams and weaker ones. Thanks Kevin for all you do for Colorado High School Sports fans.
While Lutheran has had a down year in comparison to that of the last several. They are starting to put the pieces together. Jonny Foote is still one of the most athletic players in 2A, but keep an eye on freshman point guard James Willis. He has really began to catch stride the last couple weeks and is playing great, even without taking into consideration he is a Freshman playing a 3A metro league schedule. He is a name we will be hearing a lot about the next couple years.
I agee, Kevin does a great job. I appreciate reading about the Colorado schools. Thank you Kevin. And to 16hp
Oregon High School south of Madison is where the Smith boys played. And yes, Pettigoue, Larson,Zwettler, MacKenzie,Nedelcoff, are all excellent coaches with great systems. Little different ball in Madison.
I know Oregon well…My Uncle has a large Greenhouse business North of Evansville… I Lived in Stoughton for a while.
Can’t remember the neame of the Drive In in Oregon that I used to stop off at after delivering plants (had a car on the roof, If i remember correctly)..
I have driven all over that part of Wisconsin back in my college days.. (Madison to Monroe)
Ignacio has gotten the better of Pagosa for a couple of years now. I’m looking forwars to another great tussle between two well coached teams with great athletes.
didnt ignacio end up top four last year in the state
Yeah made 3 straight Final Fours
you do a great job and your always right your cite is followed by many