Colorado Preps Network » Boys Basketball

Denver Christian Names New Coach

kevin — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 20:03:21 +0000

Coming off a state championship in the final game of the legendary career of Coach Dick Katte, Denver Christian has officially named a new basketball coach. Crusaders Athletic Director Cliff Hendrick announced this afternoon that Ray Van Heukelem will succeed Katte at Denver Christian and become the school’s first new basketball coach in nearly five decades.

Van Heukelem is no stranger to the Denver Christian community serving as a teach and coach with the school for over 30 years. He has most recently been the head coach at Littleton high school and has served under Coach Katte for 32 years as an assistant.

Van Heukelem has also been head coach for the Crusaders boys and girls soccer teams winning a state championship in 1997. Recently he was inducted into the Colorado High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame for his numerous contributions as a coach and educator.

Katte ended his career at Denver Christian as the all-time leader in wins for basketball coaches in the state and his 2A state championship was the 8^th of his brilliant career.

Post-Season Changes for Basketball Made at Legislative Council Meeting

kevin — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:31:02 +0000

Two proposals to change the basketball post-season for next year were considered at the Colorado State High School Activities Association Legislative Council meeting on Thursday. One received enough support for approval while another was voted down in a very close vote.

Going down to defeat on a narrow 35-33 vote was a proposal for Class 4A basketball to return to a district tournament format to determine state tournament qualifiers. This proposal would have also required the regular season to be trimmed from 23 to 19 games. Since the proposal was defeated, a selection committee made up of volunteers from throughout the state will continue to select and seed the 48-team tournament.

In Class 2A, the regional tournament round will be moving from a preset bracket to a seeded tournament with geographic consideration. The eight district champions will be seeded one through eight with teams nine through 24 also seeded and placed in the bracket with some consideration for travel and to avoid district opponent. Teams seeded 25-32 will be assigned a bracket position simply based on geography. The eight regional winners will then be reseeded for the state tournament.

In another scheduling change, the 4A and 5A state championship games will now be played on the same date at the CU Events Center in Boulder. Previously, the girls championship contests were conducted on a Friday with the boy’s finals played out the next day. As a result, the Final Four for Classes 4A and 5A will be shortened from a four day to three day event saving the organization about $25,000.

BASKETBALL: State Tournament Recap

kevin — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 05:25:28 +0000

What a great day to finish off the 2011-12 basketball season as most of the state championship games went down to the wire especially on the boys side where the five games on Saturday were decided by a total of 15 points with one of them going into overtime.

The 5A game between Chaparral and Arapahoe was last to wrap up and featured the best finish of the night. Tied in overtime at 67, Chaparral’s Cory Calvert missed a 25-footer but teammate Josh Adams came soaring through the middle for an incredible tip-in at the buzzer to give the Wolverines their first ever basketball championship.

In Class 4A, Lewis Palmer finished the season with 27 consecutive wins as they edged league rival Sierra 44-43. The Stallions ended the campaign at 26-2 with both losses at the hands of the Rangers by a combined five points. They fell just short of their third title in four years while the Rangers grab their second title in school history.

Faith Christian again picked up the top trophy for the fifth consecutive year in Class 3A but it was far from easy. Down by as many as 16 points, Kent Denver rallied all the way back but the Eagles hung on for a 41-40 victory.

A legendary coaching career came to a close in Class 2A as Denver Christian held off Limon 54-50 in the championship. The title was the eighth in the 48 year career for Dick Katte and was his 876^th victory at the school. Limon was in the finals for the first time since 1964 and roared back to actually take the lead at 44-43 in the fourth quarter after trailing by as many as 18 points in the first half.

Up tempo was the word of the day in Class 1A as Caliche raced to a crazy 84-77 decision over Sierra Grande. The win gave the Buffs and head coach Randy Kirkwood their fourth straight title and prevented the Panthers from gaining their first ever state title. It was also their first loss of the season.

On the girls side, Faith Christian was a surprise winner in the 3A ranks. After finishing third in the Metro conference during the regular season, the Eagles drew the ninth seed in the 32-team bracket and won five consecutive games to win the second championship in school history. They beat Eaton 49-44 in the title game as the Reds finished off another frustrating season that ended with a loss in the finals.

In Class 2A and 1A, Akron and Pawnee ended a couple of years of frustration by winning the first state titles at their school. The Rams finished second two years ago and then sixth last year before downing Lutheran 57-49 for the 2A championship on Saturday. Pawnee scored the fewest points of any winner in a state championship game but hung on to beat Norwood 28-23. For the Coyotes, it was the third time in four years they’ve finished in the top four but the first time they hoisted the top trophy.

STATE CHAMPIONSHIP INTERVIEWS

Akron girls: Rick Agan

Pawnee girls: Laura Hodgson

Caliche boys: Randy Kirkwood

BOYS BASKETBALL: Saturday State Tourney Schedule

kevin — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 05:30:56 +0000

The 2011-12 basketball season comes to a close today with the crowning of five state champions. Only two teams have a chance to repeat as Faith Christian seeks a fifth consecutive 3A crown and Caliche goes for a fourth straight 1A title. The Eagles tangle with long-time rival Kent Denver in Fort Collins while the Buffs try to hand unbeaten Sierra Grande their first loss in the small school finale.

Another focus on the final day is the last game in the legendary career of Denver Christian coach Dick Katte. He finishes up nearly a half-century on the sidelines as the Crusaders shoot for an undefeated season and eighth title under Katte. They’ll face Limon for the 2A crown tonight.

Two Colorado Springs team collide for the 4A championship as league rivals Lewis Palmer and Sierra take identical 26-1 records into the finals in Boulder. The Rangers won the regular season matchup by four points and another tight game is expected. In Class 5A, a first time champion will be crown as two number one seeds get together following the conclusion of the 4A contest.

Colorado Preps will provide updates of all games throughout the day on our sister website at www.coloradoscores.com which can be accessed on your smart phone at www.coloradoscores.mobi as well. Colorado Preps also provides updates on our twitter feed at www.twitter.com/coloradopreps plus all games can be seen online at www.chsaa.tv. And finally, we’ll conclude the season with the Built Ford Tough Scoreboard Show from 9-10pm Saturday night on the Colorado Preps Radio Network.

–

CLASS 5A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP – EVENTS CENTER / BOULDER

FINAL: #1 Chaparral beat #1 Arapahoe 69-67 (OT)

–

CLASS 4A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP – EVENTS CENTER / BOULDER

FINAL: #1 Lewis Palmer beat #1 Sierra 44-43

–

CLASS 3A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP – MOBY ARENA / FORT COLLINS

FINAL: #1 Faith Christian beat #6 Kent Denver 40-37

FINAL: #4 Valley beat #7 Holy Family 54-41 (3RD)

FINAL: #2 Colorado Springs Christian beat #8 Manual 73-71 (5TH)

–

CLASS 2A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP – EVENTS CENTER / PUEBLO

FINAL: #1 Denver Christian beat #3 Limon 54-50

FINAL: #2 Resurrection Christian beat #5 Lutheran 60-52 (3RD)

FINAL: #6 Wiggins beat #8 Sanford 65-54 (5TH)

–

CLASS 1A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP – EVENTS CENTER / LOVELAND

FINAL: #3 Caliche beat #1 Sierra Grande 84-77

FINAL: #2 Walsh beat #5 Hi Plains 63-40 (3RD)

FINAL: #6 Plateau Valley beat #8 Norwood 50-47 (5TH)

–

BOYS BASKETBALL: Friday State Tournament Schedule

kevin — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 05:19:56 +0000

Classes 4A and 5A determined their state finalists on Thursday so the state’s smallest three divisions take center stage today with state semifinals on tap in Classes 3A, 2A and 1A. Winners advance to the state championship games on Saturday night.

Colorado Preps will provide in-game updates on all the contests on our sister website at www.coloradoscores.com which can also be accessed on your mobile phone at www.coloradoscores.mobi. All games can also be seen live at www.chsaa.tv.

–

CLASS 3A STATE SEMIFINALS – MOBY ARENA / FORT COLLINS

FINAL: #1 Faith Christian beat #4 Valley 48-41

FINAL: #6 Kent Denver beat #7 Holy Family 29-26

FINAL: #8 Manual beat #5 Manitou Springs 73-67 (CONSOLATION)

FINAL: #2 Colorado Springs Christian beat #3 Eaton 59-49 (CONSOLATION)

–

CLASS 2A STATE SEMIFINALS – EVENTS CENTER / PUEBLO

FINAL: #1 Denver Christian beat #5 Lutheran 55-39

FINAL: #3 Limon beat #2 Resurrection Christian 57-52

FINAL: #8 Sanford beat #4 Custer County 42-38 (CONSOLATION)

FINAL: #6 Wiggins beat #7 Sargent 62-51 (CONSOLATION)

–

CLASS 1A STATE SEMIFINALS – EVENTS CENTER / LOVELAND

FINAL: #1 Sierra Grande beat #5 Hi Plains 68-43

FINAL: #3 Caliche beat #2 Walsh 64-57

FINAL: #8 Norwood beat #4 Springfield 59-49 (CONSOLATION)

FINAL: #6 Plateau Valley beat #7 Stratton 51-37 (CONSOLATION)

–

BOYS BASKETBALL: Thursday State Tournament Schedule

kevin — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 11:00:20 +0000

Thursday is a very important day of basketball across the state as teams in all classes get a chance to move one step closer to a state championship. Classes 5A and 4A will determine their state finalists while state quarterfinals are set for Classes 3A, 2A and 1A.

All games can be seen live online at www.chsaa.tv. We’ll post in-game updates on our twitter feed at www.twitter.com/coloradopreps and also on our sister website at www.coloradoscores.com. You can also follow scores on your mobile phone at www.coloradoscores.mobi. Final scores and updated brackets will be posted here.

–

CLASS 5A STATE SEMIFINALS – CU EVENTS CENTER / BOULDER

FINAL: #1 Arapahoe beat #4 Rangeview 66-41

FINAL: #1 Chaparral beat #2 Highlands Ranch 54-50

–

CLASS 4A STATE SEMIFINALS – CU EVENTS CENTER / BOULDER

FINAL: #1 Sierra beat #1 Broomfield 66-43

FINAL: #1 Lewis Palmer beat #2 Valor Christian 70-59

–

CLASS 3A STATE QUARTERFINALS – MOBY ARENA / FORT COLLINS

FINAL: #1 Faith Christian beat #8 Manual 60-38

FINAL: #4 Valley beat #5 Manitou Springs 53-23

FINAL: #6 Kent Denver beat #3 Eaton 54-47

FINAL: #7 Holy Family beat #2 Colorado Springs Christian 61-41

–

CLASS 2A STATE QUARTERFINALS – EVENTS CENTER / PUEBLO

FINAL: #1 Denver Christian beat #8 Sanford 56-33

FINAL: #5 Lutheran beat #4 Custer County 62-49

FINAL: #3 Limon beat #6 Wiggins 57-48

FINAL: #2 Resurrection Christian beat #7 Sargent 55-44

–

CLASS 1A STATE QUARTERFINALS – EVENTS CENTER / LOVELAND

FINAL: #1 Sierra Grande beat #8 Norwood 75-64

FINAL: #5 Hi Plains beat #4 Springfield 63-60

FINAL: #3 Caliche beat #6 Plateau Valley 84-38

FINAL: #2 Walsh beat #7 Stratton 51-50

–

BOYS BASKETBALL: Individuals to Watch at State

kevin — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 13:00:58 +0000

State quarterfinals open Thursday morning at three different venues as the Class 3A, 2A and 1A state tournament open in Fort Collins, Pueblo and Loveland. Thanks to MaxPreps, we’ve been able to compile a list of the top players based on statistics at each tournament. We provide the top ten scorers, rebounders and three pointer shooters at each event but please note that not all teams turn in complete individual statistics to MaxPreps.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

CLASS 1A

TOP SCORERS
1.	Teddy Grundy – Plateau Valley	24.4
2.	Jaxon Meardon – Walsh	21.3
3.	Nick Rushing – Norwood	18.5
4.	Weston Meardon – Walsh	17.9
5.	Saul Baker – Springfield	17.0
6.	Ricardo Howard – Sierra Grande	15.9
7.	Morgan Rummel – Norwood	15.1
8.	Tomas Vigil – Sierra Grande	14.5
9.	Jorge Cruz – Stratton	12.6
10.	Kyle Smith – Plateau Valley	11.8

TOP REBOUNDERS
1.	Teddy Grundy – Plateau Valley	12.0
2.	Weston Meardon – Walsh	9.7
3.	Tomas Vigil – Sierra Grande	8.9
4.	Adam Gomez – Sierra Grande	8.5
5.	Malachi Jacquart – Walsh	8.3
6.	Morgan Rummel – Norwood	8.1
	Doug Eberhard – Plateau Valley	8.1
8.	Michael Crane – Springfield	7.2
9.	Michael Sanchez – Springfield	6.9
10.	Logan Chavez – Sierra Grande	6.7

THREE POINTERS
1.	Jaxon Meardon – Walsh	83
2.	Saul Baker – Springfield	58
3.	Jonathan England – Walsh	36
4.	Nick Rushing – Norwood	32
5.	Tomas Vigil – Sierra Grande	25
6.	Braydon Smith – Sierra Grande	21
7.	Teddy Grundy – Plateau Valley	20
8.	Kyler Smith – Plateau Valley	17
9.	Brady Humphrey – Springfield	14
10.	Morgan Rummel – Norwood	13

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

CLASS 2A

TOP SCORERS
1.	Austin Lefebre – Denver Christian	20.4
2.	Jonny Foote – Lutheran	19.3
3.	Alex Terpstra – Denver Christian	18.0
4.	Brandon Baer – Wiggins	15.7
5.	Brian Wallman – Resurrection Christian	14.6
6.	Joel Peggram – Wiggins	14.2
	Taylor Risner – Wiggins	14.2
8.	Jason Brown – Limon	13.6
9.	Josh Mondt – Resurrection Christian	13.4
10.	Tanner Ewertz – Wiggins	13.1

TOP REBOUNDERS
1.	Taylor Risner – Wiggins	10.8
2.	Jason Brown – Limon	9.1
3.	Austin Lefebre – Denver Christian	8.9
4.	Bryan Wallman – Resurrection Christian	8.8
5.	Tyler Koehn – Limon	8.0
6.	Brian O’Connor – Custer County	7.3
7.	Connor Kroshus – Denver Christian	6.5
8.	Chandler Dohe – Limon	6.3
9.	Taylor Murphy – Lutheran	5.9
10.	Isaac Shelden – Custer County	5.4
	Josh Clausen – Lutheran	5.4

THREE POINTERS
1.	Alex Terpstra – Denver Christian	57
2.	James Willis – Lutheran	40
3.	Tanner Ewertz – Wiggins	37
4.	Gavin Liggett – Limon	35
	Jonny Foote – Lutheran	35
6.	Connor Kroshus – Denver Christian	28
	Connor Parkinson – Lutheran	28
8.	Shawn Schlabach – Custer County	26
9.	Collin Magnuson – Resurrection Christian	25
10.	Joel Peggram – Wiggins	24

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

CLASS 3A

TOP SCORERS
1.	Nate Engesser – Colorado Springs Christian	23.2
2.	Jesse Megyeri – Manitou Springs	21.0
3.	Nathan Rindels – Faith Christian	20.4
4.	Joe Dellenbach – Valley	17.0
5.	Dai’Vante Collins – Manual	16.3
6.	Aaron Malvern – Manitou Springs	15.7
7.	Tanner Schmidt – Valley	14.8
8.	Rosalio Pimentell – Manula	14.6
9.	Khalid Shareef – Manual	14.3
10.	Kyle Broekhuis – Colorado Springs Christian	13.9

TOP REBOUNDERS
1.	Dai’Vante Collins – Manual	8.9
2.	Khalid Shareef – Manual	8.7
3.	Rosalio Pimentell- Manual	7.7
4.	Tanner Schmidt – Valley	7.6
5.	Nathan Rindels – Faith Christian	7.2
	Kyle Broekhuis – Colorado Springs Christian	7.2
7.	Nate Engesser – Colorado Springs Christian	7.0
8.	Austin Reiher – Eaton	6.4
9.	Joe Dellenbach – Valley	5.8
10.	Cedrick Collinge – Valley	5.5
	Derek McCartney – Faith Christian	5.5

THREE POINTERS
1.	Jesse Megyeri – Manitou Springs	73
2.	Aaron Malvern – Manitou Springs	71
	Joe Dellenbach – Valley	71
4.	Austin Johnson – Colorado Springs Christian	48
5.	Nate Engesser – Colorado Springs Christian	44
6.	Nathan Rindels – Faith Christian	32
7.	Christian Cambier – Faith Christian	29
8.	Drew Matushima – Valley	28
9.	Lars Soderberg – Kent Denver	27
10.	Rosalio Pimentell – Manual	26

3A BOYS BASKETBALL: State Tourney Histories

kevin — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 17:08:06 +0000

Faith Christian is back at Moby Arena in Fort Collins in search of a fifth consecutive state championship. The Eagles are the top seed in the bracket but the field is very talented including their quarterfinal opponent Manual. The Thunderbolts are the only in-state team to beat Faith Christian in the regular season but this is their first state tournament visit in quite some time. Here’s a look at the histories of those two schools and all others remaining in the 3A bracket.

FAITH CHRISTIAN EAGLES

Four-time defending state champions
Won at least one state tournament game every year since 2002 except for 2006 (went 0-2)
Last tournament loss in 2007 (lost to Eaton in the semifinals 55-53)

MANUAL THUNDERBOLTS

Only in-state team to beat Faith Christian TY
Beat the Eagles (without Rindels) 56-52 in January
Last state win in 1997 (beat Rocky Mtn in 2 OT)
Only tourney appearance since 1991
Won 11 state titles with last coming in 1991

MANITOU SPRINGS MUSTANGS

Won consolation title in 2010 – previous last win was in 1991
Lost in semifinals in both 1991 and 1974
Only regular season losses to Colorado Springs Christian

VALLEY VIKINGS

4^th state appearance in past 5 years
Finished 4^th in last two trips
Won last 2 first round games / beat Brush 56-45 last year and Yuma 44-37 in 2009
Finished 2^nd in 1987 (lost to Eaton)

COLORADO SPRINGS CHRISTIAN LIONS

Lost in 4 OT’s to Jefferson Academy in regional final last year
First tournament appearance since 2008
Won titles in 2003 and 1993
Finished in 2008 (lost to Faith Christian 54-42

HOLY FAMILY TIGERS

First state visit since 2003 / went 0-2 that year and also in 2002
Last tournament wins in 1998 (won title by beating Denver Christian 47-44)
Played every team of the final 8 during regular season except Valley
Lost to CS Christian 55-51 in final game before Christmas

KENT DENVER SUN DEVILS

6^th state tournament visit in last 7 years
Won consolation crown last year (Beat Brush)
Lost to Faith Christian in first round LY
Won only state title in 1997
Lost to Eaton in 2007 state finals (60-50)

EATON REDS

First appearance since 2010
Lost to Faith Christian in first round TY (52-34)
Had won 4 straight first round games
Won 5 titles including 2007 (previous was in 1991)

2A BOYS BASKETBALL: State Tourney Histories

kevin — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 17:05:56 +0000

Unbeaten Denver Christian is the favorite to land the state championship this weekend but seven other teams will be on hand in Pueblo trying to knock off the Crusaders. D-C is also shooting for the eight basketball title in school history and trying to send off legendary coach Dick Katte with another crown. Below is a brief tournament history for all schools in the field.

DENVER CHRISTIAN CRUSADERS

2^nd straight appearance
Beat Wiggins for consolation crown last year
Won 7 state titles under Coach Dick Katte including back-to-back titles in 2005 and 2006 (previous 1983)

SANFORD INDIANS

7^th trip in past eight years (missed last year)
Finished 3^rd in 2010
Won state titles in 2003, 1995, 1977, 1950 and 1949

CUSTER COUNTY BOBCATS

Last tourney appearance in 1989 (only one since 1975)
Last state tournament win in 1975 (Scott Wilson years?)
Never reached a state final

LUTHERAN LIONS

Defending state champion / beat Lutheran Parker in finals last year (combined school this year)
Won 3 games at state last year by combined 61 pts
Also won titles in 1986 and 1985
One of 5 teams from Metro league in Great 8 (3A)

LIMON BADGERS

2^nd trip in past 3 years / finished 6^th in 2010
Beat Sargent in 2010 for only win since 2002
Won 4 state titles with last coming in 1964

WIGGINS TIGERS

3^rdstraight state appearance
Went 1-2 and finished 6^th each of the last two years
Won state titles in 1966 and 1965

RESURRECTION CHRISTIAN COUGARS

First ever state tournament appearance

SARGENT FARMERS

3^rd trip in last 4 years (0-2 in previous 3 visits)
Lost 8 straight at state tournament
Last tournament win in 1981 (beat Bayfield 59-52)
Finished 2^nd in 1977 and 1976

1A BOYS BASKETBALL: State Tournament Histories

kevin — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 17:01:32 +0000

Eight teams gather in Loveland at the Events Center on Thursday for the state quarterfinals. All of course enter the tournament with state championships but only one will hoist the Gold Ball on Saturday night. Ahead of the action, we always like to take a look back at the histories of all the teams involved.

SIERRA GRANDE PANTHERS

Last qualified in 2005 (went 0-2)
Last tournament win in 1990 (Beat Pritchett 72-57 in consolation bracket)
Finished 2^nd in 1985 (Lost to Arickaree) and 1956 (lost to Rye)

NORWOOD MAVERICKS

First tournament appearance since 1997
Last tournament win in 1997
Finished 2^nd in 1983 (lost to Simla 53-52)
Finished 3^rd in 1985 (beat Sanford 61-49)

SPRINGFIELD LONGHORNS

Finished 2^nd last year (lost to Caliche)
Also finished 2^nd in previous trip (1992)
Won state title in 1947 (Beat Stratton 33-32)
First two trips since 1992

HI PLAINS PATRIOTS

Won state titles in 2008 and 2006
Last team to beat Caliche at state / beat the Buffs in 2008 state final (63-60)
Finished 2^nd in 2007
Last appearance in 2010 (went 0-2)

CALICHE BUFFALOES

Three time defending state champions
Won 13 of last 15 state tournament games
6^th consecutive state tournament visit

PLATEAU VALLEY COWBOYS

Last tournament wins in 1981 (finished 5^th)
First tournament appearance since 1990
Lost last 5 state tournament games

WALSH EAGLES

Finished 3^rd last year (beat Pawnee 61-58)
Lost to eventual champ Caliche in semifinals last year
Won state titles in 1972, 1971 and 1968
Only 3^rd tourney appearance since 1975 (also qualified in 2001

STRATTON EAGLES

3^rdstraight state appearance
Went 0-2 last year as the favorites
Finished 6^th two years ago
Won state titles in 1990 and 1992
Finished 2^nd five times (last in 1997)

BOYS BASKETBALL: Class 3A Quarterfinals (Game Times)

kevin — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 22:08:09 +0000

Pairings were already set but game times have now been determined for the state tournament. The quarterfinals will be played this Thursday at Moby Arena in Fort Collins. Here’s a look a look at the lineup.

CLASS 3A BOYS

1:15pm: #1 Faith Christian (22-2) vs #8 Manual (14-10)

5:30pm: #4 Valley (22-2) vs #5 Manitou Springs (21-3)

8:30pm: #3 Eaton (19-5) vs #6 Kent Denver (12-11)

10:15am: #2 Colorado Springs Christian (24-0) vs #7 Holy Family (15-9)

BOYS BASKETBALL: Class 2A State Tournament Pairings

kevin — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 22:03:10 +0000

To no surprise, unbeaten Denver Christian is the number one seed in the state tournament bracket released this afternoon by CHSAA. State quarterfinals are set to open Thursday morning at the Pueblo Events Center. Below are the pairings announced today by CHSAA.

CLASS 2A BOYS

8:30pm: #1 Denver Christian (23-0) vs #8 Sanford (20-5)

10:15am: #4 Custer County (16-6) vs #5 Lutheran (16-8)

1:15pm: #3 Limon (20-3) vs #6 Wiggins (17-8)

5:30pm: #2 Resurrection Christian (21-2) vs #7 Sargent (15-7)

BOYS BASKETBALL: 1A State Tournament Pairings

kevin — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 22:01:23 +0000

Three-time defending state champion Caliche is back for another run at the state tournament but the Buffs are not the number one seed in the bracket. That honor goes to Sierra Grande as the Panthers edged once beaten Walsh for the top spot in the pairings. Here’s a look at the state quarterfinals as released today by CHSAA. Play opens Thursday in Loveland at the Events Center.

CLASS 1A BOYS

10:15am: #1 Sierra Grande (22-0) vs #8 Norwood (15-7)

1:15pm: #4 Springfield (17-5) vs #5 Hi Plains (20-4)

8:30pm: #3 Caliche (19-4) vs #6 Plateau Valley (17-4)

5:30pm: #2 Walsh (21-1) Vs #7 Stratton (16-8)

BOYS BASKETBALL: Seeding Thoughts for 2A and 1A

kevin — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 05:31:58 +0000

The state tournament field for Classes 2A and 1A has been determined and now it’s up to a seeding committee to place the teams in the bracket for the state quarterfinals next Thursday. Those pairings will be announced tomorrow afternoon and of course Colorado Preps will have the information as soon as it’s made official. Ahead of that release, we’ve put down our thoughts on the two brackets.

CLASS 2A BOYS

Denver Christian (23-0)
Resurrection Christian (21-2)
Limon (20-3)
Sanford (20-5)
Wiggins (17-6)
Lutheran (15-9)
Custer County (15-5)
Sargent (15-7)

In our minds, there are no surprises among the top four seeds. Denver Christian will be a lock at the number one seed as they’ve beaten all comers this season and went through the schedule with a perfect 23-0 mark. Resurrection Christian lost twice to Denver Christian but beat all others so they should be the number two seed. The only thing that might change that is their schedule as Limon has just one more loss against a much more difficult schedule so they could flip-flop and that could be important concerning a first round opponent. Sanford stumbled in the district finale with Sargent but otherwise has been the most consistent team from the San Luis Valley so they’ll draw our pick as the number four seed.

After that, it gets a bit dicey. Record will hurt Lutheran but strength of schedule should benefit them so we won’t be surprised if they move closer to the top three. The Lions are one of five teams from their conference (3A Metro) in a state tournament. Four other league members are still alive in the 3A tournament. We have Lutheran in the sixth spot in our bracket as to avoid a possible second round showdown with Denver Christian. Their game with the Crusaders was among the best on the entire season and we feel the committee would want that rematch to possibly happen in the finals and not the semi-finals. Obviously both teams have plenty of work remaining before focusing on such a game.

With Lutheran down a peg at number six, that leaves the fifth spot open for Wiggins. The Tigers always turn up their play late in the season but they barely survived Lyons (39-36) in the regional finals. We still feel they’ve done enough against a rugged schedule to earn a higher seed than Sargent and Custer County.

Sargent and Custer County are both difficult to seed. Overall record is damaging to both their resumes but each team has played extremely well down the stretch. Sargent is 9-2 over their last 11 games and has split two games in that stretch with both Sanford and Custer County. For the Bobcats, the loss to Sargent is their only setback over their last ten games. We still feel they will be seeded seventh and eighth respectively because of overall record.

CLASS 1A BOYS

Walsh (21-1)
Sierra Grande (23-0)
Caliche (19-4)
Hi Plains (20-4)
Plateau Valley (17-4)
Springfield (17-4)
Stratton (16-8)
Norwood (15-7)

The top three positions in our mind are very easy. Walsh is unbeaten against in-state schools and since they return a large contingent of players from last year’s third place team, we feel they’ll get the top overall seed. Sierra Grande, with their unbeaten overall record, could also lay claim to the mark but they’ll be a lock for the number two seed. Caliche doesn’t have the best record of the remaining teams but since they’re the three-time defending state champions, that could put them ahead of Hi Plains into the third spot.

Arguments could be made for Hi Plains, Springfield and Plateau Valley to be seeded in any order fourth through sixth. Hi Plains has tradition and the best record of the three but Springfield is the defending state runner-up so they could easily be seeded ahead of the Patriots. Plateau Valley is the hottest of the three down the stretch winning nine of their final ten. In our seeding process, we place Hi Plains in fourth and Plateau Valley fifth and pair them in the first round. By placing Springfield sixth, you avoid a possible semi-final matchup with Walsh and that’s a good thing since they’re in the same league, district and region. We will note that the seeding committe has the power to pair up league teams in the first round or pair them for possible second round matchups.

That leaves Stratton and Norwood in spots seven and eight. Stratton has won 12 of 14 since a 4-6 start but their overall record will hurt them when compared to others. Norwood’s overall record will cost them a higher seed and they also fell to Plateau Valley by 21 points in the district final.

BOYS BASKETBALL: Saturday Regional Schedule/Results

kevin — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 06:52:46 +0000

The post-season field in Classes 3A, 2A and 1A will be trimmed to just eight on Saturday as every winner of a regional final today advances to state events next weekend. In Class 4A and 5A, invitations to the Final Four next week in Boulder were handed out late Friday night. Below is a complete list of the games for Saturday.

Locations for the games can be seen in regional and state tournament results by class within this website. In-game updates and final scores will first be published on our sister website at www.coloradoscores.com which can also be accessed on your mobile phone at www.coloradoscores.mobi. Updates can be sent to Colorado Preps by text to 970.380.7737 or by email to kevin@coloradopreps.com. We’ll also post final scores here throughout the day.

–

CLASS 1A REGIONAL FINALS

REGION 1: Plateau Valley beat Denver Jewish Day 59-52 (Friday)

REGION 1: Norwood beat Shining Mountain 44-39

REGION 2: Stratton beat Pawnee 63-54

REGION 2: Hi Plains beat Simla 50-45

REGION 2: Caliche beat Fleming 81-67

REGION 3: Walsh beat Eads 73-36

REGION 3: Sierra Grande beat South Baca 89-51

REGION 3: Springfield beat McClave 53-52

–

CLASS 2A REGIONAL FINALS

REGION 1: Custer County beat Rocky Ford 62-50

REGION 2: Wiggins beat Lyons 39-36

REGION 3: Sanford beat Ignacio 61-53

REGION 4: Denver Christian beat Heritage Christian 46-28

REGION 5: Lutheran beat Meeker 35-33

REGION 6: Sargent beat Calhan 48-35

REGION 7: Resurrection Christian beat Peyton 65-52

REGION 8: Limon beat Yuma 47-43

–

CLASS 3A REGIONAL FINALS

REGION 1: Faith Christian beat Platte Valley 59-37

REGION 1: Manual beat Pinnacle 79-52

REGION 2: Manitou Springs beat Jefferson Academy 55-41

REGION 2: Valley beat La Junta 61-41

REGION 3: Colorado Springs Christian beat Alamosa 57-38

REGION 3: Holy Family beat Aspen 48-46

REGION 4: Kent Denver beat Pagosa Springs 46-44

REGION 4: Eaton beat Brush 54-39

–

CLASS 4A FINAL FOUR – Thursday CU Events Center

TBA: Sierra vs Broomfield

TBA: Lewis Palmer vs Valor Christian

–

CLASS 5A FINAL FOUR – Thursday CU Events Center

TBA: Arapahoe vs Rangeview

TBA: Highlands Ranch vs Chaparral