Colorado Preps concludes the conference rundown ahead of week five with a focus on Class 4A and 5A boys’ basketball. Some excellent matchups are on tap as conference races continue to sort out and there’s also a great list of non-league games that will help us determine the playoff bracket.
CLASS 4A
COLORADO: Still a bit too early to project a league champion as Fort Lupton, Englewood and Aurora Central all sit at 2-0. Combined, the teams are also 21-5 overall. Two of the three head-to-head matchups of the conference leaders take place this week. Both involve Englewood and the Pirates also finish off the week with a very tough non-league battle.
- TUESDAY: Fort Lupton at Englewood
- THURSDAY: Aurora Central at Englewood
- SATURDAY: Colorado Academy at Englewood
CS METRO NORTH: Nothing decided in this race either as Elizabeth (5-1), Falcon and Sand Creek (4-1) head to the final two weeks sharing first-place. Two games between the leaders are on the slate this week with Falcon involved in both. Each game is a rematch. Falcon split the first two games; beating Sand Creek 81-65 but falling to Elizabeth 68-63.
- MONDAY: Falcon at Sand Creek
- WEDNESDAY: Elizabeth at Falcon
CS METRO SOUTH: All conference teams except Palmer have played either six or seven conference games but it’s the Terrors who stand in first place (3-1). They lead Canon City (5-2) by one game and gained that advantage with a 43-41 win over the Tigers last Friday. It avenged a 20-point loss in the first matchup. Palmer has an unusual schedule this week as they play both Widefield and Mesa Ridge twice as they get in makeups from earlier postponements.
JEFFCO: Evergreen and Green Mountain both finished the conference schedule at 7-1 but the Cougars were awarded the title based on their win over the Rams (54-41) on February 10th. Evergreen and Green Mountain meet again on March 3rd but it’s a non-conference matchup. Golden (6-2) ended up third.
- WEDNESDAY: D’Evelyn at Green Mountain (non-league)
- FRIDAY: Evergreen at Golden (non-league)
LONGS PEAK: Severance (8-0) starts the final two weeks alone in first with a one-game edge on Thompson Valley (5-1). The Silver Knights visit Thompson Valley on Tuesday and clinch at least a share of the championship with a win there. A Thompson Valley win leaves the two clubs tied in first place and that result also brings Mountain View, Riverdale Ridge and Frederick back into the title chase. Those three clubs share third at 4-2.
- TUESDAY: Severance at Thompson Valley
- TUESDAY: Riverdale Ridge at Frederick
- THURSDAY: Severance at Riverdale Ridge
NORTHERN: League leaders spent last week beating up on each other and by the end of the week, Windsor and Longmont (both 5-1) stood atop the standings with Mead, Holy Family and Erie (all 4-2) and Silver Creek at 3-2. Longmont and Windsor meet on March 2nd but in this league, the standings can change greatly before that game takes place. Both have strong challenges on tap this Friday before focusing on that potentially league championship matchup.
- TUESDAY: Erie at Chatfield (non-league)
- WEDNESDAY: Holy Family at Silver Creek
- FRIDAY: Erie at Longmont
- FRIDAY: Silver Creek at Windsor
- FRIDAY: Holy Family at Mead
PIKES PEAK: Logjam is the best way to describe this conference race as Rampart, Liberty, Doherty, Fountain Fort Carson and Lewis Palmer each have just one league loss. With so many leaders, there are quite a few games on tap this week that will alter the league landscape. Lewis Palmer (1-1) has the fewest games of all conference members as the Rangers have stepped on the court since February 6th. As of right now, they’re scheduled to play four conference games in five days this week.
- TUESDAY: Liberty at Lewis Palmer
- TUESDAY: Doherty at Fountain Fort Carson
- THURSDAY: Lewis Palmer at Rampart
- THURSDAY: Liberty at Fountain Fort Carson
SOUTH CENTRAL: It’s been a good race through the first four weeks of the season with Pueblo Central (6-0) in first place and Pueblo South (4-1) and Pueblo East (3-1) sharing second place. Central has a game remaining with both so they still have work to do before the playoffs get started next month. The Wildcats edged East 52-50 and South 56-50 in round one so the rematches are considered toss-ups. One of them takes place this week. East has a whopping five games this week including matchups with both leaders.
- MONDAY: Pueblo East at Pueblo Central
- SATURDAY: Pueblo South at Pueblo East
WEST SLOPE: Steamboat Springs is in great shape league wise and in the RPI standings. They’re first in both to start the week. The Sailors (7-0) lead Palisade and Summit (both 5-2) by two games in the league race and they’ve also combined to the number one spot in RPI.
- TUESDAY: Steamboat Springs at Summit
CLASS 5A
CENTENNIAL: Standings are starting to stretch out a bit as Cherry Creek (8-0) is alone in first with Eaglecrest (4-1) by themselves in second. Overland (5-2) has third place with Mullen (5-3) in fourth. Creek and Eaglecrest meet for a second time on March 6th. Overland has the most difficult week as they face the teams directly ahead and behind them in the conference standings.
- MONDAY: Overland at Eaglecrest
- FRIDAY: Overland at Mullen
CONTINENTAL: Going to be a fun final two weeks across the conference as three teams remain unbeaten in league play. Regis (6-0) has the most wins followed by Chaparral (5-0) and ThunderRidge (3-0). All other clubs have at least two league losses so the champion should come from one of the big three. ThunderRidge currently does not have either Regis or Chaparral on their MaxPreps schedule but Regis and Chaparral are slated to face off March 5th.
- TUESDAY: Chaparral at Rangeview (non-league)
- TUESDAY: Regis at Valor Christian (non-league)
- TUESDAY: ThunderRidge at Denver East (non-league)
DENVER PREP: Denver East and Lincoln share the conference lead but the two clubs are separated by five wins. East is already 7-0 in conference play with Lincoln at 2-0. For the Angels, their last league game is against Lincoln this week so they can claim the championship with a win there. Lincoln has just three games with their last action on February 6th. Their date with Denver East is their first appearance since that contest. The Lancers won’t play a full league schedule because after East, they have games scheduled with only Denver South, Denver North and Thomas Jefferson.
- TUESDAY: ThunderRidge at Denver East (non-league)
- THURSDAY: Lincoln at Denver East
EAST METRO: This is another big school division that has more than two teams sharing the conference lead as Rangeview (5-0), Vista Peak (4-0) and Gateway (3-0) all have a piece of the top slot. Brighton (2-1) is also contention. Rangeview meets the Bison and Olympians in the final week as they’re focused on two huge non-league tests this week. Vista Peak and Gateway collide this week.
- TUESDAY: Vista Peak at Gateway
- TUESDAY: Rangeview at Chaparral (non-league)
- THURSDAY: Rangeview at Valor Christian (non-league)
- FRIDAY: Gateway at Brighton
FRONT RANGE: Fairview (6-0) has moved to the top of the standings with the Knights leading Horizon (5-1), Rocky Mountain (5-1) and Fossil Ridge (5-1). Mountain Range has just one loss (1-1) but the Mustangs have played just three total games this season. They must get to seven to be playoff eligible. Fairview has beaten Rocky Mountain and Horizon so their focus may be on the March 3rd date with Fossil Ridge. That one should determine their league championship hopes. Fossil Ridge was upset by Rocky Mountain last week and battles Horizon this week. The Hawks also meets Rocky Mountain so it’s a very important week for them.
- TUESDAY: Rocky Mountain at Horizon
- WEDNESDAY: Horizon at Fossil Ridge
JEFFCO: League play concluded last week with Valor Christian and Chatfield both ending up 7-1. Valor gained the title as they beat Chatfield head-to-head. Ralston Valley (6-2) finished third with Columbine and Lakewood sharing fourth with identical 5-3 records. The top three finishers are all involved in tough non-conference games this week.
- TUESDAY: Regis at Valor Christian (non-league)
- TUESDAY: Erie at Chatfield (non-league)
- THURSDAY: Rangeview at Valor Christian (non-league)
- SATURDAY: Ralston Valley at Doherty (non-league)
SOUTHWESTERN: Class 4A Montrose (4-0) is in good shape for the conference title as they lead Grand Junction and Durango (both 2-2) by two games halfway through the league slate. Grand Junction has the toughest stretch with road games against Montrose and Durango.
- TUESDAY: Grand Junction at Montrose
- SATURDAY: Grand Junction at Durango
