Several league champions in Class 4A girls’ basketball have already been crowned with maybe the most important games involving battles for second place.  Heading into the final week, Colorado Preps looks at each conference race and breaks down the top games remaining.
We also use RPI from Monday February 17th to list current state tournament qualifiers in each league.  League champions earn automatic bids and the rest of the 48-team field is determined by RPI standings at the end of the regular season.
Photo is provided by Angie Purdy.
 
 
COLORADO SPRINGS METRO
It’s a two-team race between Canon City (12-0) and Sierra (12-1) as third place Mesa Ridge has five league losses.  The two leaders face off on Saturday and that game will determine the league championship unless one of them collapses before then.  Canon City meets Mesa Ridge on Tuesday, Elizabeth and Wednesday and Classical Academy on Thursday.   Sierra hosts Harrison on Tuesday and Elizabeth on Wednesday.  Game one between the leads went to Canon City 64-57.

  • State Qualifiers (6):  Sierra #11, Canon City #14, Mesa Ridge #28, Classical Academy #38, Harrison #41, Widefield #46

JEFFCO
Green Mountain is unbeaten in conference play (11-0) and starts the final week with a two-game advantage on Evergreen (7-2).  The Rams have just one game left so they’ve clinched the title but their Friday battle with Evergreen could help decide third.  The Cougars (6-4) are tied with Golden (5-4) currently share the spot.  Evergreen also meets Golden on Monday night and a win by the Demons wraps up second.

  • State Qualifiers (7):  Green Mountain #3, Evergreen #17, D’Evelyn #25, Golden #31, Littleton #33, Standley Lake #42

NORTHERN
Thompson Valley (12-0) has clinched the championship but there’s a good battle between Northridge (9-3) and Greeley Central (8-3) for second.  The Grizzlies and Wildcats have split two regular season games so if both win out, they will end up tied.  Greeley Central though has a game at Thompson Valley on Tuesday and a loss there will hurt their chances to finish second.  They also battle Longmont on Wednesday and Silver Creek on Friday.  Northridge closes with Longmont on Monday and Centaurus on Wednesday.

  • State Qualifiers (5):  Thompson Valley #7, Greeley Central #19, Northridge #27, Centaurus #32, Longmont #34,

SOUTH CENTRAL
Pueblo West (8-0) has a three-game lead with only two league contests remaining so the Cyclones are already conference champions.  Pueblo South and Pueblo East (both 5-3) share second with a one-game edge on Pueblo Central (4-4).  South and East collide on Tuesday and since South won the first matchup (45-39) they secure the second spot with another win.  East also has a date with West on Friday.

  • State Qualifiers (5):  Pueblo West #1, Pueblo County #30, Pueblo South #35, Pueblo East #43, Pueblo Central #45

WESTERN SLOPE
Glenwood Springs is the league champion and the Demons have more conference wins (10) than any other conference team has for the entire season (best is 8).  Palisade (6-4) and Rifle (5-4) are second with Steamboat Springs (5-5) in fourth.  Palisade beat Rifle twice but may end up third as they close the regular season at Glenwood Springs on Friday.  Rifle has three games left against Eagle Valley (Tuesday), Steamboat Springs (Thursday) and Battle Mountain (Friday).

  • State Qualifiers (3):  Glenwood Springs #12, Rifle #44, Palisade #48

COLORADO 8
Skyview (7-0) won the regular season crown for a second straight year and now is favored to land the league tournament which will take place this week.  The winner of the league tournament earns the automatic playoff bid.  Weld Central (6-1) finished second and Riverdale Ridge (5-2), which will drop into Class 3A for the post-season, placed third.  The Ravens will be joined by Fort Lupton and Englewood in moving into Class 3A.

  • State Qualifiers (3):  Skyview #21, Weld Central #22, Conifer #47
  • Class 3A RPI:  Riverdale Ridge #23, Englewood #51, Fort Lupton #67

PIKES PEAK
Sand Creek (11-0) has a three-game edge on Falcon (8-3) and Air Academy (7-3) but since they have games remaining against both, they’ve yet to clinch the title.  They go to Falcon on Thursday and host Air Academy on Saturday.  But if Sand Creek beats Palmer Ridge on Tuesday, those games are meaningless as they will secure the title that night.  Falcon and Air Academy split two conference matchups.  The Falcons surround their Thursday date with Sand Creek with road trips to Cheyenne Mountain (Tuesday) and Vista Ridge (Saturday).  Air Academy meets Lewis Palmer (Tuesday) and Vista Ridge (Thursday) before facing Sand Creek on the weekend.

  • State Qualifiers (6):  Sand Creek #2, Air Academy #10, Falcon #13, Lewis Palmer #20, Palmer Ridge #23, Cheyenne Mountain #24,

TRI VALLEY
Holy Family, Berthoud and Erie are all 12-2 and tied for the top spot going into the final week.  The teams do not square off in the final week so there’s a great chance they will remain tied for first by the end of the season.  If there’s a possibility for one team to stumble over the next few days it would be Berthoud as they host fourth-place Windsor on Tuesday but the Spartans won the first meeting 61-36.  Erie finishes with Mead on Tuesday and Frederick on Friday; Holy Family goes to Skyline on Tuesday and hosts Mead three days later.  Windsor will jump into 5A for the playoffs and currently sits #23 in RPI for that division.

  • State Qualifiers (6):  Erie #4, Berthoud #5, Holy Family #9, Mead #26, Fort Morgan #39, Roosevelt #40,

OTHER MIXED CONFERENCES
Montrose (5-1) share the Southwestern lead with 5A Fruita Monument (6-1) and those will determine the championship when they collide on Tuesday night.  Montrose will have the game at home.  Durango (4-3) fell out of the title picture with Saturday’s loss to Fruita Monument but the Demons are still a lock to make the 4A state bracket.
Mullen (9-3) is third in the 5A Centennial and will receive a very high seed in the 4A bracket because of their difficult schedule.  The Mustangs are the defending state champions.
George Washington (6-1) shares first place with Denver South (7-1) and Denver East (6-1) in the DPL.  The Patriots lost to Denver South earlier this year but remain in contention as they face Denver East in the regular season finale (Saturday).  They also have a tough date with fourth place Thomas Jefferson (5-2) on Tuesday.
Ponderosa (5-3) has played very well in the 5A Continental and sits fifth behind four 5A clubs including highly ranked Highlands Ranch and Regis.
Coronado (4-6) is fifth in the CS Metro bracket and is on the bubble for the 4A playoffs as the Cougars are #51 in RPI.

  • State Qualifiers (8):  Mullen #6, Montrose #8, Durango #15, Ponderosa #16, George Washington #18, Denver West #29, Thomas Jefferson #36, Northfield #37,