Friday means a very busy boys’ basketball schedule across the state and the list of games is filled with important conference matchups. There’s a top five matchup in Eastern Colorado between #1 Limon (2A) and #5 Merino (1A) as both clubs look to boost RPI numbers entering the final two weeks of the regular season.
Below is our daily report on the top games; involving both top 10 and unranked teams. Final scores will be added as they come in today and they can be reported to us by text to 970.380.7737 or by email to [email protected].
Photo provided by Shelly Swing-Polzin.
CLASS 1A
FINAL: #2 DeBeque beat Olathe 52-39
FINAL: #3 Cheraw beat Prairie 47-43
#8 Haxtun vs Caliche
FINAL: Cheyenne Wells beat McClave 35-30
FINAL: Byers beat Genoa Hugo 46-44
NOTES: With Caprock Academy expected to get by winless Paonia, DeBeque needs to win at Olathe to keep pace atop the Western Slope North division. DeBeque and Caprock Academy split their regular season matchups so they’re tied for the top spot. This is the first of two meetings with Olathe as they will play the Pirates against on March 1st. Wes Ryan (25.6) continues to lead the Dragons offense and recently went over 1,500 points in his career. Both play several bigger schools but Haxtun (5-1) and Caliche (2-1) both have winning records against 1A foes and will be tough outs in the postseason if they qualify. Haxtun is in better shape as they’re 12th in RPI with Caliche at 26th. The Buffs are coming off a solid win over Holyoke (63-61) as Justin Pollart scored 24 and Traevin Jones 21. Haxtun looks to rebound defensively after allowing 97 points in Tuesday’s loss to Yuma. Cheyenne Wells and McClave are both 1-1 in league play with only the winner staying in the High Plains league chase. Both are tied with Granada for second and all three are one game back of Cheraw (2-0). McClave was surprised at La Veta (37-35) Thursday night and has lost two straight. A win though keeps them very much in the picture as they’ve yet to face Cheraw. Cheyenne Wells snapped a two-game slide with their 40-34 league win on Tuesday. Their league loss is to Cheraw. The Wolverines have a non-league date with Prairie and a win keeps them unbeaten overall (8-0). They’re 3rd in RPI; trailing only Belleview Christian and Denver Jewish Day. Genoa Hugo scored 53 first half points on their way to a 90-56 win over Stratton/Liberty on Thursday. And they did so with only four three-pointers on the night. Colby Simmons (26) and Wyatt Miller (25) combined for 51 points and together hit 23 of 34 shots. Now the Pirates must quickly focus on an important Union Pacific league game with 2A Byers. The two are tied with Burlington in second behind Limon and tonight’s winner stands a great chance of ending up there at years end. Both will be favored against the Cougars. Byers (5-3) has dropped two of three; but those losses are against top five rivals Limon and Denver Christian. In between, they blitzed Flagler 65-25 with freshman Joe Cary dropping in 20 points. Rocco Messer added 13 and Wyatt Harris 11.
CLASS 2A
FINAL: #1 Limon beat #5 Merino (1A) 52-32
FINAL: #3 Mancos beat Dolores 62-19
#4 Denver Christian at Lyons (PPD – Won’t be made up)
FINAL: #5 Sanford beat Crested Butte 62-55
FINAL: #9 Fowler beat Rocky Ford 71-44
FINAL: Meeker beat West Grand 53-41
Hoehne at Crowley County
NOTES: It’s a very good pairing at the top of the list as both Limon and Merino are serious state championship contenders in their respective class. Limon has been atop the 2A rankings the entire season and this week gained 20 of a possible 22 first-place votes from the coaches. Merino typically plays one of the best schedules of any 1A team and that continues this weekend as they also tangle with #2 Wray tomorrow night. The Rams have won two straight since a loss to Yuma including a strong 53-27 win over Akron on Tuesday. Limon has outscored opponents 493-205 with a 54-47 win over Yuma their tightest battle. Caden Smithburg (18.2) and Alex Carr (14.2) provide a very good outside-inside duo offensively. Sanford-Crested Butte could turn out to be the Southern Peaks championship game at years end. They split two games a year ago. This is the only meeting this season and the two have a combined record of 9-3. Sanford is 4th in RPI and in much better shape than Crested Butte as the Titans are 15th. Fowler hasn’t played since totaling just 79 points in home losses to Peyton (45-35) and Holly (56-44) last week. Shooting woes plagued the Grizzlies as they connected on just 12 of 53 shots against Peyton and 15 of 61 against Holly. The loss to Holly was a non-conference game so the two rivals continue to share the Santa Fe lead. Rocky Ford (1-3) is three games back. Hoehne and Crowley County both have one league loss so the winner takes over third place. Mancos and Dolores collide for a third-place battle inside the San Juan. Both are 3-1. Mancos fell behind Ignacio 17-8 in the first quarter Tuesday night and then was outscored 22-12 in the third in a 68-50 loss. The lone Dolores league loss also came at the hands of Ignacio ten days ago (50-39). Kevin Purkat (17 points) hit 7 of 11 shots but his teammates made just 8 of 23 in the loss. We listed the Denver Christian-Lyons game on the schedule but it may not be played as we believe the Lions have entered quarantine. If played, the game will help sort out of the top three slots of the Mile High. Denver Christian (5-0) is tied with Highland (6-0) in first with Lyons (2-1) alone in third. Meeker and West Grand each have four wins overall this season and are a combined 4-0 in conference. They’re tied with Vail Christian for the early lead. Meeker’s league win came against Soroco (70-46) last Saturday. Spud White made 12 of 18 shots on his way to 26 points. Ryan Phelan added a dozen with 12 rebounds. Ethan Drake had 10 points and nine boards. By comparison, West Grand lost to Soroco (45-37) in non-league play. League wins are against North Park, Hayden and Vail Mountain.
CLASS 3A
#1 St Mary’s at Buena Vista (PPD)
FINAL: #3 Manitou Springs beat La Junta 70-36
FINAL: #5 Centauri beat Bayfield 48-36
FINAL: #10 Kent Denver beat DSST-Green Valley 74-50
NOTES: Standings wise, the top game is in the Tri Peaks between St Mary’s and Buena Vista. The Pirates (6-0) are tied with Manitou Springs (5-0) in first but Buena Vista is game back at 4-1 and alone in third place. The Demons’ game with Manitou Springs on Wednesday was postponed and may be played on Saturday so their title chances could hinge on the next 48 hours. Buena Vista is likely itching to get back on the court after falling to Vanguard 48-29 last week. The Coursers were winless on the season but jumped on the Demons 16-8 in the first quarter and then added a 10-4 spurt in the second quarter. BV shot just 25 percent on their own floor (10-40) and will need to play at a much higher level tonight to stay with St Mary’s. The Pirates (8-0) finally got pushed last Saturday in beating Colorado Springs Christian 63-60 but then flew past Salida 88-59 two nights ago. Cyrus Hernandez led the Pirates with 24 points; Sam Howery added 23 and passed 1,000 points for his career. Manitou Springs (7-0) looks to stay unbeaten against La Junta and they’ll be favored against the 3-4 Tigers. Centauri (3-0) can also keep their lead in the IML by beating Bayfield. The Falcons top Alamosa by one game with the Wolverines (2-2) two games back in third. Centauri topped Gunnison in non-league play (53-39) on Tuesday. Mason Claunch dropped in 16 and Baron Holman finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Kent Denver and DSST-Green Valley both lost to Manual in their last outing. The Sun Devils gave up 101 points on Thursday night while Green Valley came up short 71-51 on Wednesday. Based on margin in those games, tonight’s battle could be decided in the final minutes.
CLASS 4A
FINAL: #3 Longmont beat #1 Mead 47-32
FINAL: #2 Windsor beat Holy Family 71-65
FINAL: #6 Evergreen beat Alameda 73-28
FINAL: #7 Montrose beat Durango 50-42
FINAL: #8 Erie beat #10 Centaurus 56-44
FINAL: Fountain Fort Carson beat #9 Pueblo South 65-62
NOTES: Another big night inside the Northern conference as the top six teams collide in three head-to-head meetings. It’s a very tight race with Holy Family, Windsor, Longmont and Mead sharing the top spot at 4-1 with Erie and Centaurus both a game back at 3-2. Windsor created the logjam by downing Mead 69-59 on Wednesday night; scoring 29 points in an explosive fourth quarter. Kobe Greene and Ben Hageman both scored 18 points as the Wizards bounced back nicely from the Monday loss to Erie. It was Mead’s first loss of the season but the Mavericks must turn around quickly to face local rival Longmont. The Trojans, like Windsor, lost on Monday to Holy Family but recovered with a 54-37 decision over Greeley Central. Eddie Kurjak had 21 points and 10 rebounds while Keegan Patterson hit three from beyond the arc. For Erie and Centaurus, it’s likely an elimination game as the loser drops a third conference game. Centaurus is eight points shy of being alone in first with league losses to Longmont (43-40) and Windsor (60-56). Carson Hill scored 18 and Dasheil Walker and John Lewicki 15 apiece in helping the Warriors beating Greeley West on Wednesday to end that two-game slide. Erie opened the week 5-0 but has lost to Windsor (71-59) and Holy Family (56-53) in the last four days. Evergreen lost their outright Jeffco lead with a 57-51 setback to D’Evelyn. That dropped the Cougars back into a tie with Green Mountain (6-1). The Cougars play their conference finale tonight and a win gives them title since they beat Green Mountain 54-51 earlier this year. Montrose looks to keep their grip on the Southwestern lead. They’re 3-0 and a game up on Grand Junction (2-1) and Durango (1-1). A win gives the Indians a sweep through the first round of conference play. Luke Hutto scored 21 points a and Fletcher Cheezum hit four three’s in Tuesday’s narrow win over Fruita Monument (52-48).
CLASS 5A
FINAL: #1 Cherry Creek beat Arapahoe 82-53
FINAL: Rocky Mountain beat #7 Fossil Ridge 61-60
FINAL: #9 Overland beat Cherokee Trail 64-51
FINAL: Fruita Monument beat Grand Junction 66-48
NOTES: After beating Eaglecrest on Wednesday, top ranked Cherry Creek now sits alone atop the Centennial and begins the second half schedule the same way the first half opened; against Arapahoe. That game was tight with the Bruins managing a 70-60 win. The Warriors played well that game but have struggled since; beating only Cherokee Trail and Grandview in conference play. Overland (4-2) holds down third place with Cherokee Trail still seeking a conference win. Their lone victory came last Saturday against Regis Groff (69-36). Overland has lost two of three including a 52-46 upset loss to Grandview on Wednesday night despite 18 points from Jameel Wright. Fossil Ridge and Rocky Mountain are both very much alive for the Front Range crown. The Sabercats (4-0) share first place with Fairview (5-0) while the Lobos are in a third-place tie with Horizon (both 4-1). The two Fort Collins rivals played in the season opener with Fossil Ridge collecting a 78-63 non-league win. Both teams shot over 50 percent from the field but the Sabercats gained a 18-4 scoring advantage at the foul line. They also committed just 13 turnovers compared to 18 for the Lobos. Scoring wise, Brock Mishak led Fossil with 23 points and Tyce Baldwin added 19 while Hudson Radcliff netted 19 for the Lobos.
