Some games involving Western Slope teams have been postponed due to weather but the remaining list of boys’ basketball games for Friday is still very attractive. Included are early but important conference games between top 10 clubs.
A preview of the schedule is below and Colorado Preps will post results of these games inside the story throughout the night. Final scores can be sent to us by text at 970.380.7737 or by email to [email protected].
Photo provided by Van Hollis.
CLASS 1A
FINAL: #1 DeBeque beat Cedaredge 55-46
FINAL: #10 Cheraw beat #4 Kit Carson 48-31
FINAL: #5 Briggsdale beat Peetz 64-43
FINAL: #6 Merino beat #7 Sedgwick County 58-53
FINAL: #7 Primero beat Custer County 68-56
FINAL: #9 Sangre De Cristo beat Cotopaxi 58-47 (OT)
FINAL: Eads beat Hi Plains 52-48
NOTES: Three of the first four games listed will go a long way to determining league championships this year. DeBeque is favored to win the Western Slope southern division but Cedaredge could end up being one of their top challengers despite winning just four games last season. Kit Carson and Cheraw are part of a deep High Plains conference that also includes Granada, Cheyenne Wells, Eads and an improved McClave squad. The Merino-Sedgwick County winner must still get through quality league opponents in Wray, Haxtun and Yuma before thinking about the Lower Platte title but the winner gains a valuable early win. DeBeque (3-0) plays their second of three games as they beat Caprock Academy (65-51) on Tuesday and meet Hotchkiss tomorrow. Wes Ryan netted a season low 29 points in the win but is still averaging 33.3 on the season. Jaden Jordan added 19. Cedaredge is unbeaten in league play with wins over Hotchkiss (52-30) and Olathe (64-50). Gideon Gilmore is the top scorer (12.3) and rebounder (9.0). Kit Carson (2-1) needs a regroup following the 69-32 loss to 2A #1 Limon on Tuesday. They were down 19-2 after one and 32-9 at intermission. The Wildcats shot just 36 percent from the field and gave the ball away 31 times on turnovers. They did connect on six three-pointers including three from Daniel Arnold and two from Alex Mitchek. Cheraw (3-0) has 30-point plus wins over Las Animas and Kim/Branson since edging Evangelical Christian in their opener (42-39). Merino (1-0) has seen limited action but was very impressive in beating Burlington (63-32) last Saturday. Sedgwick County (3-0) is facing their first in-state opponent after beating three Nebraska schools by a combined 61 points thus far. Primero and Sangre De Cristo are favored to collect road wins tonight and the Eads vs Hi Plains matchup is a good non-conference battle between clubs expected to be in the state playoff chase. Eads blew past Las Animas 73-19 in their only game date as freshman Porter Spady dropped in 24 points. Hi Plains (0-3) hasn’t won against a tough schedule with losses to 2A Akron, Granada and Weskan KS but should be among the YWKC conference leaders at years end.
CLASS 2A
FINAL: #1 Limon beat Stratton/Liberty 83-19
FINAL: #2 Wray beat #8 Haxtun 89-46
FINAL: #4 Yuma beat Holyoke 91-48
FINAL: #5 Mancos beat Ridgway 59-45
FINAL: #9 Holly beat Rye 59-38
FINAL: #10 Ignacio beat Montezuma Cortez 48-32
FINAL: Swallows Charter beat Rocky Ford 54-49 (OT)
Vail Mountain at Meeker (PPD)
NOTES: We previewed the Merino-Sedgwick County Lower Platte contest in Class 1A and right beside it in importance is the clash between Wray and Haxtun. We brought this game into the 2A preview since the Eagles are the higher rated of the two but the scenario is the same. The winner is not assured of a league championship but does put up a valued mark into the win column. Wray has easily gotten past conference rivals Akron (75-30) and Caliche (83-31) so far this season so a tight game could help them. Haxtun (3-0) has plenty of confidence thanks to their 70-61 win over Briggsdale on Tuesday. Despite allowing 61 points, the defense played a major role in forcing 25 turnovers. Yuma enters the Lower Platte chase still looking for a first win. They’ve been close with three losses by a combined 20 points. Holyoke (2-2) hopes to end a two-game skid following their 0-2 start. They fell at Byers 66-59 on Tuesday despite 26 points from freshman Wyatt Sprague. He and Kaison Kinnie both hit two three-pointers. Ignacio has an emotional weekend in front of them as they tangle with local rivals Montezuma Cortez (tonight) and Bayfield (Saturday). Tonight’s game is just their second of the season and they’ll look for their first win following a 53-48 loss to Sanford last Saturday. Mancos (3-0) seeks another league win over Ridgway (2-1). The Bluejays opened the San Juan chase with a 61-27 blowout of Telluride. Connor Showalter (18) and Evan Sehnert (14) combined for 32 points and freshman Kail Wayman added eight points and seven rebounds. Ridgway rolled Nucla 67-43 in their conference opener behind a combined 52 points from Cooper Ahern (18), Jack Dubroff (14), Jamling Sherpa (10) and Justin Beserra (10). Holly-Rye and Rocky Ford-Swallows Charter will help sort out the early Santa Fe league standings as all four hope to dethrone Fowler from the championship slot. After wins over Wiley and Kim/Branson to open, Holly (2-0) faces their first 2A opponent. Rye (0-2) played well but could not get past Del Norte their last time out. Four players reached double figures as Rocky Ford (1-0) handled Sargent in their opener. That group was led by Izaiah Tapia (17) and Clay Havens (14). Swallows Charter (1-0) topped 3A Skyview Academy in game one as Colby Roberts went for 16 and Amari Williams 14.
CLASS 3A
FINAL: #2 St Mary’s beat Woodland Park 97-43
FINAL: #3 Faith Christian beat Machebeuf 81-41
FINAL: #4 Manitou Springs beat Vanguard 70-59
FINAL: #5 Centauri beat Delta 55-37
FINAL: #10 Colorado Academy beat Jefferson Academy 57-25
FINAL: Gunnison beat Alamosa 59-38
FINAL: Kent Denver beat Prospect Ridge 94-60
NOTES: St Mary’s (3-0) has reached at least 103 points in two of their first three games and could get there or close to it tonight against a rebuilding Woodland Park team. The Bobcats are now in 3A so this is a conference game for both schools. St Mary’s has five players scoring at least 13 points a game with Sam Howery (24.7) and Luke Stockelman (19.3) leading the charge. Together, those two are also pulling down nearly 16 rebounds a game. Manitou Springs (3-0) will look to keep pace with the Pirates as they’re favored at Vanguard. The Mustangs made six threes in their conference opening win over Florence earlier this week. Faith Christian let one slip away to Lutheran slip away in overtime so now the Eagles must keep winning to stay within range of the Lions inside the Metro. Tonight’s game is another tough one as Machebeuf (3-0) is unbeaten and coming off the 86-56 decision over Stargate. Will Yebio tossed in 26 points in the win which upped his season average to 23.7. Colorado Academy and Kent Denver are two other Metro teams with state playoff aspirations and both are favored tonight. Kent Denver got 26 points from Ethan Levin and four others in double figures in their 107-33 blowout of Skyview Academy while Colorado Academy stayed perfect overall (3-0) by thrashing Prospect Ridge 79-47 on Wednesday. 12 players scored for the Mustangs. Out west, the Centauri-Delta matchups and Alamosa-Gunnison games are important non-conference games as all four clubs look to move up the RPI ladder and improve playoff positioning. Gunnison is the defending Western Slope champ and finally caught a break in beating Crested Butte 59-38 this week. Week one involved two losses by a total of three points to Buena Vista (58-57) and Basalt (52-50).
CLASS 4A
#1 Mead vs Fruita Monument (PPD – Weather)
FINAL: Doherty beat #2 Lewis Palmer 83-78
FINAL: #8 Evergreen beat #4 Golden 43-40
FINAL: #7 Pueblo Central beat #10 Pueblo East 52-50
NOTES: Rivalries headline the 4A bracket tonight and Golden matching up against Evergreen and Central making the short trip to East down in the Pueblo. East and Central were both game one winners in the South Central league schedule on Tuesday night. Those victories also pushed their combined records to 5-1. East outlasted Pueblo West 65-54 with Brenden Harding dropping in 22 points on 8-9 shooting. Jaxson Herring (13) and Kyle Miller (11) also combined for 24 points. Central dumped Pueblo County 62-43 but then lost a tough non-conference game to Fountain Fort Carson (63-58) on Wednesday. Adonis Reynolds (18.8) and Kadyn Betts (17.5) represent a good chunk of their offense. Golden was upset at Green Mountain (63-50) on Wednesday so the highly-ranked Demons must get a road win tonight to stay within one game of the Jeffco leaders. Evergreen is joined by Wheat Ridge and Green Mountain as early league unbeatens. The Cougars topped Standley Lake 50-32 in their first Jeffco game with Jackson Mott (19) and Griffin Lauritano (17) pacing the offense. Evergreen also looks to avenge two losses to Golden a year ago. Lewis Palmer and Doherty are now conference rivals in the expanded Pikes Peak league. And at this point of the season, they two of just three teams still without a loss overall. The third is Fountain Fort Carson (3-0). Lewis Palmer (3-0) is unbeaten but all three wins have come by ten points or less. Edward Speller is the top scorer (17.7) and rebounder (7.3). Colin Westfall dishes out 4.7 assists and Brady Jones collects over six rebounds a game. Doherty (4-0) meantime has not had a game decided by less than 16 points and they’ve scored at least 73 points in each contest. Schafer Reichert (19.0) and Brody Gish (15.3) are one-two in scoring and combine for 14.5 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game.
CLASS 5A
FINAL: #9 Valor Christian beat Lakewood 89-58
FINAL: Fossil Ridge beat #10 Eaglecrest 81-75
FINAL: Fountain Fort Carson beat Palmer Ridge 71-46
NOTES: As mentioned, Fountain Fort Carson is part of the expanded Pikes Peak league conference and will watch with great interest the outcome between Lewis Palmer-Doherty. They don’t face either opponent until the 23rd so their job is to keep winning until those games come up on the schedule. The Trojans scored a big-time win over Pueblo Central (63-58) on Wednesday as Isaiah Thompson exploded for 29 points. He also hauled in 14 rebounds for his second double-double on the young season. Palmer Ridge (2-2) has lost their last two games by a combined 54 points and will be the underdog on the road. Valor Christian (1-2) dropped a critical Jeffco league opener to Ralston Valley on Wednesday (45-38) forcing them to play catchup in the conference standings the rest of the way. The Eagles put in 17 points during a solid second quarter but managed only 21 over the other three while shooting 36 percent from the field. They were just 5-24 from beyond the arc and did not get a player in double figures. Lakewood also has a league loss to Ralston Valley so they’re in the same catch-up mode as Valor. The Tigers did balance their league mark at 1-1 by downing Columbine on Wednesday. One of the last teams to see action this year in any class is Eaglecrest. The Raptors finally opened their season last night and did so impressively; beating Grandview 56-44. They outscored the Wolves 31-20 over the second half.
