Our Tuesday boys’ basketball preview includes a look at most of the top 10 matchups statewide but this report also includes a few games outside the rankings that are important to state playoff picture.
Colorado Preps will provide a daily preview of all classes throughout the season. We are in need of photos so if you have game action photos from this year, you may email to [email protected].
Feature photo provided by Heidi Krise / OT Sportschek
CLASS 1A
FINAL: #1 DeBeque beat Caprock Academy 65-51
FINAL: #3 Belleview Christian beat Beth Eden 92-50
FINAL: #8 Haxtun beat #5 Briggsdale 70-61
FINAL: #10 Cheraw beat Las Animas 60-29
FINAL: Evangelical Christian beat Stratton/Liberty 66-45
NOTES: DeBeque plays their first game as the state’s number one ranked team but the program is used to being in this position. They spent much of the 2018-19 season in the spot where they landed the state championship. The Dragons also spent much of last year in the top five as well. This year, DeBeque has picked up wins over Plateau Valley and Nucla with Wes Ryan having a very hot start. He netted 37 points in game one and 34 against Nucla. He’s hit 28 of 46 shots from the field and also pulled down 18 rebounds as well. Caprock has never won more than six games in a season but they’re 2-0 out of the gate this season. Cheraw moved into the top 10 this week on the strength of their 2-0 start which includes a nice 42-39 win over Evangelical Christian. Rankings wise, the best pairing has #5 Briggsdale on the road to #8 Haxtun. Look for plenty of points as both teams are averaging right at 65 points a game through their first two victories. Briggsdale freshman Tanner Fiscus had a great opening week including 22 points, six rebounds, four assists and seven steals in his high school debut. Malik Carlson also added 20 points in the win over Front Range Baptist. Haxtun is coming off 20-point plus wins over Peetz and Fleming. They also play 2A #2 Wray on Friday in what shapes up to be a very challenging week. Stratton/Liberty looks to bounce back from a tough loss to McClave as they face returning state tournament qualifier Evangelical Christian. The outcome is important to both clubs as they battle for a spot in the 24-team state bracket. Ashtin Davidson netted 20 points in the loss to McClave. ECA bounced back from the Cheraw loss to roll Cotopaxi 63-32. Four players reached double figures in the win; RJ Wagner had 14, Michael Mann 12, Jared Guest 11 and Jonah Aragon 10.
CLASS 2A
FINAL: #1 Limon beat #4 Kit Carson (1A) 69-32
FINAL: Chase County NE beat #4 Yuma 57-48
FINAL: #5 Mancos beat Telluride 61-27
FINAL: #7 Sedgwick County beat Leyton NE 63-37
FINAL: #8 Denver Christian beat Clear Creek 63-46
FINAL: #9 Holly beat Kim/Branson 62-54
FINAL: Del Norte beat Hoehne 50-24
NOTES: After beating then #2 Yuma on Saturday, there’s no break in the schedule for top ranked Limon as they host #4 Kit Carson (1A) this evening. Both clubs are 2-0 going in. Limon also moved past Genoa Hugo 74-40 before topping Yuma over the weekend. Kit Carson has wins over Prairie (59-32) and Wiley (42-34). Sullivan Farmer has scored 20 points in each win with a trio of three-pointers. Paul Mitchek has eight rebounds in each win as well. Yuma enters week two still seeking their first win. In addition to Limon, the Indians also dropped a tight game at Brush to open the season. They lost only three games all of last season. Mancos looks to keep momentum from wins over Sanford (62-55) and Bayfield (59-52) last week. Those victories pushed the Bluejays all the way up to fifth in this week’s rankings. Sedgwick County searches for a third straight win over a Nebraska opponent. A win moves them to 3-0 heading into a tough weekend where they face both Merino and Yuma. The winner of Denver Christian-Clear Creek should step forward as the top challenger to 3A Highland inside the Mile-High chase. Clear Creek toppled both Platte Canyon and Middle Park last week with Seattle Schuessler averaging 19 points and Colin Hendrickson 18. Denver Christian earned an important league win over Dayspring Christian (79-72) in their opener but then fell to 3A Colorado Academy (70-53) last Friday. Ben Buhler (28) and Henry Vandenberg (25) led the way against Dayspring. Ethan Liebert also chipped in 17. Holly used a strong second quarter (18-8) to beat Wiley 52-40 in their opener last Thursday. Hoehne and Del Norte are both 2-1 through week one. The Farmers look to push Fowler and Holly in the Santa Fe while the Tigers hope to be a factor with Sanford and Crested Butte in the Southern Peaks. If neither wins their league, games like this will be important to their playoff chances. The Farmers have beaten Las Animas and Sargent with a 57-32 loss to Center. Del Norte opened with a 32-28 loss to Alamosa but has responded with wins over Swink and Rye.
CLASS 3A
FINAL: #5 Centauri beat Durango 54-46
FINAL: #6 Resurrection Christian beat Frontier Academy 62-33
FINAL: #7 Eaton beat Valley 82-43
FINAL: #8 Sterling beat Strasburg 62-44
FINAL: #9 Coal Ridge beat Roaring Fork 58-50
FINAL: Gunnison beat Crested Butte 59-38
FINAL: Alamosa beat Pagosa Springs 41-31
FINAL: Brush beat University 59-57
Lotus School at DSST-College View
NOTES: It’s opening night in the rugged Patriot conference and on paper the best two games could be Sterling-Strasburg and University-Brush. The Tigers slipped to 8th in the rankings this week following an opening non-league loss to Resurrection Christian last Saturday. Jackson Keil (15) and Tucker Myers (13) combined for 28 points in the loss. Strasburg has wins over Weld Central and Prospect Ridge by a combined 58 points. Collin Russell is averaging 25 points a game following his 30-point effort against Prospect Ridge. He was 5-11 from the beyond the arc. Record wise, Brush (2-0) could be favored against University (0-2) but the schedules are much different. Brush has beaten quality 2A rivals Yuma and Holyoke while the Bulldogs have come up short to #1 Lutheran and #3 Faith Christian. Tayt Chacon netted 26 against Lutheran and averages 22.5 for the season. He has five three-pointers overall. Alex Martinez is also pulling down seven rebounds a game. Brush won just seven games last season so they are well ahead of that pace early this season. Resurrection Christian and Eaton are both in action as well and both seek victories ahead of their showdown on Thursday. Centauri is favored to land the IML championship but the winner between Pagosa Springs and Alamosa could become their top challenger. Pagosa Springs is 1-0 in league play as they topped Bayfield 57-41 last week. Alamosa is 0-1 due to a 41-21 loss to Centauri last Friday. They did respond with a 46-36 win over Monte Vista but that’s a non-league game as Monte has dropped to Class 2A this season. Centauri could get challenged by 4A Durango. The Demons are 1-0 with a convincing win over Telluride as Anthony Flint scored 13 points with four assists and four steals. Lotus-DSST-College View represents an important early game in the Confluence. DSST-College View may be one of the favorites inside the wide-open Confluence race. They’re 2-0 and getting 21 points a game from Alex Miranda and 18 from Uziel Tomita. Crested Butte-Gunnison is listed as it’s a nice county rivalry that we don’t see very often. Gunnison won the Western Slope crown last year but has opened 0-2 with the losses coming by a combined three points. They also have tough tests with Alamosa and Aspen this weekend. Crested Butte is pushing for a top 10 spot in Class 2A and should be a strong presence in the Southern Peaks chase. They beat Ridgway 59-45 in their opener; outscoring the Demons 18-8 in the opening quarter and 16-8 in the third.
CLASS 4A
FINAL: #6 Erie beat Fort Morgan 67-52
FINAL: #7 Pueblo Central beat Pueblo County 62-43
FINAL: #9 Montrose beat Delta 60-42
FINAL: #10 Pueblo East beat Pueblo West 65-54
FINAL: Centaurus beat Roosevelt 54-40
NOTES: The Pueblo city rivalries get started this week so that’s always a fun stretch of games. The race has been dominated by Pueblo West of late but many teams seem to be in contention this year. Based on rankings, Pueblo Central (#7) and Pueblo East (#10) are considered the favorites. They play on Friday. Central handled Mesa Ridge (86-59) in their opener and followed up with a road win at Canon City (60-47). Five players, led by Kadyn Betts with 18, reached double figures in the first game while Adonis Reynolds exploded for 33 against Canon City. Reynolds (4) and Steven Hemphill (3) also combined for seven threes. East has just one game on the 2021 resume; a low scoring 39-38 quality win over Harrison. Jaxson Herring, with 22, was the only Eagle in double figures. He also collected a game-high 10 rebounds. Erie hasn’t played since scoring 82 points in a 19-point win over Broomfield last Wednesday. They netted 28 points in the second quarter alone. Jordan Nguyen (22) and Kevin Loy (21) paced the offense overall. Fort Morgan rolled Northridge (70-38) but fell to Roosevelt (61-58) in week one. Fernando Marquez (20.0) is their top scorer with Briggs Wheatly (14.0) and Wesley Carnes (13.5) also averaging double digits. Montrose beat Montezuma Cortez in their season opener but still lost two spots in the polls this week. Delta is the first of three 3A opponents this week as they also meet Coal Ridge and Roaring Fork. Roosevelt (2-0) has made some noise early and they’re relying on offensive balance. Brayden Saya tops the offense with 15.5 points per game but six others score at least 4.5 per game. Centaurus (1-1) will be their toughest test of the season as the Warriors beat Far Northeast (65-48) and played well in a loss to #2 Lewis Palmer (56-52). John Lewicki (13.0) and Mario Everett (12.5) have been an effective 1-2 punch offensively.
CLASS 5A
FINAL: #1 Cherry Creek beat Grandview 67-38
#2 ThunderRidge vs Highlands Ranch
FINAL: #4 Regis beat Ponderosa 80-29
FINAL: #6 George Washington beat Northfield 74-22
FINAL: Mullen beat #7 Smoky Hill 67-66
FINAL: #8 Chaparral beat Castle View 54-41
NOTES: The top two teams in the rankings face long-time rivals on Tuesday and both are favored to get wins. Grandview has been a state championship threat for the past decade but has opened 1-1 this year; falling to Mullen (52-50) and beating Cherokee Trail (56-38). Seniors Jericho Gutierrez (18) and Tyler Watters (14) combined for 32 against the Cougars. Highlands Ranch is winless but pushed Denver East (67-65) in a strong opening effort. ThunderRidge (1-0) has played just once but blew past Fairview 66-42 with Nolan Harold (13), Zach Keller (12) and Jackson Brennan (10) all reaching double figures. Creek has beaten Arapahoe and Mullen by a combined 30 points. Julian Hammond has totaled 47 points in those two wins and Myles Purchase 28. Sophomore Christian Hammond has chipped in 26. George Washington was upset by Northfield (70-67) last season so they’ll seek revenge in the first meeting since that contest. Seniors scored all 70 points for the Nighthawks in that win so they’re the heavy underdog tonight. Mullen seeks a 2-1 start in the Centennial but must upset Smoky Hill to get there. The Buffs are 2-0 and have scored at least 80 points in beating both Arapahoe and Rampart. Jordan Whitaker (26.0) and Brayden Maldonado (23.5) are each averaging well over 20 points. Chaparral is unbeaten but it hasn’t been easy with a four-point win over Horizon and an 11-point decision over Denver East. Joel Speckman, with 34 points and 21 rebounds, had a strong week as did Braden Boley with 23 points and 18 boards. Castle View (1-1) picked up 19 points apiece from Nolan Moorhead and Sean Harris in their win over Hinkley.
