Green Mountain boys basketball ends Dakota Ridge’s 33-game league winning streak

LITTLETON — Green Mountain boys hoops did something Wednesday night that hadn’t been done since the 2021-22 basketball season.

The Rams handed Dakota Ridge a 69-35 loss on the Eagles’ home court in the Class 5A/4A Jeffco League opener for both teams. It was the first defeat in conference play for Dakota Ridge since a 5A Jeffco League loss to Ralston Valley back on Jan. 28, 2022.

“All the credit goes to Coach (Sean) Kovar. He is a legend in this league,” Green Mountain coach Jordan Deignan said after the Rams ended Dakota Ridge’s remarkable winning streak during its 3-peat of 5A/4A Jeffco League. “He does such a good job in Xs and Os and execution. It’s a team that every time you play them you better come out and be prepared. If not, he’ll make you pay for it.”

Dakota Ridge (1-12 record, 0-1 in league) actually had an early lead on Green Mountain (11-4, 1-0). Senior Caiden Dixon poured in 11 points in the opening quarter to give the Eagles a 17-13 lead after the first 8 minutes.

“One of the best players in the league, hands down,” Deignan said of Dixon, who finished with 14 points. “It’s been really cool to see from afar his improvement from last year to this year. He was more of a role players last year, but he is elite this year.”

Green Mountain went to a zone defense and used the Rams’ size to lockdown the Eagles through the final three quarters. Dakota Ridge scored just 18 points after its 17-point first quarter.

The Rams got it going offensively with junior Sam Mielenz getting hot after a scoreless first quarter. Mielenz had 8 points in the second quarter, including a jumper at the buzzer to end the first half and give the Rams a 27-23 lead.

“Sometime I get nervous,” Mielenz said of being scoreless in the first quarter. “I just have to trust in my work. I put in a lot of work into this game. I just have to trust in that.”

Mielenz put on a shooting display in the second half. He made five 3-pointers to finish with a game-high 29 points. The junior sharpshooter was coming off a 41-point performance against Mountain Range last Saturday.

“He is an elite scorer. He has that mentality too,” Deignan said of Mielenz, who is averaging 24.1 points per game. “He is one of the hardest working players I’ve ever seen. He gets to the gym at 7:30 am every morning to get shots off every single day. He never doubts himself. He knows the next shot is going in.”

Senior Ben Swanson had 10 points and 8 rebounds. Senior point guard Tre Gutierrez had 7 points and 9 assists as the Rams extended their now 5-game winning streak.

“It’s a great win,” Mielenz said. “Every win matters from here on out. We just have to execute and have good practices. We’ll be good.”

Who was good for Green Mountain off the bench was sophomore Austin Andersen. The sophomore had 10 points, including a 3-point play the hard way in the second quarter and a pair of 3-pointers from long range in the Rams’ 27-point fourth quarter.

“We’ve been looking for it all year,” Deignan said. “We know we have guys who can play. We’ve seen it in practice. All of our JV guys have stepped up in one game or another. Tonight was Austin’s night. He has been great in practice.”

Green Mountain was a little shorthanded without senior starter Jake Swanson or junior Stefan Radisa due to injuries in the conference opener.

“Awesome. Awesome,” Deignan said of the win over Dakota Ridge. “We just wrote it on the board in the locker room … 1-0. It’s a new season. We are just taking it game-by-game. We aren’t looking ahead to anything. This league is amazing. I don’t care what people say.”

The Rams continue league play next week with home games against Wheat Ridge (Monday, Jan. 26) and Pomona (Wednesday, Jan. 28). Dakota Ridge will try to end its 9-game losing streak on the road against Conifer on Friday, Jan. 23.