The second installment of our new Friday Five Feature again focuses on conference play with teams battling to stay atop their respective standings. In Classes 4A and 5A, a league championship guarantees a team a spot in the state tournament and a top district seed is awarded to conference winners in Classes 1A, 2A and 3A.
Below is our list of the most important five games in each class tonight and a quick breakdown of how results could impact league standings.
Final scores can be sent to Colorado Preps by text at 970.380.7737.
CLASS 1A
Wiley at Walsh
DeBeque at Meeker
Creede at Sierra Grande
Briggsdale at Prairie
Cheraw at Kim/Branson
Notes: Hard to get a read on the Ark Valley chase as teams have already started to beat up on one another. Walsh moved into the top 10 this week but the Eagles open conference play tonight against Wiley and South Baca tomorrow. Wiley (1-1) has a win over Kim/Branson and a loss to South Baca. South Baca (1-0) is the early conference leader. DeBeque is one of three unbeatens left in the Western Slope but a road trip to Meeker is always difficult. The Cowboys are one game back and tied with Plateau Valley in fourth. Sierra Grande (3-6) and Creede (4-7) are both three games below five hundred but both remain in the running for a top three finish in the Southern Peaks. Creede, with losses to Cotopaxi and Sangre De Cristo, is in more dire need of a league win. Sierra Grande has beaten Manzanola and Centennial in conference action. Briggsdale and Prairie are battling for second place behind Peetz in the North Central. Each has a league loss to Peetz but will face the Bulldogs a second time. The Cheraw-Kim/Branson is a non-conference game but the result could impact regional tournament bracketing if both quality from district action. Cheraw scored a big win over Wiley (45-34) last night and Kim/Branson enters the game off a loss to McClave last Saturday (56-51)
CLASS 2A
Paonia at Plateau Valley
Hoehne at Holly
Ignacio at Ridgway
Ouray at Mancos
Highland at Heritage Christian
Notes: Paonia has won their first four conference games and is one of three league unbeatens (De Beque and Vail Christian) sharing the Western Slope lead. Plateau Valley is one game back (2-1) and tied with Meeker in second. Meeker and De Beque also collide this weekend so the standings could change quite a bit. Holly has already beaten Fowler, Rocky Ford and Swallows Charter in league play so a victory over Hoehne likely sews up the regular season title. Hoehne is in third with Rocky Ford and Swallows Charter as all three are 3-2. Fowler is alone in second one game back. Ridgway and Mancos are co-leaders in the San Juan conference and they switch opponents tonight. Mancos beat Ignacio on Tuesday and Ridgway moved past Ouray. The Bluejays and Demons also collide tomorrow night. Highland (3-0) shares the Mile-High lead with Gilpin County (3-0) and Denver Christian (5-0). Heritage Christian will be their most difficult league test to date as the Eagles have spent time in the Top 10 and are just one game back in the standings.
CLASS 3A
Frontier Academy at Platte Valley
Eaton at Sterling
Alamosa at Montezuma Cortez
Centauri at Bayfield
Delta at Coal Ridge
Notes: Sterling and Frontier Academy both needs to maintain a share of the Patriot lead. The Wolverines are 2-0 and the Tigers 3-0 early on. Eaton heads to Sterling just one game back of the Tigers so they can climb back into the chase by upsetting the top ranked team in Class 3A. Platte Valley has already dropped two conference games but will remain in contention for a top four league finish if they get by Frontier Academy.  Alamosa and Bayfield were scheduled to play last Friday but Mother Nature took the game away. Because they’ve not played, they share the IML lead heading to the weekend. Both opponents are 1-1 and still have league championship expectations in a very balanced conference. Coal Ridge is a top five team in the statewide rankings but the Titans are looking up to Olathe, Delta and Gunnison in the Western Slope standings following a loss to Gunnison last week. Another loss to Delta this evening could eliminate their hopes of defending their league crown. Delta enters off a non-league loss to 4A Montrose 44-41 on Tuesday.
CLASS 4A
Windsor at Holy Family
Air Academy at Lewis Palmer
Centaurus at Greeley Central
Pueblo Central at Pueblo West
Battle Mountain at Steamboat Springs
Notes:  Holy Family and Mead (both 5-0) sit tied atop the Tri Valley conference and will meet next Thursday to determine the first half leader. The Tigers have the more difficult challenge tonight as they battle a Windsor club (4-2) trying to stay alive in the chase. The Wizards are alone in fourth. Air Academy’s loss to Cheyenne Mountain (65-61) on Wednesday took a bit of the luster from their showdown with Lewis Palmer tonight. They had entered the week tied with Lewis Palmer atop the Pikes Peak standings but they now they need an upset of the top ranked team in Class 4A to avoid falling two games back.  Centaurus and Greeley Central battle for second place in the Northern. Both teams are 3-1; one game behind second ranked Longmont. Centaurus lost to the Trojans earlier this week while Central has yet to face them. Central’s league loss is against Mountain View but they’ve won three straight. Each South Central league team has played just one conference but Pueblo West and Pueblo Central are two of the three teams that won their opener on Tuesday. The two share the very early lead with Pueblo South. Battle Mountain looks to bounce back from a 65-58 home loss to Palisade on Tuesday which cost them a piece of first place in the Western Slope. They now sit one game back of Steamboat Springs and Glenwood Springs. Battle Mountain also meets Glenwood Springs tomorrow so they have a chance to recover quickly.
CLASS 5A
Eaglecrest at Grandview
Mullen at Smoky Hill
Overland at Cherry Creek
Poudre at Fossil Ridge
Boulder at Broomfield
Notes: Grandview opens the night 5-0 in the Centennial and needing two more wins to get through the first half of the conference schedule without a loss. Eaglecrest though will be a tough out as they sit tied with Smoky Hill (both 4-1) just one game back of the Wolves. Overland (3-2) is a top 10 team but sits fourth in a rugged conference.   Boulder is four games below five hundred for the season (5-9) but three of those wins are in conference play so their meeting with Broomfield is for a piece of first place in the Front Range. Both the Panthers and Eagles are unbeaten in league play and tied with Fairview and Greeley West for the top spot. Poudre (3-1) lost a share of the top spot with Tuesday’s loss to Fairview (79-53) and needs a win over Fossil Ridge on the road to avoid falling two games back.
