One matchup on the Friday schedule has league leaders battling for sole possession of a league lead and that’s found in the 3A Intermountain between Centauri and Alamosa. That matchup is obviously on our list of best games of the day and is joined by eight others.
We break down what’s on the line in each game and then will recap all the action during the Colorado Preps Scoreboard Show tonight. It airs from 8-10pm on the Colorado Preps Radio Network and can also be heard live online by clicking here. Photo is provided by Lance Wendt.
Cheraw at Cheyenne Wells: The winner most likely ends up second to Kit Carson in the 1A High Plains and for Cheraw a win keeps them in the title chase as they’ve yet to face the highly ranked Wildcats. Cheyenne Wells fell to Kit Carson last Friday so another loss leaves them two games off the pace in a five-game league schedule. Cheraw (9-4) could easily have 11 wins but they enter the game off back-to-back overtime losses to Kim/Branson (59-55) and Manzanola (56-54). Trey Pearce (10.9), Kaiden Holland (10.2), Gabe Montoya (9.9) and Davere Herman (9.6) lead a balanced Wolverine attack. Cheyenne Wells (6-4) bounced back from the Kit Carson loss to bounce Kiowa 53-33 the next night. This is the first of four straight at home as they look to build momentum for the playoff run.
Wiley at Kim/Branson: Wiley (5-8) is three games below five hundred but they will serve as a good league test for a Kim/Branson club that sits #8 in RPI this week. Wiley is 0-2 in league play but has won their last two over Genoa Hugo (62-54) and Eads (51-39) so they may be playing their best basketball of the season. Senior Lawrence Lucero (25.8) is a big-time scorer and also leads the Panthers in rebounds (9.4). Westin Langston chips in 11 points and nine boards a night. Kim/Branson (10-2) is unbeaten against Colorado schools. Their second loss came earlier this week to Felt OK (67-58). The loss snapped an eight-game win streak for the Mustangs. They’re 1-0 in the conference and tied with Walsh in first.
Sedgwick County at Merino: Sedgwick County (3-0) shares the Lower Platte lead with Yuma and faces the Indians on Saturday but they can’t look past a very good Merino club this evening. The Rams lost their league opener to Caliche in overtime earlier this month but still could contend for a top three spot. The Cougars have beaten Haxtun, Wiggins and Holyoke in league play by a combined 57 points. Merino lost to Dayspring Chrsitian (58-54) last Saturday snapping a three-game winning streak. They also have a tough test with 2A Limon on the road Saturday.
Centauri at Alamosa: Both teams are 4-0 in the 3A Intermountain so the winner takes the first half lead. The Moose have outscored four league opponents by 73 points and the Falcons 60. And only one of their combined eight conference wins have been decided by single digits as Alamosa edged Pagosa Springs by eight last week. Centauri (13-0) is unbeaten overall while Alamosa opened league play at just 5-4 on the season. Ian Jackson (16.1) and Brenden Crowther (15.8) are double digit scorers for Alamosa and they will be lined up against the likes of Baron Holman and Trey Crowther.
Machebeuf at Manual: Machebeuf needs a win to stay tied for second with Faith Christian and Jefferson Academy in the 3A Metro. All three teams have one league loss and trail Lutheran atop the standings. Manual was part of the second-place mix before Wednesday’s 61-54 loss to Faith Christian. Jaden Stoffell (25.4) tops the Manual offense and Will Yebio (16.2) heads up Machebeuf. Yebio has scored 77 points in his first four league games; Stoffel 98.
Summit at Steamboat Springs: Glenwood Springs (4-0) tops the 4A Western Slope standings but both the Tigers and Sailors are just one game back so the winner takes over second place. The game shapes up to be close. Both have nine wins overall and each suffered their lone league loss to Glenwood Springs by the same exact margin (14). Four players average at least eight points for Steamboat; a group led by Dawson Lindquist (10.9) and Jakob Kreissig (9.4). Summit is 4-1 since the Glenwood loss. They have four players scoring at least seven points per game. Cameron Kalaf (10.3) is the lone double figure scorer with Nazaire Poliuk (9.5) next on the list.
Green Mountain at Wheat Ridge: The Farmers stunned the Rams 66-45 in their first meeting this year and that result separates the two in the 4A Jeffco standings. Wheat Ridge (5-1) is tied with Golden atop the standings with Green Mountain (4-2) one game back. Alex Morales (20), Dominic Bronk (17) and Westin Miller (12) led the Farmers offensively in game one. Green Mountain, which connected on just 33 percent of their shots (19-58), picked up 13 from Blake Schell and 11 from Trey Towndrow.
Smoky Hill at Grandview: Each team has played seven conference games but the race in the 5A Centennial is far from over. Grandview (6-1) shares the lead with Cherry Creek with Smoky Hill (5-2) a game off the pace. Eaglecrest and Overland (both 4-3) both remain the discussion. Game one between the two is among the best in the regular season in any class as the Buffs scored a double overtime victory (66-63). The win was very impressive as the Buffs trailed by 17 points at the end of the first quarter but allowed just 41 points the rest of the way. Quinten Rock (25) and Jalen Weaver (24) combined for 49 points for the winner. Grandview picked up 23 from Lian Ramiro.
George Washington at Northfield: As the relative newcomer to the 5A/4A City league race, Northfield is already a factor as they open the game tied with GW and Denver East (all unbeaten) atop the standings. The Nighthawks’ best league win came over Thomas Jefferson (69-68) on January 21st. They hit 65 percent from the field (22-34) with Nahsyah Bolar (18), Marcus Rogers (15) and Bailey Diakite (13) leading the way. Since that win, Northfield has blasted Denver North and Denver West by a combined 65 points. George Washington exploded for a season high 106 points in their 42-point win over Kennedy earlier this week. It was their fifth straight win and they twice scored at least 30 points in a quarter.
