As tournament play wraps up, league tilts start the push toward state
VIDEO: Best of the 2019 City of Palms tournament
With the end of winter break Wednesday, the New Year will bring with it the return of teams to the hardwood.
The final weeks of December saw a flurry of tournaments, and a number of teams made a strong early impression. Defending Class 5A champion
Rangeview (Aurora) is undefeated after sweeping through four games in the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas;
Lewis-Palmer (Monument) and
Longmont, which were hit hard by graduation after playing for the 4A title each of the previous two years, are a combined 11-4; and the 3A Patriot League looks to be a dogfight based on a strong December showing from a handful of teams.
Then there are the players themselves, putting up big numbers early.
Lutheran (Parker) was the top seed in 3A last season but graduated its top four scorers. But the Lions have found a star in 6-foot-11 freshman
Baye Fall, who is averaging nearly 28 points and 12 rebounds a game to go along with four blocks. Fall shot 74 percent from the floor (63-of-85) through the team's first five games, including a monster 32-point, 16-rebound, six-block showing in a victory over Cimarron-Memorial on Dec. 13 in Las Vegas.
Play resumes in the 2019-20 season Thursday with five games scheduled. Here is a quick look at 10 games to watch across the state's five classifications for the month of January:
Class 5A
• Boulder (4-1) at Ralston Valley (Arvada) (7-1), 7 p.m., Jan. 13One of just a couple of non-league games on this list features two teams on the rise. … Boulder, in its second season under head coach Riley Grabau, notched some impressive wins in December. The Panthers defeated
Christian Speller, Rangeview
File photo by Derek Regensburger
Regis Jesuit (Aurora),
Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village) and Mountain Vista (Highlands Ranch) in a span of just four days. Boulder's scoring has been balanced, with senior
Caleb Wehmuller leading the team at 12.4 points a game. … Ralston Valley won 17 games a year ago, and the Mustangs are off to another strong start. The lone setback came to Fairview (Boulder) by seven points in the Knights' tournament. Senior
Caleb Rillos leads the team with 17 points and more than eight rebounds a game.
• Cherry Creek (6-2) at Arapahoe (Centennial) (6-1), 7 p.m., Jan. 17Speaking of the Bruins, they have a busy – and tough – month ahead with the start of Centennial League play. Cherry Creek follows up its matchup with Arapahoe with games against
Eaglecrest (Centennial), Grandview (Aurora) and
Smoky Hill (Aurora). The Bruins won four games in a row after the loss to Boulder, and senior
Julian Hammond III is averaging 20.6 points a game since joining the team after the football program won a state title. … Arapahoe has won six of its first seven games under former D'Evelyn and Valor Christian coach Troy Pachner. Seniors
Korey Hess (18.7 points) and
Bryson Stephens (17.7 points) have shouldered the scoring load early.
• Eaglecrest (7-1) at Smoky Hill (7-1), 7 p.m., Jan. 24Staying with the Centennial League, Eaglecrest and Smoky Hill have each gotten off to fast starts. The Raptors went 2-1 in the Cleveland Invite, then returned home to defeat Fairview and Regis Jesuit. Senior
Zion Ruckard is one of three players averaging in double figures in points at 17.8 points a game.
Skylar Wilson (14.3 points) and
Ty Robinson (12.6 points) aren't far behind. … Smoky Hill opened with a loss to Highlands Ranch, but has won seven in a row since that game. Junior
Jalen Weaver leads the Buffs at nearly 20 points a game, and senior
Quinten Rock is averaging 14.3 points.
• Rangeview (8-0) at Vista PEAK Prep (Aurora) (8-1), 7 p.m., Jan. 30The defending state champion Raiders have done a little bit of everything in the early going. The team scored 38 points in a victory over Grandview to open the season, followed that up by scoring 112 points against Prairie View (Brighton), and had the afore-mentioned sweep in Las Vegas. Seniors
Christopher Speller and
Christian Speller lead the team in scoring and rebounding. … Vista PEAK Prep has won eight of nine, with the only loss coming to Arapahoe. The Bison closed out 2019 with a victory over Lewis-Palmer, and three players are scoring at least 10 points a game. Senior
AJ Lacabe leads the team at 13.3 points a game.
Class 4A
• Golden (6-2) at Green Mountain (Lakewood) (7-1), 7 p.m., Jan. 18This 4A Jeffco tilt is one of several big games in January. Golden endured a bit of a down year for the program last winter, going 14-12, but the Demons looked good in December. Golden closed out the year by going 2-1 in the PTP Showcase. Senior
Kevin Mulligan (13.5 points a game) has found a scoring complement in freshman
Alan Acevedo (12.5 points). … Green Mountain has already surpassed last year's win total of six games. The Rams' only loss was by two points to Bear Creek (Lakewood).
Austin Peterson,
Blake Schell,
Matt Schlieper and
Trey Towndrow each average at least nine points a game.
• Erie (5-2) at Mead (Longmont) (5-1), 7 p.m., Jan. 21The Tri-Valley is historically a loaded league, and the 2019-20 version looks no different. Three teams are 5-1, followed by Erie at 5-2. … Erie, in its first season under Gail Hook's leadership, opened the year with a quality victory over Longmont. Junior
Kevin Loy has provided scoring punch at more than 13 points a game. … Mead's only loss was an overtime defeat against Palmer (Colorado Springs, but the Mavericks followed with five consecutive victories. Mead has poured in the points, averaging 77 points a contest. Four players average at least 13 points a game.
• Lewis-Palmer (5-2) at Cheyenne Mountain (8-0), 7:30 p.m., Jan. 28A traditionally big rivalry in the Pikes Peak League sees the first of two meetings at the end of the month. The defending state champion Rangers won their first five games before dropping two in a row to close out December.
Eddie Speller Jr. averages nearly 13 points and seven rebounds a game, with
Colin Westfall and
Cameron Lowe not far behind. … Cheyenne Mountain is the only 4A team unbeaten headed into the New Year after sweeping through two tournaments. Javonte Johnson has been his usual dominant self, averaging a double-double. Junior
Wade Jones is no slouch at nearly 17 points a game.
Class 3A
• Resurrection Christian (Loveland) (6-0) at Sterling (5-1), 7 p.m., Jan. 21As mentioned earlier, the Patriot League is stacked. The top five teams in the league are a combined 27-4 to start the season, with Resurrection Christian the lone unbeaten squad of the group. … The Cougars open 2020 with a non-league game at Lutheran. The team goes back-to-back against strong league foes in University (Greeley) and Sterling midway through the month. Resurrection Christian is averaging more than 83 points a game, with seniors
Reece Johnson (18.5 points) and
Isaac Jessup (17.2) leading the charge. … Sterling's only loss came early in December in a tournament in Scottsbluff, Neb. Senior
Axel Henry leads the team at 18.2 points a game.
Class 2A
• Dayspring Christian Academy (Greeley) (4-1) at Highland (Ault) (5-1), 7 p.m., Jan. 21This game features two of the top scorers in the 2A ranks. Dayspring Christian's
Christian Still has averaged
Tate Bessire, Highland
File photo by Ray Chen
20.6 points through five games, shooting 56 percent from the field. Highland's
Tate Bessire is going for nearly 24 points a game, along with nearly nine rebounds and more than five assists. … The Huskies' only loss came to 3A Eaton in a 90-89 shootout in which Bessire had 32 points and 11 rebounds. … Dayspring Christian has won three in a row since a loss to Peyton on Dec. 7.
Class 1A
• Briggsdale (5-1) at Peetz (5-1), 4 p.m., Jan. 10Two teams that didn't make the state tournament a year ago kick off the new year for the second year in a row. … Briggsdale started the 2018-19 season with seven victories in eight games, but a loss to Peetz to open 2019 led to a 4-8 showing the rest of the way.
Wyatt Patton, the team's leading scorer a year ago, is off to another strong start at 17.7 points a game to go with eight rebounds. The team's only loss was an overtime setback to defending state champion De Beque. … Peetz won 17 games a year ago, but a loss in the regional title game to Haxtun prevented the team from reaching state. The Bulldogs' lone loss in December came to that same Haxtun squad.
