Teams ready to bring their best for championship Saturday in Colorado high school boys basketball

The other? Go back some 63 years to when Mead defeated Wiggins to claim the Class B trophy in 1957.


Class 4A is also the only classification that is guaranteed to crown a new champion. Rangeview (Aurora) (5A), Manual (Denver) (3A), Yuma (2A) and De Beque (1A) all still have a chance to repeat in 2020.
Here is a quick look at each bracket headed into the final weekend of the season:

Class 5A // Brackets
Final 4
Friday at Denver Coliseum
No. 1 Rangeview (26-0) vs. No. 5 Grandview (20-6), 7 p.m.
No. 2 Fairview (22-3) vs. No. 6 Valor Christian (20-6), 8:30 p.m.
Championship: 8:30 p.m., Saturday
Overview: Rangeview went 26-2 a year ago and didn't lose a game in 2019 on its way to a state championship. The Raiders are perfect through 26 games this winter, with Obi Agbim leading the way at 13.3 points a game. Christopher

Obi Agbim, Rangeview

File photo by Derek Regensburger

Speller and Christian Speller and Cade Palmer each average a little more than 10 points a game. The team opened the season with a 38-37 victory over Grandview (Aurora), its Final 4 opponent. … Speaking of the Wolves, they defeated upstart Regis Jesuit (Aurora) 48-41 in the quarterfinals to get back to the Final 4. Grandview lost to Rangeview in the quarterfinals last winter. Senior Caleb McGill leads the team at 17.2 points and 7.1 rebounds a game, and Lian Ramiro averages 15.3 points. … Fairview (Boulder) has improved in each of its five seasons under coach Patrick Burke. The Knights swept through the Front Range League this season, only to survive a scare in its playoff opener, a 60-59 win over Fountain-Fort Carson. Junior Greysen Carter averages 17.5 points and 7.9 rebounds a game. … After going 11-13 a year ago, Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch) has won 20 games under first-year coach A.J. Kuhle. The Eagles lost four of five earlier in the season, only to win 17 of their next 18. Junior Amondo Miller and seniors Roger Rosengarten and Talin Unruh each average more than 11 points a game.

Class 4A // Brackets
Final 4
Friday at Denver Coliseum
No. 10 Pueblo West (20-6) vs. No. 11 The Classical Academy (20-5), 4 p.m.
No. 1 Mead (25-1) vs. No. 5 Northfield (21-5), 5:30 p.m.
Championship: 3 p.m., Saturday
Overview: Pueblo West has lived dangerously in the postseason, winning its three games by a combined 11 points. Senior

Nahsyah Bolar, Northfield

File photo by Derek Regensburger

Taylor Harris leads the club at 15.7 points a game, and Jimmy Wardle averages just more than 12 points. … Micah Lamberth led three TCA players with at least 13 points in the quarterfinal victory over Longmont. The senior scored 16 points against the Trojans after putting up 18 points in a Sweet 16 victory over Skyline (Longmont). Lamberth averages nearly 15 points a game, while teammate Tyler Trogstad averages 12.3 points and 9.1 rebounds. … Mead is coming off a 69-63 Great 8 victory over Lincoln. Senior Will Maher led the team with 21 points, and Nick Jacobs and Jacob Bartholomew each added 14 points. Trey Ward had nine assists for the Mavericks. Four players average at least 10 points a game, and Bartholomew isn't far behind at 9.3. … Northfield is averaging nearly 72 points a game in its three postseason victories. Senior Nahsyah Bolar leads the team at 18.4 points and 11.4 rebounds a game. A year ago the Nighthawks went 12-9 and won their inaugural postseason game before falling in the second round.

Class 3A // Brackets
Great 8
Thursday at Hamilton Gym, University of Denver
No. 2 The Vanguard School (22-2) vs. No. 10 Sterling (20-4), 10:15 a.m.
No. 3 Faith Christian (20-4) vs. No. 11 Alamosa (18-5), 1:15 p.m.
No. 4 Manual (17-7) vs. No. 5 Centauri (21-2), 5:30 p.m.
No. 1 Resurrection Christian (24-0) vs. No. 9 Lutheran (21-3), 8:30 p.m.
Final 4: 5:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., Friday
Championship: 6 p.m., Saturday
Overview: The quarterfinal round of the 3A tournament offers up four great games. No. 11 Alamosa defeated No. 3 Faith Christian (Arvada) in the regular season, and has two scoring threats in Brenden Crowther and Ian Jackson. … Defending state champion Manual has been on a tear in recent weeks. The Thunderbolts won the Metro League district tournament after finishing tied for third in the league in the regular season. Senior Jaden Stoffell is averaging 25.5 points a game. … The Vanguard School (Colorado Springs) has won six in a row since an overtime loss to Manitou Springs, though Coursers' leading scorer Dominique Clifford was hurt in a regional victory over University (Greeley). Two of Sterling's four losses came to top-seeded Resurrection Christian (Loveland), and the Tigers have four players who average at least 11 points a game. … The final game Thursday may be the best of the day. No. 1 Resurrection Christian hasn't lost a game all season, but No. 9 Lutheran (Parker) took the Cougars to the limit in a 66-65 game Jan. 4. Resurrection Christian's Reece Johnson (18 points a game) and Isaac Jessup (17 points) lead a loaded lineup. Lutheran's loss to Manual in the Metro League district tournament cost the Lions a higher seed, but they are a dangerous No. 9 seed. Freshman Baye Fall averages a double-double, and the team is motivated after losing in the Great 8 a year ago as the No. 1 seed.



Class 2A // Brackets
Great 8
Thursday at Budweiser Events Center, Loveland
No. 4 Sanford (20-4) vs. No. 5 Wray (18-6), 10:15 a.m.
No. 3 Yuma (20-3) vs. No. 6 Fowler (22-2), 1:15 p.m.
No. 2 Limon (22-2) vs. No. 7 Peyton (19-5), 5:30 p.m.
No. 1 Highland (23-1) vs. No. 8 Ignacio (18-4), 8:30 p.m.
Final 4: 5:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., Friday
Championship: 8:30 p.m., Saturday
Overview: Two-time defending state champion Yuma likely would have been the No. 1 seed, but a loss in the district tournament to Holyoke forced the Indians to work their way back up the ranks. Yuma is the No. 3 seed, and has a great 1-2 punch in sophomore Clay Robinson and senior Chase McCreath. Fowler has won 19 in a row since a loss to Limon on Dec. 20. Junior Val Leone averages 18 points a game and Johnathan Mobbley averages a double-double. … Speaking of Limon, the Badgers have won 17 consecutive games. Camden Smithburg averages 16.6 points a game. Peyton has won seven in a row, and Gibson Gellerman scored 18 points in a regional victory over Denver Christian. … On the other side of the bracket, top-seeded Highland (Ault) is looking for its first state title since 2000. The Huskies have won 19 in a row, though they had to rally to defeat Holly 65-63 in the regional championship. Jase Bessire had 24 points in that game to go with seven rebounds, four assists and four steals. Two of Ignacio's losses came to Mancos, though the Bobcats gained a measure of revenge with a victory over the Bluejays in the regional title game. … Three of Sanford's losses came to 3A teams which are in the Great 8. Wray has won eight in a row, and two of its losses came to Yuma. Senior Justin Pecar averages 17 points and more than nine rebounds a game.

Class 1A // Brackets
Great 8
Thursday at University of Northern Colorado, Greeley
No. 2 Mile High Academy (20-3) vs. No. 7 Evangelical Christian (19-3), 10:15 a.m.
No. 1 Kit Carson (21-1) vs. No. 8 Ouray (14-6), 1:15 p.m.
No. 3 Walsh (23-2) vs. No. 6 Merino (16-8), 5:30 p.m.
No. 4 De Beque (20-2) vs. No. 5 Briggsdale (19-4), 8:30 p.m.
Final 4: 5:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., Friday
Championship: 5:30 p.m., Saturday (Budweiser Events Center, Loveland)
Overview: Top-seeded Kit Carson is seeking its first championship since 2007, but the Wildcats – whose only loss came in the season opener to 2A Limon – have to get past upstart Ouray in the Great 8 first. Ouray defeated last year's runner-up, Sangre de Cristo (Mosca), in the regional title game. Kit Carson took care of South Baca behind 22 points and 15 rebounds from Jayden McCombs-Farmer. … Last year's champion, De Beque, is the No. 4 seed. The Dragons have won their previous two games by one point each, including a 58-57 thriller against Primero in regionals. Briggsdale will provide a tough opening test at state – Wyatt Patton averages more than 17 points a game. … Mile High Academy (Denver) rode a 25-point, 14-rebound game from Blake Essex in the regional title game to a trip to state. Evangelical Christian (Colorado Springs) has won 11 of 12, and Jason Holt averages 20 points a game. … Walsh's last loss came in December to Kit Carson. The Eagles have won 16 in a row in 2020. Merino lost six of eight late in the season, but the Rams are on a seven-game winning streak.