Air Academy girls basketball breaks tourney trend

For six seasons, the Regis Holiday Hoop Classic belonged to one of two girls basketball teams. The host Regis Jesuit (Aurora) Raiders had won it three times, as had ThunderRidge (Highlands Ranch).

This time, Air Academy (U.S. Air Force Academy) broke the mold by beating each of them. The Kadets, who moved down to Class 4A this season, upended ThunderRidge 65-61 in the semifinals – despite 33 points from Grizzlies Florida-bound senior Carlie Needles – then outlasted Regis Jesuit 53-49 in Saturday's title contest.

"This is just what's going to carry on for the rest of the year," said Air Academy's Miranda Beal, who was named tournament MVP. "It's just a little preview of what we're going to see for the rest of the season."

The Kadets entered the tournament 3-4 and underwent an in-season coaching change when Bob Wingett replaced Ivan Chambers, but they've since won four straight.



"It was nice to beat (Regis Jesuit) in their own gym, because they beat us in the quarterfinals last year," Beal said. "It was good to get some redemption."

SHEPARD LOSES COURT CASE
Former Chaparral guard Katie Shepard, who will play at Sacred Heart next season, won't play at all this season. Shepard transferred to Highlands Ranch this season, but was deemed ineligible because of a new stipulation in CHSAA's transfer rule. Shepard played over the summer for Highlands Ranch coach Caryn Jarocki, and the rule states that one may not transfer to a club coach's school.

Shepard's case to be reinstated was denied in Douglas County this week. The grounds on which the Shepards were appealing were unclear.

COOPER GIVES MONTBELLO A LAST-SECOND WIN
Isiah Cooper hit a baseline floater as time expired Tuesday night, sending Montbello to a dramatic 74-73 win against Rock Canyon. Cooper scored 12 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter, offsetting a 30-point outing from the Jaguars' Matt Hopper. Hopper doubles as Rock Canyon's quarterback in the fall.

Cooper scored 34 points Saturday in Montbello's 78-72 win against Campbell County, Wyo.

MONARCH GIRLS ON THE RISE
With several Division I prospects, including Arizona State signee Eliza Norman, the Monarch girls basketball team is as nationally recognized as it has ever been. The Coyotes (7-2) have jumped in the top 70 of MaxPreps' national rankings and are as high as No. 10 in one publication (which seems a bit generous despite the Coyotes' talent).



"Defensively, we've got to get better," Monarch coach Gail Hook said. "We have to get back to basics."

Monarch improved to 7-2 on Tuesday night with a 57-50 win against Fairview. Both of the Coyotes' losses came against upper-tier competition in the Nike Tournament of Champions. Monarch will soon get a boost when Horizon-transfer Jac Malcom-Peck becomes eligible after sitting out the first half of the season.

Continue reading{PAGEBREAK}TOP PERFORMERS
* Xavier Ford, Harrison: The senior poured in 31 points Saturday as the Panthers improved to 9-0 with a 73-59 win against Discovery Canyon. Ford, who averages 28.4 points, has topped 30 five times.

* Max McCaffrey, Valor Christian: The son of former Denver Broncos wide receiver Ed McCaffrey found a way to pass his time in the winter. The standout defensive back scored 17 points Saturday in the Eagles' 68-58 win against Legend (younger brother Christian added eight points). Niko Read leads the 9-2 Eagles with a 20.4 scoring average.

* Brennan Wilkie, Wheat Ridge: The senior drilled six 3-pointers Saturday en route to 24 points in the Farmers' 87-36 thrashing of Littleton. Not bad for one of the state's top softball catchers.

* Diani Akigbogun, Regis Jesuit: The injury-ravaged Raiders have eight freshmen among their 11 active players, but Akigbogun would be in the lineup regardless. The 6-foot-1 frosh scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds Friday night in the Raiders' 57-49 win against Pine Creek.

ON TAP
* Wasson (Colorado Springs) at Lewis-Palmer (Monument) boys, Friday, 7 p.m.: D.J, Hanes-led Wasson will attempt to inhibit the Rangers' high-scoring ways in a matchup of 9-2 4A Colorado Springs Metro League squads. Lewis-Palmer is coming off a 104-39 shellacking of Mesa Ridge in which center Josh Scott produced 41 points.



* Broomfield at Longmont boys, Friday, 7 p.m.: Two of the finest teams in the 4A Northern League square off in a contest that could go a long way in determining the league crown. Longmont's Cade Kloster averages 20 points a game while balanced Broomfield is led by Aric Kaiser (12.7).

* Longmont at Broomfield girls, Friday, 7 p.m.: The Trojans (11-0) take another shot at four-time defending-champion Broomfield in a matchup of the defined top two teams in 4A. Some of the luster has been taken off this one with Broomfield's loss to 5A Legacy last week, which snapped a 31-game winning streak, but the Eagles are still 117-4 during their title reign.

* Centauri (La Jara) at Pagosa Springs girls, Friday, 7 p.m.: 3A Intermountain League play kicks off with a dandy, with Centauri entering 9-1 (the loss was by two points to Rye) and Pagosa Springs unscathed at 8-0. Senior Mary Brinton averages 22.1 points a game for Pagosa.

Paul Willis is a regular sports freelancer for The Denver Post and covered high school, college and pro sports for the Rocky Mountain News from 2000-09. You can reach him at gdpdub@aol.com.