Basketball Recap: Centennial Comes Up Short

After a string of three wins, Centennial's good fortune finally ran out on Saturday. They came up short against the Sangre de Cristo Thunderbirds, falling 68-44. While losing is never fun, the Rams can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Colorado basketball rankings (they are ranked 280th, while the Thunderbirds are ranked 115th).

Bajung Nginoe

Points

01/24/26 vs Sangre de Cristo	19
01/23/26 @ Moffat	19
01/16/26 @ Lake City Community	22
01/13/26 vs South Baca [Campo/Vilas/Pritchett]	21
12/19/25 @ Questa	9
+ 4 more games

Despite the defeat, Centennial saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Bajung Nginoe dropped a double-double with 19 points and ten rebounds. With that strong performance, Nginoe is now averaging an impressive 15.1 points per game. Josh Duran was another key player, putting up six points in addition to six boards and four steals.

Centennial's loss was their first in the league, dropping their league record down to 2-1 and their overall record down to 5-5. As for Sangre de Cristo, the victory (which was their ninth in a row) raised their record to 11-1.

Looking ahead, Centennial will face off against Cripple Creek-Victor at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. As for Sangre de Cristo, they will look to defend their home court on Friday against Creede at 5:00 p.m.