Basketball Recap: Tuesday's Defeat Ends Thomas Jefferson's Winning Streak

Thomas Jefferson fought the good fight in their overtime contest against Denver North on Tuesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell to the Denver North Vikings 74-70. The Spartans' loss signaled the end of their eight-game winning streak.

Despite the loss, Thomas Jefferson still got an impressive performance from Shane Curry, who dropped a double-double on 27 points and 11 boards. The game was Curry's 14th in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Zack Vanabbema, who almost dropped a double-double on ten points and nine rebounds.

Even though they lost, Thomas Jefferson smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 28 offensive boards. That's the most offensive rebounds they've posted since back in January of 2024.

Denver North was led to victory by Diego Bueno and Sammy Barajas. Bueno dropped a double-double on 15 points and ten boards, while Barajas posted 14 points along with eight assists and six rebounds. Bueno is becoming a predictor of Denver North's success: when he posts at least ten boards the team is 8-4 (and 1-3 when he doesn't). Emerson Mitchell also deserves some recognition as he posted his first blocks of the season.

Thomas Jefferson's defeat was their first in the league, dropping their league record down to 3-1 and their overall record down to 10-5. As for Denver North, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won eight of their last nine matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 9-7 record this season.

Thomas Jefferson and Denver North should be looking forward to their upcoming games as both have a sizable advantage in the MaxPreps Colorado Rankings. Thomas Jefferson (ranked 123rd) will meet Montbello (ranked 334th) at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Thomas Jefferson is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 61.4 points per game this season. Similarly, Denver North will face off against Hinkley at 7:00 p.m. on Friday up 182 places (150 vs. 332). Thomas Jefferson will be looking to keep their three-game home win streak alive.