The Road to Championship Saturday in Colorado Girls Basketball

15-year old girl dunks again 12,369 views 0:37

VIDEO: Regis Jesuit's Francesca Belibi dunks - and more - for the Raiders.

The Class 5A girls basketball tournament continues to go off script this season, as upsets have become a primary theme.

Lower seeds won three of the quarterfinals, with only No. 2 Grandview (Aurora) holding serve. The Wolves remain the pronounced favorite, but in a season marked by large-scale surprises, don't count out Lakewood, Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village) and Regis Jesuit (Aurora), the latter of which will face Grandview in the semifinals (7 p.m. Thursday, Denver Coliseum).

In the year of the upset, perhaps the pressure has shifted to the favorite.

"All the upsets have to be attributed to the new RPI formula," said Regis coach Carl Mattei, whose squad has reeled off nine straight wins, including an upset of No. 3 Horizon (Thornton) in the quarterfinals. "But yes, if one was to look at the RPI ranked teams, No. 12 Creek, No. 11 Regis and No. 9 Lakewood, I would say No. 2 Grandview – which should have been No. 1 – has the most pressure."

Mattei alluded to the pressure facing the powerhouse 2005 ThunderRidge (Highlands Ranch) team, a nationally ranked prohibitive favorite that was two missed free throws away from being upset in the semifinals (the Grizzlies rebounded to win their third straight title).

While Grandview (25-1 and ranked No. 9 nationally) will be ready to go behind UCLA-bound Michaela Onyenwere, Regis (20-6) is a much-improved group from early in the season with sophomore dunkmeister Francesca Belibi leading the way.

"Starting a freshman point guard Jada Moore and sophomore Francesa Belibi, it has been a work in progress to mature from our first game back in November against Cherokee Trail (Aurora)," said Mattei, whose team lost seven players from last season's roster. "Five months later, we are all now a bit more seasoned, play with some chemistry and truly believe in one another. To make the final four with a very young team is a testament to their hard work and will."

Lakewood (21-5) is riding high after upsetting top-seeded Highlands Ranch in the quarterfinals behind Camilla Emsbo's 21 points and 14 rebounds. The Tigers, making their initial appearance in the semifinals, will take on Cherry Creek (8:30 p.m. Thursday). The Bruins (19-7) ousted No. 4 Ralston Valley (Arvada) with help from 27 points by Sydney Mech.

Cherry Creek coach Chris Curneen agrees that the RPI system is partly responsible for the upsets. He also notes that when taking the human element out, it is not reflected in the RPI when a team returns key pieces to the lineup. The Bruins played without Mech until Jan. 25.

The Bruins began the season 3-4 but have been exceedingly solid since.

"The biggest difference in our team now as opposed to the beginning of the year is the hard work and dedication of our players and staff," Curneen said. "It is cliché to say that we try and get better every day in practice and in games, but this team truly understands and embraces the concept.  The girls have worked very hard to become not just a team, but a sisterhood that pushes each other to be all they can be. "

MaxPreps Colorado girls state basketball brackets

Class 4A
Final Four – Denver Coliseum; championship 1 p.m. Saturday

The upset bug avoided 4A as the Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 5 seeds comprise the final four. An all-Pueblo final is a possibility if top seeds Pueblo South and Pueblo West win in the semifinals, but Windsor and 2016 runner-up Evergreen have other designs.

Top-seeded Pueblo South (24-2), which features four double-digit scorers, will take on No. 5 Windsor (20-6) in the semifinals. The balanced Wizards are led by junior Michaela Moran. The teams met Dec. 22 with Pueblo South recording a 52-45 win. The Colts, who have only one in-state loss this season, trailed by three entering the final quarter.

Pueblo West is arguably the hottest team in the classification, as the No. 2 Cyclones (23-3) and junior Olivia Lough have won 11 in a row. Included is an 18-point win against Pueblo South after losing to the Colts by four earlier in the season. They'll take on No. 3 Evergreen and talented sophomore Claudia Dillon.

The Cougars (23-3) avenged a title-game loss to Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch) last season by ousting the Eagles 59-40 in the quarterfinals behind 19 points from Keigan Drysdale.

Class 3A
Great 8 – University of Denver's Hamilton Gym; championship 4 p.m. Saturday

The first two rounds of the 32-bracket produced a handful of upsets, at least when judging by seeds. But not many are surprised to see which double-digit seeds qualified for the final eight, because all were regarded as contenders all along: No. 10 Liberty Common (Fort Collins), No. 11 Pagosa Springs and No. 8 Manitou Springs.

While the lone quarterfinal pitting single-digit seeds is probably the most compelling, as top-seeded Sterling (24-0) puts its unblemished mark on the line against No. 9 St. Mary's (Colorado Spring) (21-3), don't dismiss the double-digit seeds yet.

Liberty Common (21-3) and player-of-the-year candidate Halley Miklos will take on No. 2 Centauri (La Jara) (22-1), which has won 18 straight since a loss to Lamar. Pagosa Springs (18-4) and Morgan Lewis (19.9 points, 10.0 rebounds), meanwhile, will take its crack against No. 3 Lamar and freshman sensation Cali Clark (16.1 points, 10.9 rebounds).

In the other quarterfinal, 2016 runner-up Manitou Springs (16-8) will get its third shot at No. 4 Colorado Springs Christian this season. CSCS (22-2) won the first two matchups between the Tri-Peaks League foes 34-31 and 42-35.

A new champ will be crowned here as 2016 winner Lutheran (Parker) was ousted in the first round.

Class 2A
Great 8 – all games at Budweiser Events Center; championship 7 p.m. Saturday

Yuma has ambitions of a second consecutive championship and fifth consecutive appearance in the title game, and the Indians are in the driver's seat to do so. Yuma (20-3), which broke through last year after three consecutive losses in the championship game, has been anointed the No. 1 seed.

The Indians are getting stellar seasons from sophomores Cody Robinson and Chasey Blach, and will open against No. 8 Ignacio (16-6). Despite Yuma's recent success, many consider 2016 runner-up Paonia the favorite. The Eagles are unblemished at 22-0 and have one of the classification's top players in senior Sophia Anderson. Paonia, which fell to Yuma 55-46 in last year's final, will take on No. 7 Swink (20-2) and sophomore standout Brianna Denton in the opening round.

In other first-round action, No. 3 Del Norte and superb freshman Kendra Parra will bring a 19-game winning streak into the contest against No. 6 Haxtun, the lone team to escape regionals as a non-top seed. No. 4 Wray and standout Paige Beckman will take on No. 5 Simla and junior top scorer Jerraldawn Rector.

Class 1A
Great 8 bracket play at Butler-Hancock Gym at Northern Colorado; championship at Budweiser Events Center (4 p.m. Saturday)

The heavy hitters are alive here, with two undefeated teams in No. 1 Kit Carson and No. 6 Antonito and two one-loss teams in No. 2 Heritage Christian (Fort Collins) and No. 3 Fleming.

The most compelling first-round game, by a long shot, pits Fleming and Antonito with combined records of 45-1. The least likely state entrant was No. 7 Eads, which upset Kim/Branson (17-4) in regionals. The Eagles (16-8) had lost to Kim/Branson by 24 in the regular season.

Of note, Kit Carson (22-0) will be trying to avoid a repeat of last season, when the Wildcats entered unbeaten and the top seed but fell to No. 8 South Baca in the opening round. This time, Tess Hornung and her teammates will take on Nucla (14-9) in the opener.

A new champ will be crowned here, as 2016 winner Idalia did not qualify for state. Runner-up Briggsdale did as a No. 5 seed and will open against No. 4 South Baca.