The girls basketball Class 4A Great 8 was played at home sites around Colorado on Friday. After four games, Green Mountain, Mead, Mullen and Windsor advances to the Final Four, which will be played next Thursday at the Denver Coliseum.
(6) Green Mountain 57, (3) Holy Family 45
BROOMFIELD — Green Mountain senior Shea Murphy couldn’t have had a bigger smile on her face walking to the bench after fouling out with 55 seconds to play Friday night.
Murphy knew the next time she would be taking the court with her teammates it would be at the Denver Coliseum in the semifinals of the Class 4A girls basketball state tournament.
“We were all so excited and knew we could do it,” Murphy said after the No. 6-seeded Rams scoring a 57-45 road upset against No. 3 Holy Family. “It was great.”
Green Mountain (24-2 record) will be heading to its third straight Final Four appearance. The Rams lost to Holy Family in 2020 at the Denver Coliseum. Last year during the COVID shortened season Green Mountain suffered loss at home to Windsor in the semifinals.
The Rams will face No. 2 seed and defending 4A state champion Mullen (19-6) on Thursday, March 10, at the Denver Coliseum. The Mustangs defeated Roosevelt 59-27 in another quarterfinal Friday night.
“I am more than excited. It could any team that we play down there,” Green Mountain senior Avery Oaster said of returning to the Denver Coliseum. “Seeing the student section that showed up tonight, I think next Thursday we’ll have great support. That is what I’m most excited about.”
Green Mountain coach Darren Pitzner was excited about how the Rams started against the Tigers on their home court. Holy Family jumped out to an early 4-0 lead, but Green Mountain answered quickly with a 10-0 run over the span of 90 seconds to grab the driver’s seat.
The Rams made six 3-pointers in the first half to take a 32-23 lead at halftime.
“The shot selection was everything,” Pitzner said attacking the Tigers’ match-up zone defense. “Holy Family does such a good job of making you beat yourself. Over the last 36 hours our girls got dialed in on the mistake they try to make you make and limit those mistakes. The ball movement in the first half was really good.”
Oaster led the 3-pointer barrage with three from long range in the first half. The senior had made just four 3-pointers during the regular season.
“Honestly, I’m shocked myself,” Oaster said of her three 3-pointers in the first half. “I was just so pumped. I heard the Holy Family coach say, ‘Sink back on her.’ I figured this was my opportunity and chance to show them what I have.”
Oaster finished with a dozen points and limited Holy Family’s post players on the defensive end. Junior Jayda Maves was also a pest on defense with a handful of steals. Maves finished with a game-high 18 points.
“That team is so good. Of course they are going to make their runs,” Pitzner said of the Tigers cutting the lead to 40-34 early in the fourth quarter. “I’m very proud of our girls of how they responded. Knocking down shots and getting inside. It was a total team effort.”
Senior Olivia Sears had a great offensive game with 14 points, including a pair of 3-pointers. However, the guard fouled out with 4:37 left in the game which gave Holy Family the opportunity to put some more full-court pressure defense on the Rams with one of their best ball handlers out of the game.
“We Liv (Sears) went out I think we all kind of had to step up,” Murphy said. “I knew I would have to take care of the ball more and have to bring that Liv energy with me too.”
Murphy also brought two huge buckets in the final quarter. The senior drained a 3-pointer with 4:13 left to extend Green Mountain’s lead to 46-36. Murphy then had a driving layup and was fouled with just over a minute to play to get the lead up to 53-42. The senior was the fourth Ram to finish in double-digits points. Murphy poured in 11 points.
“It took all game to get (Holy Family) to spread out,” Pitzner said. “But once they did we were able to get to the rack.”
Holy Family (21-4) had its chances to mount a come-from-behind victory, but the Tigers struggled at the free-throw line. Holy Family was just 4-for-16 from the charity stripe in the second half. Sophomore Essynce Contreraz was the lone Tiger to reach double-digits with 15 points.
“It’s so special,” Pitzner said of getting a mark of revenge after the 2020 playoff loss to Holy Family in the Final Four at the Denver Coliseum. “This program (Holy Family) is so good and probably coached by the best coach in the state in Ron Rossi. It was a tall task.”
Pitzner admitted he was just soaking in the Elite 8 victory before turning his attention to next week and the defending state champions.
“We aren’t going to worry about Mullen until tomorrow,” Pitzner said.
(1) Windsor 63, (9) D’Evelyn 38
The Windsor girls basketball team is back in the Final Four.
On Friday night in Windsor, the top-seeded Wizards (25-0) won 63-38 over No. 9 D’Evelyn (21-4). With the win, the Wizards not only reached the Final Four but also kept their unbeaten season alive and have a chance to play in the Class 4A state championship game for the second year in a row after finishing runner-up in 2020-21.
“We just had high expectations for ourselves, and every practice we’ve worked to be our best every day,” Windsor’s Lexi Backhaus told The Coloradoan. “And I think that’s helped a lot to just know this is what we’re supposed to do, this is where we’re seeded to be going.”
Windsor girls basketball improves to 25-0 and earns return trip to Class 4A Final Four with 63-38 home win over D’Evelyn in Great 8. @Wiz_rdAD #copreps
— Kelly Lyell (@KellyLyell) March 5, 2022
The Wizards led 33-20 at halftime and 43-27 to start the fourth quarter. Olivia Reed led Windsor with scored 21 points. Jolie Jiricek scored 19 points and Backhaus scored 13.
Windsor will face No. 5 Mead in the Final Four on Thursday at the Denver Coliseum.
(2) Mullen 59, (7) Roosevelt 27
Mullen kept rolling on Friday night – the Mustangs won their 17th playoff game in succession with a 59-27 rout of Roosevelt on Friday night at a crowded Hutchison Fieldhouse in the Class 4A quarterfinals.
The second-seeded Mustangs improved to 19-6 and will meet No. 6 Green Mountain (23-2) in the semifinals on Thursday at the Denver Coliseum.
Beginning slower than in recent outings, particularly shooting, Mullen took a while to run away and hide, but the program’s constant again was, well constant. It begins with the letter D.
“Defense won the game again,” head coach Frank Cawley said in pointing to Roosevelt’s 10 points in the first half, just two in the second quarter. “You can have an off day shooting if you play defense.”
Yo: Girls final — Mullen 59,Roosevelt 27, ‘Stangs headed to 4A semis next week! #copreps @mullenathletics @Presto89 @MullenSportsMed @CCSDATHACT1 @aurorasports @coloradopreps pic.twitter.com/6tudmVPfOh
— Neil Devlin (@neildevlin) March 5, 2022
Cawley said his team’s first two playoff victories – 77-21 over Coronado and 77-31 against Berthoud – caused “a little bit of panic … it spoiled us. We came in at halftime not leading by 40. We were only winning by (18). But all you have to do is win by one.”
Ultimately, Mullen got going through its defense, rebounding and shot-blocking that led to numerous transition opportunities.
Seniors Kilah Freelon, Gracie Gallegos and Imani Perez, in their final home game, turned in their usual, all-around efforts and combined for 47 points, 18 by Freelon, the Texas Tech signee who spoke for the team’s Big Three in terms of bittersweet nostalgia.
“Yeah,” Freelon said in a connecting hallway, “there were fun times in that gym. With it being my senior year, it means a lot doing it with my best friends … my family, actually. We played pretty hard and pretty good.”
Gallegos, headed to UC-San Diego, again demonstrated her prowess as perhaps the top two-way guard of her era, and Hawaii-bound Perez continued to enforce an intense inside presence that also includes under-rated offensive ability, notably to handle the ball and ability to finish at the rim.
Roosevelt, which never led, ended 22-4 and did not attain double figures in points in any quarter.
Mullen, the three-time defending Colorado champion, will have nearly a week to prepare.
“Absolutely, we’re excited,” Cawley said. “We haven’t played there in a while (since 2020; the 2021 semis and final were in Colorado Springs), and we’ll see what happens. We’re excited about going there.”
(5) Mead 64, (29) Severance 46
The Mead girls basketball team made program history on Friday night.
Playing at home, the fifth-Mavericks (21-5) won 64-46 over No. 29 Severance (12-15) in the Class 4A Great 8. The victory advances the Mavericks to the Final Four for the first time in the program’s history.
“We’re excited,” Mead head coach JR Sagner told BoCoPreps.com. “We have told our kids all year, the goal is set on getting to the Coliseum. Once we get there, we know anything can happen.”
Net cutting time at Mead, which girls’ team is headed to its first Final Four @BoCoPreps @CHSAA @MeadAthletics pic.twitter.com/PkfoW2x9xl
— Brent W. New (@BrentWNew) March 5, 2022
Mead’s Kyra Haan scored a game-high 25 points. Teammate Maddox Boston scored 21.
Mead will face No. 1 Windsor in the Final Four on Thursday at the Denver Coliseum.