COLORADO SPRINGS — St. Mary’s typically operates that a pace that would make a coyote-evading road runner jealous. So in order to capture the Class 3A boys basketball state championship, Lutheran had to slow down the Pirates and limit the damage that junior Sam Howery could do.
With plenty of options at his disposal, coach Bill Brandsma opted for perhaps the most unconventional. He called on 6-foot-11 center Baye Fall to take on the Pirates’ sharpshooting point guard.
The gamble paid off.
Howery held well below his season average as the Lions (16-1 overall) beat the top-seeded Pirates 72-56 to capture the 3A boys basketball championship.
“I respected him, knowing that he’s a good player and he can get it going,” Fall said. (I had to) be aggressive against him, not let him catch the ball at times and just guard him full.
Fall scored 12 points and was one of four Lions to score in double figures, but his ability to slow down Howery’s production will go down as a big reason why they were able to clutch that gold trophy.
“Baye moves like a big-time DI athlete,” Brandsma said. “The speed doesn’t bother him but the length bothers the guard.”
Lutheran held a 15-12 lead after the first quarter but St. Mary’s (16-1) rallied to take a 27-24 lead at the half. The second quarter moved at a pace that St. Mary’s was much more comfortable with and the Lions knew that they had to make some changes in the second half.
“We had to control tempo and not turn the ball over and we didn’t do a good job of that in the first half,” Brandsma said. “They went on their runs because we let them dictate tempo so for us to get down and come back and own the tempo was good for us.”
Tommy Apodaca and Sam Hoops paced the Lions, scoring 22 and 12 points, respectively brought the leadership from the guard position that Brandsma needed his team to rely on. Mamadou Sow was also a big-time factor with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
Sow, Hoops and Fall all recorded double-doubles for the Lions providing the balance needed to win the state title.
“(St. Mary’s) had balance and with so many things going on, we needed guys who could finish at the rim,” Brandsma said. “We needed guys to knock down their free throws and that’s what we got.”
Luke Stockelman scored 11 of his 17 points in the first half when St. Mary’s took the lead. Howery led the Pirates with 20.
This is the fourth boys basketball championship for Lutheran and the first since the Denver Lutheran the Lutheran Parker campuses merged to form one school. The last state title came in 2011 when the then-split schools met for the 2A title. Denver Lutheran won 61-48.
Lutheran last played in the 2018 championship game, but lost to Bayfield 68-57.
The search for the first boys basketball title for St. Mary’s will have to continue. This was the first state title game in school history for the Pirates. They averaged nearly 90 points per game during the season before Lutheran held them to just 56.
And the feeling of slowing down a talented, fast-paced team combined with holding a championship trophy was everything the Lions hoped it would be.
“It was the best feeling ever,” Fall said. “This is my first time being a state champion. It’s big. I love Lutheran. I did this for them. My teammates and coaches always got me.”
COLORADO SPRINGS — For nearly 20 years, ThunderRidge has been trying to get back to the top of the mountain. The Grizzlies have had their chances, even coming painstakingly close on one of them.
The fifth attempt turned out to be the charm as they knocked off George Washington 68-59 to claim the Class 5A boys basketball championship at the Broadmoor World Arena.
It’s the first championship for ThunderRidge since the school won back to back titles in 2002 and 2003.
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve thought about that,” coach Joe Ortiz said. “I’ve chronologically gone through every year and how they’ve finished several times. I did it today.”
He did it with the weight of the missed opportunities sitting on his shoulder. For the next year when he thinks about the chronological finish, it ends with his guys as the defending state champions.
He knew it was never going to be easy, however. This was the third matchup between the Grizzlies (13-2 overall) and the Patriots (13-4). George came away with the first win and the lesson learned from that one remained fresh in ThunderRidge’s mind at the start of the state title game.
“The first game we just realized they were a physical team,” Jason Simental said. “Nobody could really match up with us before so they were the first team to really put it to us.”
The game plan for the Patriots was pretty simple. Apply pressure and be the more physical group. It worked for the first quarter as the teams were locked in a 16-16 tie, but ThunderRidge clamped down in the second and held George to just four point on one field goal and two free throws.
“It helps playing here to be honest,” Ortiz said. “It’s a bigger court, it’s a bigger feel and in a smaller type of confined area it’s tougher because there’s more pressure. Our big guy Nolan Marld was huge. He’s a mismatch and they’re not going to pressure him with a guard.”
Marld led all scorers with 17 points and Simental added 16. Joey Bilello and Jackson Brennan also scored in double figures, Brennan getting all 11 of his points in the first half. Zach Keller had nine, nearly giving the Grizzlies five players in double figures.
“We have a very balanced team,” Ortiz said.
ThunderRidge last played in the 5A title game in 2015 and lost to Overland 55-42. George Washington made it to back-to-back title games in 2017 and 2018 but lost to Eaglecrest and Grandview, respectively.
Jarmell Johnson and Kijuan Thompson led the Patriots with 10 points each, but the combined effort keeps a state basketball title out of George’s grasp for at least another season.
For ThunderRidge, it’s the culmination of a championship drought that began before anyone on the roster was even born.
“We were on a dry streak but we came here to break it,” Simental said. “We had to do that.”
COLORADO SPRINGS — A fast start can make all the difference in the world. For the Flatirons Academy girls basketball team, that difference was simply maintaining a lead rather than having to stretch it out.
It turned out that first quarter was going to have an impact that would be felt until the final buzzer sounded.
“When I went into (the first quarter) I didn’t know how big that would be,” coach Mike Durrill said. “I was hoping it would be. Our last four games, the first quarter has been huge for us and today we were able to hit that outside shot and it opened things up for us.”
That outside shot was made by Savana Kascak. Fleming’s Whitney Chintala answered right away but that’s when the Bison (14-4 overall) got hot and Wildcats went cold.
Flatirons Academy closed out the first quarter on a. 15-4 run to open up an 11-point lead.
“We’ve had a great team and our team is focus on defense,” Emma Cox said. “We played them at the beginning of the year and came up short. We came up with a defensive plan and tried to (execute) that as best we could.”
What helped that effort was that the offense didn’t sputter for the remainder of the game. The Wildcats (12-4) finally found their footing. Kendyl Kirkwood was held scoreless in the first quarter but averaged eight points per quarter for the remainder of the game to score a game-high 24.
But her effort alone couldn’t get the Wildcats to close the gap. Cox finished with a team-high 19 points and Kascak added 18 to keep that 11-point edge firmly in hand.
“Fleming is a great team and they school us in the regular season,” Durrill said. “Our girls have been resilient. They’ve been cool, calm and collected. They’re really enjoyed the process and haven’t gotten tense or felt any pressure.”
Any time that pressure could’ve crept up on the Bison, they’d find a way to brush it off. Fleming switched to a full-court press in the second half which did a great job at forcing turnovers and giving the Wildcats a chance to close the gap.
But each time, the Bison would find a way to halt that momentum. That was apparent at the start of the fourth quarter when Cox knocked down a big 3-pointer from the top the key to keep momentum with her team.
“I don’t think that one mattered as much as everyone else’s,” Cox said. “We were led by a great group of seniors and our coaching staff is absolutely amazing. I just happened to accidentally hit a shot.”
Accident or not, that shot had a big hand in ensuring the Bison would capture the first girls basketball championship in school history.
For right now, the 2021 team will go down as the benchmark for what the program is capable of.
“They love each other,” Durrill said. “We haven’t had any drama this year, this team has just been a family.”
COLORADO SPRINGS — The goal for Belleview Christian is always to hold its opponent to single digits each quarter. In the Class 1A boys basketball state championship game, the Bruins went above and beyond that goal.
They allowed De Beque to score just seven points in the entire first half and cruised to a 69-35 win to capture the state championship, the first for the school since winning back-to-back titles in 1999 and 2000.
They knew in order to come away with that coveted championship win, the important thing was getting out to a fast start and limiting what Jaden Jordan and Wes Ryan could do for the Dragons (16-2 overall).
“It was extremely important,” senior Logan Owen said. “We knew we had to come out and hold them under 10 points (apiece). Our goal is single-point quarters. We executed and came out and got that done.”
It wasn’t much of a surprise to see sophomore standout Assane Diop dominate in multiple fascets of the game. He finished his day with a game-high 22 points and 20 rebounds. He also dished out seven assists and blocked four shots.
It’s been a theme for Diop all season and has made him one of the most talked about players throughout the entire state. Perhaps what’s most impressive is his ability to push forward even on the rarest of days when he has an off game.
“If I have a bad game, if I pass poorly or don’t do my job, (my team) always pushes me,” Diop said. “That’s the most important thing.”
He had 12 points and 12 rebounds in the first half as the Bruins (16-0) built a 36-7 lead. Those first two quarters took the pressure off the Bruins and allowed them to play the game on their terms in the second half. It also gave them relief that their game plan to slow down Ryan and Jordan was working.
“We knew coming in that Wes is a great player and we knew that he had to be our focus the whole game,” coach Timothy Owen said. “If he gets hot their whole team gets hot and thrives on his play.”
Ryan and Jordan accounted for all seven of the Dragons’ first-half points. Jordan ended the game with 13 while Ryan had seven.
Belleview Christian got points from just four players as Diop led with 22, Davin Hunter had 20, Logan Owen had 14 and Nathaniel Owen had 13.
Logan Owen will be leaving as a senior this year, but the overall outcome excites him for what this team will look to do in future years.
“I have full faith they can get it again next year,” he said.
The Bruins’ 34-point win is the biggest margin of victory in a 1A championship game as pointed out by Kevin Shaffer of ColoradoPreps.com. The previous was 31 points when Kim beat Ridgway 61-30 in 1996.
COLORADO SPRINGS — A year ago, Mullen’s girls basketball season didn’t with a clock running out and a buzzer echoing through the Denver Coliseum. It ended with an announcement that they wouldn’t get to defend their Class 4A state title after advancing to the championship game.
COVID-19 had other plans. So when this season started, the focus for the Mustangs turned to finishing what you get the opportunity to finish.
They took that to heart and finished their championship run with a 67-44 win over Windsor.
“It was on every single practice plan, we talked about it at the beginning of every practice,” coach Frank Cawley said. “This is what we wanted to do. We needed to finish what we started last year.”
One way to do that is to shoot efficiently. The Mustangs (17-2 overall) shot nearly 54 percent from the floor, including going 6-for-15 from 3-point range.
Oddly enough senior Megan Pohs was one of the few Mullen players to struggle early. She was 0-for-4 from the field in the first half, but finally found her rhythm, hitting four 3-pointers in the third quarter. She scored all 12 of her points off those shots which accounted for all but two of the Mustangs points in that quarter.
Her shooting woes didn’t bug her as Gracie Gallegos scored a game-high 17 points and Alexa Dominguez added 10.
“Our whole method is that if your shots aren’t falling you have to keep your head up,” Pohs said. “Eventually they’ll start to fall and the team helps with that by keeping you in check.”
The Wizards (16-2) kept pace with Mullen throughout the first quarter, but a quick 4-0 spurt by the Mustangs in the closing seconds gave them an eight-point pad. Where the Mustangs had an efficient shooting night, Windsor struggled from the field. Olivia Reed scored a team-high 10 points and Alexis Backhaus had eight and added seven rebounds along the way.
Even after building a comfortable lead, Cawley refused to believe that his team would maintain control.
“I’ve watched Windsor play four or five games and I wasn’t comfortable until the final buzzer went off,” he said. “That’s my nature, but I was never comfortable until the clock showed twin zeros.”
Mullen is now the third team in a row to claim consecutive 4A girls titles. Valor Christian did it in 2015 and 2016 before Evergreen won in 2017 and 2018.
This is the sixth state championship for Mullen girls basketball. The Mustangs won their first four championships between 2000 and 2006. This win was also the most points they’ve scored in a championship game, topping their mark of 62 points in 2019.
It was a feat they were hoping to accomplish a year sooner, but it was clear with the emotional reaction at the end of the game that the wait was well worth it.
“As soon as last year ended, it was our goal to get back here,” Pohs said. “To do that is amazing, especially with this team. It’s a great way to end my high school career.”
COLORADO SPRINGS — Winning a state title means at time, fear has to go out the window. On the very first possession of the third quarter, junior Trista Marx picked up her third foul for Limon.
The logical move was to take her out. Considering she had scored 19 of the Badgers’ 30 first-half points, she was a crucial part of Limon’s championship chances. But she stayed on the floor and the gamble paid off.
This is the sixth girls basketball title for the Badgers (16-3 overall) and the first since 2007.
“We had eight seniors graduate last year and they didn’t get this chance,” coach Bart O’Dwyer. “It’s really special to have these kids do what they did. They believed in themselves and they really came through.”
It was a bit of a shaky start as the Eagles caused some havoc in their 2-2-1 press. They forced seven Limon turnovers in the first quarter and built a 10-6 lead.
“I think it was just nerves and being in a bigger gym,” Marx said. “We’ve had trouble with presses before but our new press break helped settle us down. After a little bit we figured it out.”
That’s when Marx got going. She scored all but four of Limon’s points in the first quarter and once the Badgers got the ball into their half-court set, she was seemingly unstoppable.
She helped the Badgers build a 10-point lead at halftime before picking up her third foul. Sending her to the bench was never an option unless absolutely necessary.
“I don’t worry about three fouls,” O’Dwyer said. “I’ll play them in the first half with two and if they get a third I’ll take them out. With three fouls, that’s how we’ve played that all year long. I’ve told these girls they have to learn how to play with fouls.”
She scored just five points in the third quarter but dominated the glass, pulling down five rebounds, three of which were offensive. She pulled down 10 boards to end the game with a championship double-double.
She couldn’t allow herself to be as aggressive as she was in the first half because of her foul count. It’s exactly what O’Dwyer is talking about when he says that she has to learn how to play with them.
“I have to back off a little bit,” Marx said. “I still try and play hard and if I get my fourth, it is what it is.”
While her offensive numbers were impressive, it was the overall team defense for Limon that changed the feel of the game late in the first quarter. Wray had trouble getting open looks and knocked down just 18 percent of their shots in the first half and 22 percent for the entire game.
Taby Jones and Karly Godsey usually combine for around 30 points per game, but were kept in check through the first three quarters of the game. Jones scored 14 before committing her fifth foul in the fourth quarter and receiving a well-deserved ovation from the Eagles fanbase in attendance.
COLORADO SPRINGS — Junior Arambula made one bold declaration to his coach and his teammates. He was going to have to be dragged out of the Broadmoor World Arena if he didn’t have a state championship trophy in his hands.
Luckily, he gets to walk out on his own. And he’ll be carrying history with him. Arambula was all heart and emotion and his 13 points helped Wray beat Limon 56-50 to claim the Class 2A boys basketball title, the first in the school’s history.
“This is only my third year (playing basketball),” Arambula said. “I came over from wrestling after my freshman year. Anytime I step on this court, or any court, I carry it with me that the only way you’re going to beat us is if you drag every one of out of here, whether we’re broken, bleeding or dead.”
They were nearly dead in the water.
The Badgers (16-2) jumped out to a 34-24 lead heading into halftime as Tory Tacha broke out for 11 points, the most of all players in the first half. As the Eagles (16-0) made their way to the locker room, they felt a mixture of disappointment and anger with their play in the first half.
“When we went to the locker room, we were all pretty mad,” Bryant Schoenthal said. “Our heads were down.”
By the time they took the floor to start the second half. They clamped down defensively and allowed just one Limon basket in the third quarter and took a 37-36 lead heading into the fourth.
Camden Smithburg scored at will in the fourth quarter to Limon take a two-point edge late in the game. He finished with a game-high 18 points. A timely steal and bucket pulled the Eagles even at 45, sending both teams to overtime, which gave Wray a shot of energy heading into the additional four minutes.
“We have so much trust in each other,” coach Karson Kuntz said. “Our team chemistry is real. We talk about real energy versus fake energy. We have real team chemistry and these kids genuinely love each other.”
They put that trust and that love in each other on display in overtime, grabbing a quick lead and never looking back.
They were solid from the free throw line all night, going 12-for-14, the two missed shots coming when they were up six with less than 10 seconds left on the clock.
That effort gives this team the honor of doing something that has never been done in the school’s history.
“I’m so proud of them,” Kuntz said. “This has been a five-year journey. The seniors were in eighth grade when I moved to Wray. We won a junior high championship – also the first in school history – and we knew this could be something special.”
It was special just in the way the boys fought for it. Arambula boldly told his teammates that he wasn’t leaving the World Arena without a championship. Minutes later, he had trophy in arms.
And as he carried it out, he could only think of one thing:
