5A Boys Great Eight Preview

DENVER—The round of 16 was oh-so-sweet for some teams, but for others the season ended on a sour note.  Tuesday evening saw two number one, and two number two seeds go down as the winners took one step closer to the Final Four in Boulder.

(1)Rampart and (3)Doherty each represented the C.S. Metro league well in their games against (5)Fort Collins and (2)Lincoln respectively.  (1)Fountain-Fort Carson did not find the same success against the rising (4)Aurora Central Trojans.

The Denver Prep teams all took their lumps, and now find themselves out of the tournament.  (1)Montbello lost a lopsided stunner to (4)Grandview.  (2)Lincoln gave up too many points at home to beat a quality (3)Doherty team, and (3)East snatched defeat from the jaws of victory against (2)Arapahoe.

Sweet 16 Game Wraps:

JOHN CASEY REGION:
(1) Rampart 68   vs. (5) Fort Collins 43: Think about the mascots; Rams taking on Lambkins.  Like lambkins to the slaughter, the Rampart Rams took care of business winning their second consecutive playoff game by 25 points.  Rampart features a balanced attack of four scorers who average double digit points. The Rams’ senior backcourt duo of Devon Grant and Reuben Riggs-Russell is dynamic.
(2) Lincoln  74   vs. (3) Doherty 83: Dominic Williams 35 points were not enough against the Spartans who brought their scoring shoes up to Denver.  Tyler Velasquez led all Spartan scorers with 29 points.

RW TRUSCOTT REGION:
(1) Regis 68  vs. (5) Boulder 59: Super transfer Riley Grabau dropped 33 for the feisty Boulder team, which gave Regis a good Run.  The Regis Raiders by now know where their scoring is going to come from, and Mr. Colorado Bud Thomas scored 25 and sidekick Joey Ptasinski added 18 of his own.
(2) Arapahoe 48   vs.  (3) Denver East 46:  The Warriors will need to play much better against Regis if they want to keep their run alive.  Arapahoe was saved from matching six point first and second quarters, by matching 18 point third and fourth quarters.  

GLENN WILSON REGION:
(1) Fountain-Fort Carson 65  vs. (4) Aurora Central 69:  Aurora Central’s starting five can flat out play.  DeSe Lee, Joseph Abrams, Shawn Banks and Aubree Prickett each notched double digit points against the top seed in their bracket.
(2) Chatfield 64  vs. (3) Highlands Ranch 65: Highlands Ranch showed great character by going on the road and beating JEFFCO champions Chatfield in overtime.  The inside outside game of Highlands Ranch gives them multiple ways to score.

RAY C.BALL Region
(1) Montbello 51  vs. (4) Grandview 66:  To lose by 15 at home in the sweet sixteen is not the way Montbello pictured their season coming to an end.  Used to receiving big contributions from Roderick Taylor and DeAndre Clayton, Montbello only got 11 points combined from their beefy frontcourt.
(2) Fairview 74  vs. (6) Mountain Range 61: Fairview senior Darragh O’Neill is establishing himself at the top of his class.  The Knights have won 13 in a row, and each of their last seven games by at least 13 points

Great 8 Preview, March 5th at the Denver Coliseum

(1) Rampart vs. (3) Doherty: Twice already this season the Rams and Spartans have faced off.  Both times the Rampart Rams emerged victorious, but only by a combined 11 points.  The familiarity between the teams may grind the game into a defensive struggle, but if recent games are an indication, expect these two teams to put lots of points on the board.

(1) Regis vs. (2) Arapahoe:  Regis has been considered by most, if not all followers of Colorado boys hoops the top team in the state all year.  The Raiders have yet to lose a game to in-state competition and have won 23 straight.  For Arapahoe, if the three-ball is falling, they will have a shooter’s chance, but the Warriors must play better than they did against East to knock off the defending champs.

(3) Aurora Central vs. (3) Highlands Ranch:  This could be the best matchup of the Great 8
games.  Aurora Central senior Center DeSe Lee should be in consideration for Player of the Year, and senior guard Joseph Abrams is one of the most combustible play makers remaining.  Highlands Ranch has the personnel to contend with Central’s athleticism in big bodies Fabian Sebastion and Marcus Byrd and guards Brett Olsen and Eric Antilla.

(4) Grandview vs. (2) Fairview:  Grandview has done some very good things this year, otherwise they wouldn’t be where they are, but after dropping their final two regular season games, it is a bit of a surprise to see them still standing at this stage of the game.  Fairview is deep and talented led by the O’Neill brothers and Michael Melillo.

Checkout the updated brackets.

Contact the writer at csilverman@milehighhoops.com