AURORA | The Class 5A boys state basketball playoffs arrive next week, but those in the Smoky Hill gym Wednesday night got a preview in the intense Centennial League contest between the host Buffs and Eaglecrest.
Try as they might, the co-league-leading Raptors — ranked No. 9 in the final Associated Press media poll of the season — couldn’t escape the upset-minded Buffaloes until Unwana Ekiko’s 3-pointer bounced out, allowing Eaglecrest to escape with a 54-52 victory.
The victory, coupled with No. 5 Overland’s 56-38 triumph at Cherry Creek, set up a winner-take-all contest for the Centennial League championship on Friday, when the Trailblazers (16-6, 10-3) make a 7 p.m. visit to The Nest to take on the Raptors (17-5, 10-3), who won the first meeting by a point.
In addition to the league title, seeding in the upcoming 5A postseason is on the line. The winner of the league could net one of the four No. 1 seeds in the tournament after Fossil Ridge, Denver East and potentially Mountain Vista. The loser could still finish as high as a top-eight seed due to the strength of the league.
Seeding for the state tournament is due out on Feb. 23.
Smoky Hill (12-10, 5-8) — owners of four upset of ranked teams with two wins over Cherry Creek when it was ranked, plus Arapahoe and Rangeview — nearly kept the title game from happening, rallying from a near double-digit deficit to have a chance to tie in the closing seconds when Octavian Walker went 1-for-2 from the free throw line.
Junior Blend Avdili, who scored a game-high 20 points for Eaglecrest, made 1-of-2 free throws to give the Raptors a two-point cushion and Ekiko got off a potential game-winning shot that missed at the other end.
Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor of the Aurora Sentinel. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. Facebook: Aurora Prep Sentinel
(9) EAGLECREST 54, SMOKY HILL 52
EAGLECREST (54)
Elijah Ross 2 2-2 6, LaDerian King 2 3-4 8, Jaisean Jackson 2 0-0 6, Marquel Murphy 1 0-0 2, Blend Avdili 8 3-4 20, Treyvon Williams 4 4-4 12, Colbey Ross 0 0-2 0, Darian Turner 0 0-0 0, Anthony Karmazyn 0 0-0 0, Blake Tourgee 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 12-16 54.
SMOKY HILL (52)
Trent Clay 5 1-2 12, Connor Mooney 0 1-2 1, Unwana Ekiko 3 2-2 9, Chris Williams 3 4-6 10, Octavian Walker 2 4-7 8, Khalil Combs 1 0-0 2, Trei Major 1 1-1 3, Dalontae Kelly 3 0-2 7. Totals 18 12-22 52.
3-point field goals — Eaglecrest (3): Jaisean Jackson 2, Blend Avdili; Smoky Hill (3): Trent Clay, Unwana Ekiko, Dalontae Kelly. Total fouls — Eaglecrest 17, Smoky Hill 15. Fouled out — Eaglecrest: Marquel Murphy. Technical fouls — None.
