BOULDER | It may be a year later than expected, but Eaglecrest and Overland will finally square off for the Class 5A boys state basketball championship.
The Centennial League rival Raptors and Trailblazers nearly met for the 5A crown last season, but ThunderRidge kept that from happening by stopping Eaglecrest in the semifinals before losing to Overland in the state championship game.
The two top-seeded Aurora teams — who split their Centennial League series in the regular season — qualified to play for this season’s 5A title at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Coors Events Center as both won their Final Four contests in decidedly different fashions Friday night.
Coach John Olander’s Eaglecrest team earned a chance to play for its first state championship since it won the 2012-13 title with a thrilling victory over previously unbeaten Rangeview in an all-Aurora Final Four matchup.
The Raptors trailed the Raiders — who have finished games successfully all season with late leads — with just over a minute to play, but junior Colbey Ross’ free throws put Eaglecrest ahead with 58.3 seconds left and it survived a flurry of 3-point attempts by Rangeview before the final horn sounded.
Rangeview finishes its season 26-1 and fell a step short of playing in its first state championship game since 1995.
Overland, meanwhile, handled its semifinal contest against Chatfield the same way it had proceeded in all of its other postseason contests, by getting out early and keeping its foot on the gas.
Coach Danny Fisher’s Trailblazers raced out to a 19-4 lead in the first quarter as senior center De’Ron Davis set a major tone with six quick points on his way to a double-double.
Overland simply overwhelmed the Chargers with depth and athleticism, as five players finished in double figures — Davis and Alijah Halliburton had 15 points apiece, Jervae Robinson added 14, Reggie Gibson 11 and Padiet Wang 10.
A win over Eaglecrest would make the Trailblazers the first team to repeat in 5A boys basketball since Regis Jesuit won three straight 5A titles from 2009-2011.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
(1) OVERLAND 72, (2) CHATFIELD 50
Score by quarters:
Chatfield 8 7 24 11 — 50
Overland 19 17 23 13 — 72
CHATFIELD (50)
Alex Beckley 2 2-3 6, Cameron Pearson 4 0-0 10, Joe Miks 2 4-4 8, Riley Welch 1 3-5 5, Josh Frenette 3 1-2 7, Keland Rumsey 0 2-4 2, Titus Reed 1 1-2 3, Michael Vrabel 2 1-3 5, Lucas St. Germain 0 4-4 4. Totals 15 18-27 50.
OVERLAND (72)
Jervae Robinson 4 5-7 14, Reggie Gibson 4 3-4 11, De’Ron Davis 7 0-0 15, Alijah Halliburton 5 5-6 16, Tyler Stevenson 2 0-0 6, Padiet Wang 5 0-0 10, Asad Yousaf 0 1-2 1, Tedmund Taylor 0 0-0 0, Nick Holmes 0 0-2 0, Daijon Smith 0 0-4 0, Steven Hayes 0 0-2 0. Totals 27 14-27 72.
3-point field goals — Chatfield (2): Cameron Pearson 2; Overland (4): Tyler Stevenson 2, De’Ron Davis, Jervae Robinson. Total fouls — Chatfield 23, Overland 21. Fouled out — None. Technical fouls — Chatfield: Riley Welch.
(1) EAGLECREST 58, (1) RANGEVIEW 55
Score by quarters:
Rangeview 10 16 10 19 — 55
Eaglecrest 15 10 18 15 — 58
RANGEVIEW (55)
Jalen Guidry 4 1-2 10, Tyrei Randall 2 3-4 8, Kris Hollins 1 0-0 3, Elijah Blake 2 2-4 7, EJ Reed 1 11-11 13, Calvin Collins 3 0-0 6, Matthew Johnson 1 0-0 3, Marquis Kraemer 1 3-4 5, Stacie Reed 0 0-0 0, Donyvan Jackson 0 0-0 0, Ladon McQueary 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 20-25 55.
EAGLECREST (58)
Colbey Ross 1 10-10 12, Elijah Wilson 2 1-1 5, Austin Forsberg 1 3-5 6, Ikenna Ozor 4 2-2 10, Nate Bokol 1 0-0 2, Xaiv’ion Jackson 0 1-4 1, Victor Garnes 2 2-2 7, Abanezer Alemneh 1 0-0 3, Jalaughn Jackson 3 0-2 6, Josh Walton 2 0-0 6, Charles Roberts 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 19-26 58.
3-point field goals — Eaglecrest (5): Josh Walton 2, Abanezer Alemneh, Austin Forsberg, Victor Garnes; Rangeview (5): Elijah Blake, Jalen Guidry, Kris Hollins, Matthew Johnson, Tyrei Randall. Total fouls — Eaglecrest 20, Rangeview 19. Fouled out — Rangeview: Randall. Technical fouls — None.
