FORT COLLINS | The Rangeview boys basketball team had an enjoyable weekend in Fort Collins, topped off by bringing home the Fort Collins/Poudre Tip-Off Invitational championship.
After heading to Moby Arena to watch the first half of a matinee of the undefeated Colorado State men’s basketball team — featuring former Raiders standout Marcus Holt and redshirt guard Jeremiah Paige — the Raiders steadied themselves after some early struggles and downed host Fort Collins 51-44 to win the tournament title.
Seniors Jalen Davis (15 points), Tyrei Randall (12) and Tim Wyatt (10) each scored in double figures and coach Shawn Palmer’s Rangeview team turned in another strong defensive effort on their way to victory in their one and only tournament of the season.
“It was a great trip; we got to stay up in Fort Collins, we got to go to a CSU game and check in on Marcus and Jeremiah and obviously the basketball was good enough for us to get a few wins,” said Palmer, whose team improved to 4-1. “We’re happy with the progress.”
Indeed the Raiders showed the type of versatility Palmer thought they would have this season, as five different players scored in double figures between a first round win over Rocky Mountain (74-49), a 63-50 semifinal win over Holy Family and the championship game win over Fort Collins.
Davis got into double-figures in all three games with efforts of 13, 17 and 15 points, while Tarren Storey-Way — whose 22 points against Rocky Mountain was tops for the team — did it twice, as did Randall. Wyatt did it once, in the championship game, as did junior Kris Hollins with 13 in the opener.
“We went into the season thinking we could have any of seven guys lead us in scoring on any particular night and I think we’ve had five games and four different starting lineups,” Palmer said. “Not that we’re searching for things, but we can go with different lineups to match up with our opponent with all of our versatile guys.”
While Rangeview didn’t explode offensively, its defensive work keyed all three victories.
The Raiders held both Fort Collins and Rocky Mountain in the 40s and Holy Family to 50, while all three opponents failed to shoot better than 40 percent from the field.
It was the type of defensive effort that encouraged Palmer given the tough road Rangeview has coming up with games against Smoky Hill (Tuesday) and Cherokee Trail (Thursday) before break and undefeated Cherry Creek, ThunderRidge and Regis Jesuit waiting in the new year.
“We’ve got to be a little bit more efficient and take care of the ball offensively, but I was really pleased with how we played defensively against some teams that were difficult to guard,” Palmer said. “It was definitely something to build on defensively. We struggled offensively against Fort Collins, but it was good to learn on getting stops and turning the game around that way.”
The Rangeview team also got the experience of being on the Colorado State campus and watching one of its former players in Holt, who scored eight points in the first half as the Rams routed Arkansas-Fort Smith 88-60. The Raiders received the unused tickets allotted to Arkansas-Fort Smith and were able to sit down right behind the bench.
Another familiar face, Aurora Central grad Carlton Hurst, scored 13 points in Colorado State’s win. Paige, Rangeview’s leading scorer last season and a All-City first team selection by the Aurora Sentinel, did not play as he is redshirting.
Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor of the Aurora Sentinel. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
2014 FORT COLLINS/POUDRE TIP-OFF INVITATIONAL
Championship: RANGEVIEW 51, Fort Collins 44
Score by quarters:
Rangeview 12 5 15 19 — 51
Fort Collins 15 9 5 15 — 44
Rangeview points: Jalen Davis 15, Tyrei Randall 12, Tim Wyatt 10, Tarren Storey-Way 6, Elijah Reed 4, Kris Hollins 3, Elijah Blake 1
Championship semifinals: RANGEVIEW 63, Holy Family 50
Score by quarters:
Holy Family 9 12 18 11 — 50
Rangeview 16 10 20 17 — 63
Rangeview points: Jalen Davis 17, Tyrei Randall 10, Tarren Storey-Way 10, Elijah Reed 8, Elijah Blake 7, Tim Wyatt 6, Kris Hollins 5
First round: RANGEVIEW 74, Rocky Mountain 49
Score by quarters:
Rocky Mtn. 13 14 16 6 — 49
Rangeview 26 16 17 15 — 74
Rangeview points: Tarren Storey-Way 22, Kris Hollins 13, Jalen Davis 12, Elijah Blake 7, Tyrei Randall 7, Elijah Reed 4, Calvin Collins 2, Richard King 2
Full tournament results, here.