AURORA | Eaglecrest, Overland and Regis Jesuit, all No. 1 seeds, remain alive going into the Great 8 round of the Class 5A boys state basketball tournament, scheduled for March 7 at the Denver Coliseum. A look at each of the three games involving Aurora teams:
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
2015 GREAT 8 BOYS STATE BASKETBALL PLAYOFFS
1 p.m. — NO. 2 LEGEND (19-6) VS. NO. 1 EAGLECREST (20-5)
Breakdown: Coach John Olander’s Eaglecrest team has reached at least the Great 8 round of the 5A playoffs for the fifth time in the past seven seasons and has gone 2-2 in the previous two trips, including a close loss to Mountain Vista last season in the round at Denver Coliseum. The Raptors’ last Great 8 win came in 2013 against favored Regis Jesuit and they went on to win the state championship. Eaglecrest has never played Legend in the postseason before. …The top-seeded Raptors come into the game off a 56-49 Sweet 16 victory over fourth-seeded Fossil Ridge in a game they trailed at halftime and secured with strong third and fourth quarters. Senior Blend Avdili — who announced his verbal commitment to the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, where teammate Elijah Ross is also headed, Thursday — scored 15 points as did Ross in the victory over the SaberCats, who played in the state championship game in 2014. Eaglecrest defeated Heritage 68-46 in the second round after receiving a first round bye. For the season, the Raptors have four players averaging double figures in sophomore Colbey Ross (17.3 ppg) and seniors Avdili (16.4 ppg), Elijah Ross (12.3 ppg) and Peter Anderson (10.5 ppg). …Second-seeded Legend played the tightest game of the Sweet 16, as the junior-heavy Titans outlasted No. 3 George Washington 63-59 in double overtime to become one of five Continental League teams remaining in the Great 8. Legend played in the quarterfinals last in 2013, when Eaglecrest won the state championship, and edged Fairview by a point, only to lose to Denver East in the Final Four. Against George Washington, junior Monroe Porter knocked down all four of the Titans’ 3-pointers and finished with 20 points, while junior Jared Small — who played at Regis Jesuit last season — added 19 and junior Riley Matticks 12. For the season, Porter’s 13.7 points per game average leads the team, followed by Small at 13.0 ppg and junior Danny Garrick at 12.3 ppg. The winner takes the Ray C. Ball Region championship and moves into the Final Four on March 13 at the Coors Events Center in Boulder, where it will face the winner of the Chauncey Billups Region (either Chaparral or ThunderRidge).
2:30 p.m. — NO. 2 MOUNTAIN VISTA (20-5) VS. NO. 1 OVERLAND (20-5)
Breakdown: Coach Danny Fisher’s Overland team is in the Great 8 for the second straight season and seeks a return to the Final Four as well with a victory over Mountain Vista, which it met on one other occasion in the 5A playoffs, an opening round loss in the 2011-12 postseason. Like the Trailblazers, the Golden Eagles lost in last season’s Final Four and have come up empty in semifinal trips in each of the past two seasons, while they’ve made the Great 8 for the fourth consecutive campaign. …Top-seeded Overland posted the most lopsided win of the Sweet 16 round, as it led fourth-seeded Grand Junction 36-7 at halftime and went on to a 71-36 victory, which came after the Trailblazers beat Castle View, Mountain Vista’s fellow Continental League team, in the second round. With the game getting out of a hand early, Overland had 11 players see action and all of them scored at least one point, with junior De’Ron Davis leading the way with 15 points. Senior Ryan Swan added 13 points and senior Austin Conway and junior Alijah Halliburton chipped in 12 apiece. Junior Reggie Gibson scored 24 points in the Trailblazers’ second round win, but scored just two points in the Sweet 16 round win. For the season, Davis leads the team in scoring average (16.8 ppg), rebounds (10.8 rpg) and blocked shots (5.1 bpg), while he’s joined in double-figure scoring by Gibson (10.9 ppg) and Conway (10.6 ppg), with Swan close at 8.6 ppg. …Second-seeded Mountain Vista had a bigger challenge in the Sweet 16, as the Golden Eagles had to stave off a late rally by sixth-seeded Montbello in a 60-57 victory, which followed up a second round victory over Doherty. Against Montbello, senior Ray Beresford poured in a team-high 27 points, while senior Brady Subart added 11 despite struggling from 3-point range. For the season, Beresford has been a stat-stuffer as he leads the team in scoring average at 17.3 points per game, while’s also good for 4.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.8 steals per game, while Subart averages 16.5 points and a team-high 5.4 assists. The winner claims the Bill Weimar Region championship and advances to the Final Four on March 13 at the Coors Events Center in Boulder, where will face the winner of the Jim Baggot Regional (either Denver East or Regis Jesuit).
5:30 p.m. — NO. 6 DENVER EAST (16-10) VS. NO. 1 REGIS JESUIT (23-2)
Breakdown: Coach Ken Shaw’s Regis Jesuit team makes its sixth trip to the Great 8 round of the 5A playoffs in the past eight years, carrying a 3-2 mark in the round over that span. The Raiders take on Denver East in the postseason for the first time since the 2008-09, when they beat the Angels on their way to winning the first of back-to-back-to-back state championships. The Angels, the defending state champions, have been a regular in the Great 8 for quite awhile. …Top-seeded Regis Jesuit — one of five Continental League teams remaining in the Great 8 — posted a 46-39 win over fifth-seeded Boulder in the Sweet 16 to follow up a 66-50 victory over Grandview in a second round contest. The Raiders got their typically balanced effort in the win over Boulder, as senior Kip Boryla set the pace with 15 points, while junior Geoff Kelly (who had 25 points in the playoff opener) added 12, senior Taylor Kallsen nine and senior Bryan Staerkel seven. For the season, Kallsen’s 11.6 ppg average leads the team, while Boryla averages 11.2 points per game and Staerkel 10.2 ppg. …Sixth-seeded Denver East — the defending state champion — comes into the Great 8 contest with three postseason victories to its credit, most recently an 84-75 upset win at No. 2 Rangeview on March 4, which followed wins against Fairview and Rock Canyon. Senior Brian Carey racked up a game-high 35 points, while senior Jordan Willis added 16 points and 15 rebounds, junior Deron Harrell (formerly of Aurora Central) added 13 and junior Jack Buckmelter chipped in 12. For the season, Carey averages a team-high 25.2 points per game, while Buckmelter (a transfer from Colorado Academy) has managed 14.9 points per in game and Harrell (9.9 ppg) and Willis (9.1 ppg, plus 11.3 rpg) are close to double figures. The winner claims the Jim Baggot Region championship and advances to the Final Four on March 13 at the Coors Events Center in Boulder, where will face the winner of the Bill Weimer Regiona (either Overland or Mountain Vista).
