DENVER | With confidence and plenty of foresight, Keenon Clement built his Vista PEAK Prep boys basketball team to win at the Denver Coliseum, deep in the Class 5A state playoffs.
The Bison had never played at the venue where the Great 8 round of the postseason and subsequent rounds take place, but Clement knew that a team that played exceptional defense and had an inside presence had a chance to do something special when they got there.
Both of those ingredients were present from his Vista PEAK Prep team Friday night, as the second-seeded Bison limited No. 7 Ponderosa to just eight points over the middle two quarters and got a massive game from senior pivot Kyree Polk on their way to a 57-41 victory.
“I had a feeling we would be here, so when we started putting all of this together, we were trying to build this for the Coliseum,” Clement said. “I wanted to make sure we could flex inside and play good defense. …This is just a special group.”
Already deeper in the postseason than any team in program history, the Bison will appear in their first Final Four March 7. They will face No. 3 Windsor — a 74-68 winner over No. 6 Lewis-Palmer — a team they defeated in non-league play during the regular season.
Against Ponderosa, Polk racked up 17 points and was credited with 16 rebounds and three blocked shots, while he was joined in double figures by senior Alante Monroe-Elazier with 12, senior Julian Carrizales with 11 and senior James Brown III with 10.
But it wasn’t the offense that dictated the performance, it was again the Bison’s adherence to Clement’s call for all-out effort on the defensive end.
“Defense, defense, defense, that’s what won the game,” Carrizales said. “We practice it hard every day and it was really good tonight. It feels good and it helped us do this for the first time in history.”
There was definitely something to be concerned about offensively from Ponderosa, which poured in 30 points in the opening quarter of their Sweet 16 win over No. 10 Montrose and got off to a solid start with 11 points in the first period against Vista PEAK Prep. They built the lead to 14-9 on a Noah Wilhelm 3-pointer 40 seconds into second quarter, but that would be the last point they would score in the quarter.
The Bison dominated the defensive glass — limiting the Mustangs to single shots on nearly every possession in the period — and began to get the offense going. Monroe-Elazier had 10 points in the period to send his team into the break ahead 24-14.
“The ball started falling for me and I knew we were going to win,” said Monroe-Elazier, who had scored 14 points combined in the previous two playoff games, wins over No. 31 Palisade and No. 15 Discovery Canyon.
Vista PEAK Prep continued to put the clamps on Ponderosa’s offense in the third quarter and then made a concerted effort to get the ball inside to the 6-foot-7 Polk, who made the Mustangs pay. He tallied nine points in the third quarter — including a powerful dunk — and 13 in the second half to help the Bison pull away.
“Let’s be honest, not everybody has Kyree Polk just cleaning everything up,” Clement said.
With a 42-19 lead after the third quarter, the fourth quarter became largely garbage time and Ponderosa finished with 22 points in the period never got any closer than 17 points.
Vista PEAK Prep’s effort means it has allowed 36.7 points per game the postseason, lowest among any remaining team in the Final Four (No. 1 Northfield, No. 3 Windsor and No. 4 Mesa Ridge).
“Nobody defends like Vista PEAK,” Polk said. “We’re the best out here. …I’m excited, but we’re not surprised. We did what we’re supposed to do and it’s on to the next. We’re not finished yet.”
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
2024 CLASS 5A BOYS BASKETBALL STATE PLAYOFFS (GREAT 8)
(2) VISTA PEAK PREP 57, (7) PONDEROSA 41
Score by quarters:
Ponderosa 11 3 5 22 — 41
Vista PEAK Prep 9 15 18 15 — 57
PONDEROSA (41)
Riley Woolen 1 0-0 3, Jake Johnson 1 0-0 2, Carson Keach 2 0-0 5, Noah Wilhelm 5 1-3 13, Dylan Karsteter 3 2-4 9, Cade Heiden 2 0-0 4, Blake Nuss 2 0-0 5, Tanner Willis 0 0-0 0, Connor Miskovic 0 0-0 0, Aaron Crown 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 3-7 41.
VISTA PEAK PREP (57)
Julian Carrizales 4 1-2 11, Javon Lowman 1 2-2 4, Alante Monroe-Elazier 5 1-2 12, James Brown III 5 0-2 10, Kyree Polk 7 3-4 17, Mitch Oliver 0 0-0 0, Larry Mosley 1 0-0 2, Mekhai Davis Burks 0 1-2 1, Savon Alexander 0 0-0 0. Totals 23 8-14 57.
3-point field goals — Ponderosa (6): Noah Wilhelm 2, Dylan Karsteter, Carson Keach, Blake Nuss, Riley Woolen. Vista PEAK Prep (3): Julian Carrizales 2, Alante Monroe-Elazier. Total fouls — Ponderosa 15, Vista PEAK Prep 10. Fouled out — None. Technical fouls — Ponderosa: Karsteter
