AURORA | Capsule preview look at the 2025 Class 6A boys state basketball first round playoff matchups involving an Aurora teams set for Feb. 25, 2025 (full bracket, schedule):
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@sentinelcolorado.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
2025 CLASS 6A BOYS BASKETBALL FIRST ROUND CAPSULES
NO. 39 VISTA PEAK PREP (9-14) AT NO. 26 LEGACY (14-9), 6 p.m.
BREAKDOWN: Vista PEAK Prep advanced farther in the postseason than it ever had last season, when it made it into the Class 5A semifinals and lost in a heartbreaker. The Bison moved up to 6A this season and qualified for the postseason after a tough regular season schedule and Jordan Carter in his first season as their head coach. Vista PEAK Prep played top-seeded Rangeview twice in a four-day span late in City League tournament play and finished the regular season with a loss at Denver East. For the season, the Bison have scored an average of 60.4 points per game and allowed 61.3, which has created a number of close contests during the season. With a lot of graduation from last season, Vista PEAK Prep’s scoring has been picked up by junior Marquilos Mata (11.7 ppg) and senior Mitchell Oliver (10.9 ppg) along with senior Devontay Bursey (9.7 ppg). Senior Larry Mosley leads the way for the Bison in rebounding at 5.4 per contest, while Mata adds 5.2 and both Oliver and freshman Noah Adkins average better than three assists per contest. …Legacy — the fourth-place team from the multi-classification Granite Peaks League — is back in the postseason after a second round loss last season. Coach Connor Clay’s team snapped a two-game losing streak with a win over Boulder to cap the regular season. …WINNER GETS: The Vista PEAK Prep-Legacy winner moves into a second round matchup on Feb. 28 at No. 7 ThunderRidge (18-5).
NO. 33 CHEROKEE TRAIL (9-14) AT NO. 32 ERIE (12-11), 6:30 p.m.
BREAKDOWN: Cherokee Trail makes its return to the postseason for the first time since the 2018-19 season, when it lost in the opening round of the then-Class 5A playoffs. The Cougars’ last postseason win came in the 2017-18 season against Boulder before a second round loss to Grandview. Coach Brandon Brown’s team finished the regular season on a high note with a 77-46 victory over Mullen in the seventh-place game of the Centennial League Challenge. In an even statistical season, the Cougars allow 59.7 points per game, while they have scored 57 per contest. Two Cherokee Trail players average in double figures with sophomore Jordan Mitchell the leader at 10.7 points per game and senior Jake Scott at 10.1, followed by senior Nathan Baack at 9.7. Senior Vince Guthrie leads the way in rebounding at 5.4 per contest, while Mitchell is the assists leader at 2.7 per game and also in steals at 1.3 per contest. …Erie missed the postseason a year ago, but qualified this season with an identical record. Coach Jeff Parriott’s Tigers dropped back-to-back contests to Brighton and Horizon to finish the regular season, which came on the heels of a three-game winning streak. Erie has completely identical offensive and defensive statlines for the season, as it has surrendered 53.9 points per game and also scored 53.9 points per game. The majority of the points have come from three players in senior Callen Gebhardt (12.7 ppg), junior Garrett Owen (11.5 ppg) and junior Christopher Smith (11.0 ppg), while Smith leads in rebounding (5.5 per game) and Gebhardt in assists and steals (4.3 and 1.7 per contest, respectively). …WINNER GETS: The Cherokee Trail-Erie winner moves into a second round matchup on Feb. 28 at No. 1 Rangeview (23-0).
NO. 40 CASTLE VIEW (9-14) AT NO. 25 GRANDVIEW (12-11), 7 p.m.
BREAKDOWN: Grandview missed out on the postseason a year ago, but is back and in the search of its first playoff win since the 2020-21 season, when it advanced to a Final Four matchup with Rangeview before the last games of the tournament were canceled by the coronavirus pandemic. Coach Ryan Turk’s Wolves placed fourth in the Centennial League Challenge, as they lost to Smoky Hill and Overland. In a very even season, Grandview has averaged 61.1 points per game, while its given up 61.9 and its played four games decided by seven points or less. The Wolves have gotten scoring from multiple sources, the primary being senior Breven Anderson (14.3 ppg), while he is joined in double figures by senior Trevor Thomas at 11.8 points per contest. Senior Colt Holtman (8.1 ppg) and junior Noah Sevy (7.8 ppg), while Thomas paces the team in rebounding at 6.2 per contest and Anderson leads the way in assists at 2.8 per contest. …Castle View is back in the playoffs after an opening round loss to Eaglecrest last season and coach Chris Morgan’s team comes into this postseason off a close loss to Rock Canyon in the regular season finale. The SaberCats cede 66 points per game this season, while they average 60.5 per contest themselves offensively. Castle View has a dynamic scorer in senior Evan McKean, who averages 22.1 points per contest and is easily the team’s leader in rebounding as well at 7.0 per contest. Senior Blake Graham adds 9.9 points per game (plus a team-best 3.9 assists) and senior Mason Orton averages 8.1 points per contest. …WINNER GETS: The Castle View-Grandview winner moves into a second round matchup on Feb. 28 at No. 8 Horizon (20-3).
