AURORA | A capsule preview of the 2026 Class 6A boys basketball state tournament Great 8 contest between Grandview and Rock Canyon scheduled for March 6, 2026:
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
2026 CLASS 6A GREAT 8 BOYS BASKETBALL STATE PLAYOFF GAME
No. 13 Grandview (18-7) vs. No. 5 Rock Canyon (22-3)
March 6, 10:15 a.m. at Denver Coliseum
BREAKDOWN: Grandview and Rock Canyon play in the postseason for the third time — all since 2017 — and two of the three contests have been in the Great 8 round. The first quarterfinal meeting went to the Jaguars in overtime in a memorable 2017 contest (see story, here), while the Wolves won at Sweet 16 contest in the 2019 playoffs. …Grandview won the lone state championship in program history in the 2018 season, while Rock Canyon is in search of its first title.
GRANDVIEW: Coach Ryan Turk’s Wolves lost the championship game of the Centennial League Challenge to sixth-seeded Cherry Creek, then rebounded with two postseason wins, as they defeated No. 20 Cherokee Trail 59-40 in the second round and then knocked off No. 4 Arvada West 62-58 in the Sweet 16. In two postseason contests, senior Noah Sevy has been the leading scorer both times with an average of 16.5 points per game, which includes a 19-point effort (with seven coming in the final minute) of the win at Arvada West. … For the season, Sevy is the only Grandview player to average in double figures at 14 per contest, while he also led the team in rebounding with 5.6 boards per contest plus nearly a full blocked shot. Next in scoring is sophomore Ismael Kabongo at 8.1 points per game (plus team highs of 2.4 assists and 1.7 steals per contest), while senior Charlie Atkinson (7.3 ppg) and junior Obi Morris (7.1 ppg) contribute regular scoring and senior Matthew Samson leads the Wolves in 3-point shooting.
ROCK CANYON: Coach Kent Grams’ Jaguars — who finished as the runner-up in the Continental League behind No. 1 Chaparral — come into the Great 8 contest on a 10-game winning streak that includes two home victories in the postseason, as they defeated No. 28 Pueblo West 62-39 and then downed No. 21 Liberty 69-57. Junior Cooper Elwood has scored in double figures in both games and averaged 16.5 points per contest, while junior Jacob David, senior Kai Valentine and sophomore Jack Christensen each had one double-digit scoring effort in the playoffs. …For the season, David is far and away Rock Canyon’s leading scorer at 18.9 points per game, while Valentine (13.2 points and team-high 10 rebounds per game) and Ellwood (10.6 ppg and team-high 4.4 assists per game) help lead the way.
WINNER GETS: The Grandview-Rock Canyon moves on to a Final Four matchup against the winner of a Great 8 contest between No. 1 Chaparral and No. 8 Mountain Vista on March 13 at the Denver Coliseum.
