DENVER | The irresistible force of the Rangeview boys basketball team came up against Colorado’s recent prep postseason immovable object — Valor Christian star Cole Scherer — Thursday at the Denver Coliseum.
The top-seeded Raiders were in the final stretch of a unique, undefeated season that they hoped would end with the school’s third all-time state championship, but ran into the fifth-seeded Eagles and streaking star Scherer, who lifted his team to last season’s Class 6A state title and had them on the cusp of playing for another.
Scherer finished 16-for-16 from the free throw line — including 7-for-7 in the fourth quarter — and tallied 39 points as Valor Christian stopped Rangeview’s run with a 61-51 in a 6A semifinal clash.
Senior LaDavian King scored 21 points as the only player in double figures for coach Shawn Palmer’s Raiders, who finished the season 26-1. Freshman Marceles Duncan added seven, while seniors Kenny Black-Knox III and Royce Edwards and sophomore Archie Weatherspoon V scored six apiece.
Valor Christian (23-4) brought an eight-game postseason winning streak into the contest that included five victories last season that were led by Scherer, who averaged 26 points per game on that run and maintained that same mark through three postseason games this year.
The Eastern Washington-bound guard was even better against Rangeview, as he had 26 points through three quarters alone, including 12 in the third quarter.
The Raiders — who had survived a similar onslaught by Regis Jesuit’s Eric Fiedler in the Great 8 with a comeback victory in double overtime (story) — refused to yield, however, as King scored six points and Weatherspoon V five in the period.
Rangeview took its first lead of the game with 6:15 remaining on a steal and breakaway dunk from Duncan. The advantage lasted just one possession, however, before Scherer’s two free throws created a 49-49 tie and his three-point play a short time later created a five-point edge for Valor Christian.
The Raiders couldn’t knock down a big shot in the closing stages and managed to only score on two free throws from senior Royce Edwards the rest of the way. Scherer made four free throws in the final 52 seconds to seal the result.
Rangeview earned its way to the Denver Coliseum (home of the Great 8, Final Four and championship games) for the first time since the 2020-21 season in which it made it to the semifinals before the remainder of the tournament was wiped out by the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
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 PLAYOFFS (SEMIFINALS)
(5) VALOR CHRISTIAN 61, (1) RANGEVIEW 51
Score by quarters:
Valor Christian 19 11 17 14 — 61
Rangeview 13 14 16 8 — 51
VALOR CHRISTIAN (61)
Ryan Oblachinski 2 1-2 7, Cole Scherer 10 16-16 39, Grant Stevens 1 0-0 2, Brady Wynja 4 1-2 9, Ryan Mandes 1 0-0 2, Drake Bebout 1 0-0 2, Titus Huard 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 18-20 61.
RANGEVIEW (51)
Royce Edwards 1 3-4 6, LaDavian King 6 8-14 21, Kenny Black-Knox III 3 0-0 6, Archie Weatherspoon V 2 1-2 6, Marceles Duncan 3 1-2 7, Aidan Perez 2 0-0 5, Yasin Sekue 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 13-22 51.
3-point field goals — Valor Christian (5): Cole Scherer 3, Ryan Oblachinski 2. Rangeview (4): Royce Edwards, LaDavian King, Aidan Perez, Archie Weatherspoon V. Total fouls — Valor Christian 15, Rangeview 15. Fouled out — None. Technical fouls — None.
