DENVER | Unranked in the preseason, the Eaglecrest boys basketball team cemented its place somewhere in the top four Friday afternoon.
The second-seeded Raptors led for all but three minutes of their all-Aurora Class 5A Great 8 contest against No. 1 Regis Jesuit and tightened defensively in crunch time on their way to a 64-57 victory at the Denver Coliseum.
Senior TreShawn Wilford stripped Raiders star Josh Perkins and converted a three-point play at the other end to give Eaglecrest some breathing room and coach John Olander’s team held on to become the first team to earn a berth in the March 15 semifinals at the Coors Events Center in Boulder.
“I’m so excited for our guys, this group deserves this,” said Raptors coach John Olander, whose team advanced to the Final Four for the first time since the 2007-08 season when it lost to Denver East.
Junior Jaisean Jackson had a team-high 19 points for Eaglecrest (21-5), who also got 15 from senior Sean Watkins.
Perkins finished with 29 points and Bryan Staerkel 13 for coach Ken Shaw’s Regis Jesuit team, which finished the season 21-5.
The Raptors — who knocked off another Aurora team, Rangeview, in the Sweet 16 — came out firing in their first trip to the Denver Coliseum, as they put up 21 points and led by as many as 11.
Perkins got going in the second quarter, as he scored nine points and helped the Raiders get as close as three points before Eaglecrest eventually took a 33-26 edge into halftime.
The lead could have been larger, but Wilford’s 3-pointer was deemed to have come after the buzzer ending the half.
“It’s so exciting to be in the Final Four for the first time,” Wilford said.
Reach Sports Editor Courtney Oakes at [email protected] or 303-750-7555
(2) EAGLECREST 64, (1) REGIS JESUIT 57
Score by quarters:
Eaglecrest 21 12 14 17 — 64
Regis Jesuit 13 13 18 13 — 57
EAGLECREST (64)
Rayjon Craig 0 3-6 3, TreShawn Wilford 5 2-4 13, Sean Watkins 6 2-3 15, Jaisean Jackson 8 1-4 19, Blend Avdili 3 3-4 9, LaDerian King 0 0-0 0, Maurice Perez 1 0-0 3, Elijah Ross 0 2-2 2. Totals 23 13-23 64.
REGIS JESUIT (57)
Josh Perkins 10 6-10 29, Eric Stemper 3 1-2 8, Bryan Staerkel 5 0-0 13, Devin Kadillak 0 0-0 0, Kip Boryla 0 0-0 0, Zach Smith 2 0-0 5, Elijah Sanford 0 0-0 0, Cam Beards 1 0-0 2. Totals 21 7-12 57.
3-point field goals — Eaglecrest (5): Jaisean Jackson 2, Maurice Perez, Sean Watkins, TreShawn Wilford; Regis Jesuit (8): Josh Perkins 3, Bryan Staerkel 3, Zach Smith, Eric Stemper. Total fouls — Eaglecrest 14, Regis Jesuit 15. Fouled out — None. Technical fouls — None.
