AURORA | A capsule preview of the 2024 Class 6A girls basketball state tournament Final Four contest between Cherokee Trail and Valor Christian scheduled for March 7, 2024:
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@aurorasentinel.com.Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
2024 CLASS 6A FINAL FOUR GIRLS BASKETBALL STATE PLAYOFF GAME
NO. 4 VALOR CHRISTIAN (22-4) vs. NO. 1 CHEROKEE TRAIL (24-2)
March 7, 5:45 p.m. at Denver Coliseum
BREAKDOWN: Cherokee Trail and Valor Christian will meet in the girls basketball playoffs for the first time ever and it has been a decade since they played last. The Cougars lost a Heritage Holiday Hoopla tournament game to the Eagles back in the 2013-14 season. …Valor Christian is in the Final Four for the fourth time in the past five seasons — missing out only in 2023 — and made two appearances in the then-Class 5A state championship game (with a win over Regis Jesuit in 2021 and a loss to Grandview in 2022). The Eagles have three all-time state championships, including back-to-back wins in then-4A in 2015 and 2016. …Cherokee Trail is in the Final Four for the first time in program history and also made its first Great 8 this season as well after losses in the Sweet 16 stopped playoff bids in 2010 and 2020 when in then-5A and last season in 6A.
VALOR CHRISTIAN: Coach Jessika Caldwell’s Eagles lost to No. 2 Cherry Creek on Feb. 12, but have won five straight games since, including three in the postseason. Valor Christian topped No. 29 Poudre 74-30 in the first round, followed that with a 64-43 Sweet 16 defeat of No. 13 ThunderRidge and then dispatched No. 12 Rock Canyon 60-44 in the Great 8. Junior Quinn VanSickle has scored in double figures in all three games for the Eagles (with an average of 15 points), while sophomore Camryn Gunter has led the team in scoring two times in three games (with an average of 12.7 points), while sophomore Peyton Jones has averaged 13.7 points per game in the postseason. Valor Christian has connected on 23 3-pointers in three playoff games. …For the season, VanSickle paces the team in scoring average at 18.3 points per game with Jones (14.4 ppg) and junior Rylie Beers (10.6 ppg) next. Gunter is the team’s rebounding leader at 7.2 per contest, while VanSickle’s averages of 4.2 assist and 3.5 steals per game also top her squad.
CHEROKEE TRAIL: Coach Tammi Traylor-Statewright’s Cougars extended their winning streak to 16 games — dating back to a pre-winter break trip to play at the Nike Tournament of Champions in Phoenix — with a 47-39 victory over Centennial League rival and ninth-seeded Mullen in the Great 8 (story, here). That came after a 54-30 defeat of No. 16 Highlands Ranch in the Sweet 16 (story, here) and a 69-28 victory over No. 32 Fountain-Fort Carson in the first round. Juniors Delainey Miller and Madeline Gibbs have both scored in double digits in all three playoff games with averages of 14.3 and 13.0 points per game, respectively, while senior Damara Allen has added 10 points per contest. …For the season, Cherokee Trail has demonstrated great balance with five players that average 8.2 or more points per game and another (junior Talia Strode) at 6.5. Allen holds a slight lead over Miller (11.6 ppg to 11.5 ppg) for the team scoring lead, followed by Gibbs (8.7 ppg) and sophomores Karson Chaney (8.3 ppg) and Aaliyah Broadus (8.2 ppg). Allen is the team leader in rebounding at 6.3 per contest, while Strode paces the Cougars in assists (3.0 apg) and steals (2.9 spg).
WINNER GETS: The Valor Christian-Cherokee Trail winner extends its season and earns a spot in the 6A state championship game at 1:15 p.m. March 9, where it will face either No. 7 Regis Jesuit or No. 3 Legend. Updated Class 6A scoreboard and schedule, here.
