AURORA | A capsule preview of the 2024 Class 6A girls basketball state tournament Great 8 contest between Mullen and Cherokee Trail scheduled for Feb. 29, 2024:
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
2024 CLASS 6A GREAT 8 GIRLS BASKETBALL STATE PLAYOFF GAME
No. 9 Mullen (17-8) vs. No. 1 Cherokee Trail (23-2)
Feb. 29, 4 p.m. at Denver Coliseum
BREAKDOWN: Cherokee Trail and Mullen meet in the postseason for the first time, primarily because the two programs have been in different classifications until the past two seasons. The Cougars and Mustangs are plenty familiar with each other, however, as they are both part of the Centennial League and play at least once each season. The programs met twice previously this season and Cherokee Trail won both of them, a 61-40 victory on Dec. 2, 2023, in the championship game of the Castle View/ThunderRidge Tip-Off Tournament as well as a 49-38 victory on Mullen’s home floor on Jan. 31. The Cougars won two meetings in the 2023 regular season, while the Mustangs won both times they played in 2022.
MULLEN: The Mustangs were the Class 4A state champions in 2022 before classification realignment and they moved up to 6A for the past two seasons, qualifying for the playoffs both times. Coach Tonia Jones’ Mullen team exited in the 6A 1st round last season, but has posted two wins thus far this season with a 49-39 win over No. 24 Monarch in the opening round followed by a 49-45 win at No. 8 Grandview — the defending state champion — in the Sweet 16 (story, here). Freshman Makenzie Jones has led the Mustangs in scoring in both contests with 16 and 15 points, respectively, while senior Allison Schwertner has averaged 12 points per contest and junior Keaton Arangua-Egbert has averaged 11 per game. …For the season, Jones is the team leader with an average of 12.8 points per game, with Schwertner just behind at 12 and junior Tatum Jones next at 6.6 per contest. Schwertner boasts a team-high in rebounding at 6.0 per contest, while Arangua-Egbert paces Mullen in assists per game (3.0) and is tied with Jones for the lead in steals per game as both average 2.3 per contest.
CHEROKEE TRAIL: The Cougars are in uncharted territory for the program, as they have advanced to the Great 8 for the first time after they were stopped in the Sweet 16 in 2010 and 2020 when in 5A and last season in 6A. Coach Tammi Traylor-Statewright’s team extended its winning streak to 15 games — dating back to a pre-winter break trip to play at the Nike Tournament of Champions in Phoenix — with a 69-28 win over No. 32 Fountain-Fort Carson in the first round followed by a 54-30 defeat of No. 16 Highlands Ranch in the Sweet 16 (story, here). Junior Madeline Gibbs has been the Cougars’ leading scorer in both games with tallies of 16 and 12 points, respectively, while senior Damara Allen has averaged 12 points and junior Delainey Miller 10.5 over two contests. …For the season, Cherokee Trail has demonstrated tremendous balance with five players that average 8.4 points or more per game. Allen has a fractional lead in the scoring race at 11.8 points per game, while Miller is next at 11.2 ahead of the trio of Gibbs (8.6), sophomore Karson Chaney (8.5) and sophomore Aaliyah Broadus (8.4). Allen also paces the team in rebounding (6.3 rpg), while junior Talia Strode leads the way in assists (2.9) and steals (3.0) per game.
WINNER GETS: The Cherokee Trail-Mullen winner advances to the March 7 semifinals where they will face the winner of the Great 8 game between No. 12 Rock Canyon and No. 4 Valor Christian.
