Upsets in the first round of the high school girls basketball state tournament are like a Bieber-free news day. They happen, just not very often.
Cheyenne Mountain's Ashlynn Smith (11) scored 21
points in a first-round upset of Mead. The Class 5A
and 4A brackets produced eight upsets in Round 1.
File photo by Matt Daniels
That made Tuesday a little bit different, as lower seeds won a combined eight games in Classes 5A and 4A. With that in mind, we'll quickly recap those and examine additional teams that might be able to bust up the bracket in the subsequent rounds.
Class 5AUpsets are the rarest in the 5A bracket, but we had three this week, two in the Carol Callan Region. The No. 41
Far Northeast Warriors (Denver) went to Grand Junction and upset the host and No. 24 Tigers 39-31. And No. 40
Vista Ridge (Colorado Springs), which entered 6-17, edged Cherokee Trail (Aurora) 66-58 behind 22 points from junior
Kate Rohr.
The other upset was much milder, as No. 35
Eaglecrest (Centennial) got past No. 30 Liberty (Colorado Springs) 32-30. All of these teams will face top-eight seeds in the second round, making a continued run unlikely – but not impossible.
When looking at potential bracket-busters, No. 23
Fairview (Boulder) first comes to mind. That's because the Knights (14-10) likely would have been a top 10 seed if not having to forfeit six wins for unintentionally using an ineligible role player late in the regular season. The Knights self-reported the violation.
Anyhow, that makes their matchup tonight at No. 10
Monarch (Louisville) one more fit for the deeper rounds. Fairview edged Monarch 49-47 in the first matchup between the Front Range League rivals on Jan. 17, but that was one of the six wins that was overturned. The Knights carry a trio of capable scorers in
Grace O'Neil (18.3 points a game),
Ashley Panem (17.9) and
Denali Pinto (15.4). Monarch has a solid three of its own in
Peyton Carter,
Jasmine Jeffcoat and emerging sophomore
Emerson Herrmann.
Another lower seed to keep an eye on is No. 19
Loveland, which is always dangerous behind one of the most accomplished scorers in state history, Creighton-bound
Tatum Rembao. The Indians take on No. 14
Bear Creek (Lakewood), which has gotten a stellar season from senior
Bo Shaffer.
MaxPreps Colorado Class 5A state bracketClass 4AFive first-round upsets occurred here, including some fair hefty ones as three seeds in the 40s eked out close victories. Most notably, No. 48
Thompson Valley (Loveland), which entered 8-15, edged No. 17 Montrose 50-48 in overtime.
In addition, No. 42
Canon City (11-13) got past No. 23 Fort Morgan 56-52 and No. 41
Mountain View (Loveland) squeaked past Mead 58-56 behind 22 points from junior
Peyton Duke.
Other milder upsets included No. 37
Erie over No. 28 Glenwood Springs 46-38 and No. 39
Cheyenne Mountain (Colorado Springs) edging No. 26 Silver Creek (Longmont) 65-63 in a double-overtime thriller. Senior
Ashlynn Smith scored 21 for the Indians in that one.
While it remains to be seen whether any of those five can keep winning as the degree of difficulty increases, here's a look at a few lower seeds that could make a run.
We'll start with No. 20
Green Mountain (Lakewood), which defeated Longmont in the first round and now has a tough matchup at No. 13 Rifle. The Rams' 11-13 record might look fairly pedestrian, but keep in mind they play in the Jeffco League with upper-echelon foes Evergreen, Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch), Golden and D'Evelyn (Denver) – all top-15 seeds.
Green Mountain won't be star-struck in a matchup against a strong opponent and
Corrina Archuleta is a solid and steady force for the Rams.
The Classical Academy (Colorado Springs) is also worth keeping an eye on. The No. 21 Titans didn't play the toughest schedule, but after a first-round blowout of Skyview (Thornton), they sit at an impressive 19-5 as they move on to face No. 12
Discovery Canyon (Colorado Springs). Four players average double figures for TCA, led by senior
Mcclain Walker, which make them difficult to match up with.
Granted, Discovery Canyon (16-7) is ultra-solid behind senior
Emma List, but this could be a second-round game worth perusing.
MaxPreps Colorado Class 4A state bracketsClasses 3A, 2A and 1A are still amidst their league, district and regional tournaments, and we'll take a closer look at them next week.
