Ball Fever: ThunderRidge, Pueblo West boys basketball continue to impress
It’s hard to deny that the two top teams in Class 5A and Class 4A boys basketball, respectively, are ThunderRidge and Pueblo West. Both made LOUD statements early this week!
Let’s check out how the first days of Week 9 played out:
A Look Back
Monday, Jan. 30
- Evergreen is ballin’ and Dennis Pleuss caught the latest W.
- Te’Rae and Marquise Johnson at it again scoring 18 and 14 respectively as Vista Peak bounced back vs. Northglenn to start the week!
- The Fever Crew predicted Sierra rejoining our 4A poll and CJ Jennings dropped 23 points with 7 rebounds in the win over Elizabeth by 17!
- FOURTEEN different Angels scored as No. 9 East beat down Kennedy scorring 100 points on the night!
Tuesday, Jan. 31
- Josh Watt caught the “double figure” fest Rampart put on Pine Creek!
- No. 2 GW more than doubled Kennedy and the photos are here.
- “Action Shots” was in the house as young Saffieddiene scored 23 for Regis!
- Andrew Vigil led four Grizzilies in double figures with No. 6 Northridge beating Thompson Valley by 9!
- Silver Creek dropped to No. 10 in this weeks poll but pulled out a can of “whoopin” beating Niwot by 28! Khari Harrison scored 20 in the win.
- The Fever Crew sees you Coach Brenning! Monarch gets the W 58-54 over rival Boulder.
- Rock Canyon, steady at No. 6 in 5A, beat DougCO by 21 and Sam Masten dropped 27!
- Well, welcome back to the No. 1 spot Pueblo West! David Simental puts up a “30 piece” on Pueblo Central in the easy win.
- No. 1 ThunderRidge left no doubt about who’s the Continental league boss beating Heritage 70-40!
- J Pfaffinger led five Lambkins in double figures with 20 points in Fort Collins win over Fossil Ridge.
- E Burleson scored 18 in No. 7 Doherty’s win over Coronado.
Wednesday, Feb. 1
- “We’re feeling good right now, just taking one game at a time,” were the words from Gatorade player of the year Colbey Ross in our Ball Fever midweek chat. The Raptors rolled Mullen 91-60 locking up a tie atop the ultra tough Centennial league. “We focus on not getting too high or too low,” added Ross, ending with, “We’re just playing our brand of basketball and playing hard!” Ross is set for Pepperdine in the fall but for now he’s focused on making our Ball Fever prediction of the Raptors winning 5A come true! (Just kidding…kinda)
- Silver Creek held Littleton to 34 points in the blowout win on the Pepsi Center floor!
- Derrian Reed scores 18 as Sierra continues to roll blowing out Woodland Park.
- Didn’t see this one coming! Hunter Maldonado scored 29 but not enough for Vista RIdge as they fell to Lewis-Palmer.
- Whoa!! “See, what had happen was……” ThunderRidge flexes its No. 1 muscles beating Hinkley 101-31!! Ouch…
- Centennial League just continues to beat each other up! This night, Daijon Smith and Tucson Redding each had 15 as Overland upset No. 8 Cherry Creek.
- Big stars were missing in this one but Chatfield handled Lakewood in the jeffco battle 67-55.
- Goodness! No. 4 Grandview is rolling and beat our beloved Arap Warriors 61-32. That means the Wolves are for real, for real!
- No. 3 D’Evelyn marched to a 21 point win over league for Wheat Ridge.
- Again, C Trail is a different team with Lottie on the floor, and they knock off No. 10 Smoky Hill by 10.
Midweek Thoughts
Ummm…uhhhh: ThunderRidge! Coach Ortiz has this group absolutely rolling. We’ve talked a lot about parity lately, and we love that competition, but the Grizzlies are clearly No. 1 in 5A right now.
Our Ball Fever chat with Colbey Ross revealed a quiet confidence of an Eaglecrest squad that might just be hitting their stride.
And the looming 5A question seems to be, “Just how good is Chatfield and Grandview!??”
Sand Creek may, arguably, have our state’s top player in D’Shawn Schwartz but they have fallen hard in 4A, leaving that door open for defending champ Pueblo West led by David Simental to rise to the top again.
Simental has put on pounds of muscle? He’s an elite scorer and if what we’ve heard about his improved frame is for real the Cyclones will be tough to stop!
