3A Boys basketball semifinals: Faith Christian and Salida advance to title game
By Brad Cochi
Photo: Brad Cochi/CHSAANow
DENVER – The Class 3A boys basketball semifinals took place Friday night at the University of Denver’s Magness Arena. Top seeds Faith Christian and Salida won their respective games and advanced to the state championship game. They’ll match up Saturday for the title.
(1) Faith Christian 72, (4) Highland 67
The Faith Christian boys basketball team is back in the state championship game for the first time since finishing runner-up in 2017.
In the Class 3A Final Four at the University of Denver’s Hamilton Gymnasium on Friday night, the top-seeded Eagles (24-1) held on to win 72-67 over No. 4 Highland (22-4) and punch their ticket to the finals. Back in the title game for the first time in six years, the Eagles now have a chance to claim their first title since 2012 and add a seventh title to their program’s rich history.
“It’s really cool to get back here again,” Eagles head coach Abram Ziemer said. “We were a team in the Final Four in 2020 when it got shut down (by COVID-19) and we didn’t get the opportunity. Ever since then, there’s been a few alumni from then and they’ve played with our current guys. It’s cool that we’re get the chance and we’re doing it for them as well, so it’s pretty cool.”
With a game-high 22 points after scoring 23 against Yuma in the Great 8 on Thursday, senior Keegan Paige led the Eagles to a 38-27 halftime lead and the fourth straight playoff victory in which they scored over 70 points. Still, the Huskies, who were chasing their first state title in nearly 25 years, cut the lead to four points with 2 minutes, 35 seconds left in the fourth quarter.
The Eagles, however, did what they needed to at the free-throw line in order to hold off the Huskies’ attempts at a comeback.
“It’s the Final Four and it’s going to be a battle,” Ziemer said. “You’re going to have to do things well because you’re going to make mistakes. The boys did that and they found a way to win at the end. Even with us being a little frenzied, it was great to see them step up and make free throws. If they would have missed the free throws, it might have been a different outcome. It was great to see them stay relaxed in the middle of the chaos and win the game.”
Master Diggins (18 points) and Carson Jasa (17) combined to score 35 points for the Eagles.
Sawyer Morgan led the Huskies 21 points and Carson Steinke scored 16 points.
The Highland boys basketball team last won a state title in 2000. The Huskies finished runners-up in 2019.
Faith Christian will face No. 2 Salida in the championship game at 6 p.m. on Saturday.
(2) Salida 57, (6) Windsor Charter 49
The Salida boys basketball team is back in a state championship game for the first time since the Spartans finished runners-up to Eaton in 1991.
On Friday night at the University of Denver’s Hamilton Gymnasium, the second-seeded Spartans won 57-49 over No. 6 Windsor Charter Academy in the Class 3A Final Four. They’re now heading to the title game on Saturday with a chance to claim their first state championship since winning a Class 2A title in 1964.
“It’s huge because we haven’t been in the title game since I was in elementary school, and that’s a big deal because I’m an old guy,” said Spartans head coach Adam Christensen, who graduated from Salida in 1998. “It’s just exciting for this group. I’m so proud of this group. Not only are they good basketball players, they’re awesome kids. I’m just so thankful that I get to be there on this ride with them.”
The Spartans (25-1) led 41-38 after three quarters and led by three with 1 minutes, 39 seconds left in the game. The Spartans held the Firebirds (21-4) scoreless in the final minutes while going 3 for 5 at the free-throw line down the stretch. Daniel Edgington, who scored all seven of his points in the fourth quarter, hit a pair of fouls shots with 30.8 seconds left that gave the Spartans a five-point lead and went 1 for 2 at the line to give them a six-point lead with 9.5 seconds on the clock.
Nate Weekly led the Spartans with 20 points and Tristan Jackson scored 11 points.
Freshman Andrew Schams led the Firebirds with 17 points and sophomore Kellen Ball scored 14.
Despite Friday’s defeat, the 2022-23 campaign was a fantastic debut for a Windsor Charter program that is in just its first year as a Colorado High School Activities Association member school. The Firebirds will have a chance to cap their first-ever state tournament appearance with a third-place finish when they take on No. 4 Highland in the third-place game at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
“They’ve got some killers out there,” Christensen said. “They’ve got some short guys, some freshman guys, and they do a great job coaching-wise. No. 3, the sophomore, he’s got some basketball IQ that a lot of college kids probably don’t have. He does a great job of running that team with his older brother right there next to him. They just did an awesome job.”
