AURORA – The Great 8 – the quarterfinal round – of the Colorado High School Activities Association’s 5A Boys Basketball State Championship was completed Saturay at the Denver Coliseum, with all four winners advancing to the semifinals on Thursday.
It was a day of upsets for the 5A boys bracket, one that saw each of the three top-three seeds fall.
In the opening game, Connor Bonsett scored 15 points while Blake Gorr and Luke Schmeeckle each had 14 to lead No. 13 Silver Creek to a 62-55 win over No. 12 Mesa Ridge. Then, Madden Smiley had 19 points and nine rebounds as defending state champion and No. 11 Windsor knocked off No. 3 Severance 63-51 in a neighborhood battle.
Jonas Miller dropped 17 points and Devin Vandermeer added 16 to keep the upsets rolling, as No. 8 Lewis-Palmer took out No. 1 Palisade, 63-51. In the nightcap, No. 10 Lutheran took the lead midway through the first half and was able to hold onto it through the duration of the contest – including staving off a comeback that saw No. 2 Grand Junction pull within two with less than four minutes to play – to clinch the final semifinal spot with a 61-54 win over the Tigers.
The championship game is Saturday, March 14.
5A Semifinals Matchups
Games played Thursday, March 12 at the Denver Coliseum
- No. 8 Lewis-Palmer vs. No. 13 Silver Creek at 12:45 p.m.
- No. 10 Lutheran vs. No. 11 Windsor at 4 p.m.
5A Great 8 Results
Games played Saturday, March 7 at the Denver Coliseum
- No. 13 Silver Creek def. No. 12 Mesa Ridge, 62-55 (Box Score)
- No. 11 Windsor def. No. 3 Severance, 63-51 (Box Score)
- No. 8 Lewis-Palmer def. No. 1 Palisade, 63-46 (Box Score)
- No. 10 Lutheran def. No. 2 Grand Junction, 61-54 (Box Score)
5A Third-Round Results
Games played Tuesday, March 3 at home sites
- No. 1 Palisade def. No. 16 Frederick, 58-48
- No. 2 Grand Junction def. No. 18 Golden, 54-41
- No. 3 Severance def. No. 14 Green Mountain, 62-49
- No. 8 Lewis-Palmer def. No. 9 Pueblo South, 57-48
- No. 10 Lutheran def. No. 7 Rampart, 60-58
- No. 11 Windsor def. No. 6 Regis Groff, 55-53
- No. 12 Mesa Ridge def. No. 28 Palmer Ridge, 48-45
- No. 13 Silver Creek def. No. 4 Eagle Valley, 73-54
5A Second-Round Results
Games played Friday, Feb. 27 at the higher seed
- No. 1 Palisade def. No. 33 Pueblo County, 47-45
- No. 2 Grand Junction def. No. 31 Discovery Canyon, 68-36
- No. 3 Severance def.No. 30 Pueblo Central, 81-41
- No. 4 Eagle Valley def. No. 36 Coronado, 52-41
- No. 6 Regis Groff def. No. 27 Palmer, 57-43
- No. 7 Rampart def. No. 39 Dakota Ridge, 51-37
- No. 8 Lewis-Palmer def. No. 25 Evergreen, 76-53
- No. 9 Pueblo South def. No. 24 Air Academy, 60-50
- No. 10 Lutheran def. No. 23 Montrose, 65-45
- No. 11 Windsor def. No. 22 Standley Lake, 73-63
- No. 12 Mesa Ridge def. No. 21 Falcon, 70-63
- No. 13 Silver Creek def. No. 20 Harrison, 49-44
- No. 14 Green Mountain def. No. 19 Mullen, 60-58
- No. 18 Golden def. No. 15 Longmont, 59-42
- No. 16 Frederick def. No. 17 Roosevelt, 56-35
- No. 28 Palmer Ridge def. No. 5 Cheyenne Mountain, 52-51
5A First-Round Results
Games played Tuesday, Feb. 24 at the higher seed
- No. 25 Evergreen def. No. 40 Mountain View, 64-46
- No. 27 Palmer def. No. 38 Montbello, 93-59
- No. 28 Palmer Ridge def. No. 37 Thompson Valley, 54-37
- No. 30 Pueblo Central def. No. 35 Grand Junction Central, 50-47
- No. 31 Discovery Canyon def. No. 34 Glenwood Springs, 56-44
- No. 33 Pueblo County def. No. 32 Aurora Central, 57-51
- No. 36 Coronado def. No. 29 Thomas Jefferson, 73-58
- No. 39 Dakota Ridge def. No. 26 Pueblo East, 56-40
