5A Tournament Preview and Predictions: Bill Weimar Region
The Bill Weimar Region of the Class 5A State Tournament features the last undefeated team in the classification, arguably the state’s best pure point guard, Colorado’s tallest player, and a number of fast teams with good guard play. Below is…
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Continue ReadingThe Bill Weimar Region of the Class 5A State Tournament features the last undefeated team in the classification, arguably the state’s best pure point guard, Colorado’s tallest player, and a number of fast teams with good guard play.
Below is a look at the top four seeds, as well as a breakdown of each of the four first-round matchups:
Byes
No. 1 Rangeview (23-0)
The Scoop: The Raiders are the last remaining undefeated team, and have been that way for weeks. They have superior depth, speed and skill to most. This group seems especially savvy and cohesive as well.
Next up: Rangeview plays the winner of Chaparral and Broomfield on Saturday at 3 p.m.
No. 2 Cherokee Trail (17-6)
The Scoop: The Cougars might have the state’s best point guard, not to mention an all-state level forward in David Thornton. They are capable of going on monstrous runs and can compete with anyone.
Next up: Cherokee Trail plays the winner of Palmer and Ralston Valley on Saturday.
No. 3 Legend (18-5)
The Scoop: With five senior starters, all five being college prospects, the Titans don’t take a backseat in talent. If this team gets hot, they could get rolling.
Next up: Legend plays the winner of Fossil Ridge and Brighton on Saturday.
No. 4 Grandview (13-10)
The Scoop: The Wolves have played with a swagger rather unique for a team with mostly new pieces. Grandview has an inside-outside game that helped them upset Overland and beat Cherry Creek. On a cold streak of late though, Grandview will look to regroup and get their mojo back for a tournament run.
Next up: Grandview plays the winner of Arvada West and Castle View.
Wednesday’s first-round matchups
No. 8 Chaparral (8-15) vs. No. 9 Broomfield (16-7), 7 p.m.
The Scoop: The Wolverines are already starting to grow up. If you start three freshmen, some growing pains are expected. But the fresh talent has shown plenty, especially while going 5-5 in the rigorous Continental League. As for Broomfield, the Eagles were a highly competitive team all season in the Front Range League, a group with both size and experience. They could have gotten a bit higher seed.
Players to watch
Chaparral
Dominic Coleman, 6-4 senior guard. Coleman is practically the lone veteran on the team, and his experience shows (16.9 ppg). He’s the go-to sparkplug for a team still getting their feet wet, to some extent.
Bryce Matthews, 6-4, freshman forward. Already fairly imposing physically, Matthews is the No. 4 player in the latest 2019 rankings.
Ronnie DeGray III, 6-4 freshman forward. DeGray is another outstanding first-year, the No. 6 prospect in 2019 right now. He had one of his top performances thus far with 13 points and 12 rebounds in a rivalry loss to Legend close the regular season.
Joseph Dalton, 6-3 freshman guard. Dalton rounds out a young trio that has shown a ton of promise. The guard has a soft jumper and a rangy body.
Broomfield
Sam Foster, 6-1 junior guard. Foster is a silky and talented player averaging a team-leading 12.1 points. He snuck into our top-50 in the 2017 class recently. Also a tremendous shooter.
Nate Lehnerz, 6-4 senior guard/forward. Lehnerz is an intelligent, skilled player with size that can create matchup issues for opponents. He chips in just over 11 points per game.
Jack Burgesser, 6-6 senior forward. The soon-to-be Black Hills State quarterback, Burgesser is a solid face-up forward.
Kyle Rynearson, 6-4 senior guard. Large wing with a solid game. He regularly helps in the scoring department.
Prediction: Chaparral
No. 5 Arvada West (15-8) vs. No. 12 Castle View (5-18), 7 p.m.
The Scoop: The Wildcats have enough talent to really make noise in this region. Dallas Walton, the 7-footer who recently committed to Colorado, and a shooter in Luke Neff (Denver University recruit) who ranks among Colorado’s best of all-time from beyond the arc and at the free throw line, keeps Arvada West in the thick of it. Castle View fought for one of the tournament’s last bids and have some productive seniors and a gifted freshman.
Players to watch
Arvada West
Walton, 7-0 senior center. The tallest known player in Colorado, Walton is averaging 16.8 points, 10.2 rebounds and 2.7 blocks. His upside for the next level is pretty big, and Colorado has developed forwards and centers nicely in recent years.
Neff, 6-0 senior guard. A savvy player, Neff averages 14 points and has made 52 three-pointers. He’s a pure shooter with a basketball mind.
Will Wittman, 6-3 senior wing. Wittman is an explosive athlete who really gets on the glass. He averages 13.4 points and eight rebounds and his versatility is a huge help to the Wildcats. Wittman could become a D-II player, and could also help smaller college programs. He’s come into his own in his final high school campaign.
Castle View
Jake Ellis, 6-3 senior guard. The No. 55 ranked prospect in 2016, and an unsigned player, Ellis is averaging 13.9 points and 4.2 rebounds. He has a good frame and can put the ball in the hoop.
Chase Hettinger, 6-3 freshman guard. Hettinger, already a presence on the 5A varsity level (8.6 ppg), is the No. 16 prospect in his class right now. He looks like a major player.
Kylen Scialla, 6-3 senior guard. Averaging 12.3 points.
Prediction: Arvada West
No. 7 Palmer (13-10) vs. No. 10 Ralston Valley (9-14), 6:30 p.m.
The Scoop: The Terrors are an athletic bunch from the Springs, and they have a balanced core with firepower to beat some teams. Palmer finished in third place in the Colorado Springs Metro at 8-4. The Mustangs feature a near 7-footer, a player who can take over games in the post.
Players to watch
Palmer
Tynan Velasquez, 6-1 senior guard. The natural scorer (13.8 ppg) can be streaky no doubt, but he tends to make enough plays every night that prove his huge value for this team. He can start feeling it pretty quickly.
Will Ross, 6-4 senior forward. Ross has been a fixture on the glass (9.5 rpg), and does his share of scoring (10.2 ppg) as well.
Tyler Pelham, 6-1 senior guard. Pelham (10.7 ppg) is a capable sidekick in the backcourt to Velasquez and Isaiah Clausell-Reese (10.5 ppg, 3 apg). In general, Palmer has guards that can get up and down the floor with the best of them some games.
Ralston Valley
Antonio Capley, 6-11 senior center. Still on the market, Capley (13.4 ppg, 10.9 rpg, 2.7 bpg) has improved as he’s grown into his enormous body. He’s a very intriguing prospect with outstanding length.
Dante Greco, 6-2 senior forward. Averaging 8.4 points and five rebounds.
Jerrod Parker, 6-2 junior wing. Averaging 7.3 points and 4.2 rebounds.
Prediction: Palmer
No. 6 Fossil Ridge (16-7) vs. No. 11 Brighton (13-10), 6:30 p.m.
The Scoop: The Sabercats lost in what turned into a Front Range League title game against Boulder in the regular season finale. This team can catch fire on the perimeter and features a high-scoring backcourt. Fossil Ridge has also become accustomed to some playoff success in recent years. The Bulldogs held tough in the East Metro, a 6-3 record and a tie for third place is evidence of that.
Players to watch
Fossil Ridge
Braxton Bertolette, 6-2 junior guard. Not much left to say about Bertolette’s shooting touch this season, his numbers speak for themselves (23.6 ppg, 89 three-pointers, 40 percent from three, 93 percent from line).
Jackson Everhart, 6-4 senior guard. Everhart (15.6 ppg) has proven to be a talented and reliable No. 2 option behind Bertolette. He’s worth a look at the small-college level.
Garrett Schmidt, 6-1 senior guard. Another knockdown three-pointer shooter, Schmidt (10.8 ppg) has stepped up to the varsity level in style and is a small-college prospect as well. He’s always looking to catch-and-shoot, something he does really well.
Brighton
Jacob Fitzgerald, 6-3 senior guard. Fitzgerald has had the hot-hand a lot this season, putting up 16.4 ppg and accounting for 50 three-point makes.
Sam Kullberg, 6-3 senior forward. Kullberg is a block of granite down low, 225 pounds, and he’s been impactful while averaging 12 points and 7.1 rebounds.
Braden Hancock, junior guard. Averaging 7.2 points and 2.4 assists.
Prediction: Fossil Ridge