Five Takeaways: 4A No. 3 Holy Family versus No. 10 Mead
In what was billed as the game of the night in Class 4A, the Mead Mavericks (No. 10) traveled down I-25 to face the Holy Family Tigers (No. 3) in a battle of two rivals that both were previously unbeaten…
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Continue ReadingIn what was billed as the game of the night in Class 4A, the Mead Mavericks (No. 10) traveled down I-25 to face the Holy Family Tigers (No. 3) in a battle of two rivals that both were previously unbeaten in conference play. In the end, it was Mead that won a close 50-45 contest and assumed sole possession of the top spot in the Tri-Valley League.
Let’s take a look at a few things that stood out from the game.
Known for offense, Mead can also lock down on defense
The Mead boys deserve a lot of credit for holding Holy Family’s top scorers – Tanner Baird (15.3 ppg) and Kyle Helbig (14.6 ppg) – to a combined 18 points in the win. Both Baird and Helbig are career 1,000-point scorers, which goes to show just what the Mead Mavericks are capable of when they make the most of their defensive length and athleticism. The Mavs’ defense also frequently turned into offense in Thursday night’s game, with mid-court turnovers leading to easy transition buckets for quick guards like Will Maher, Caleb Ayers and Trey Ward.
“I’m proud of our guys, sticking to it defensively,” Mead head coach Darin Reese said. “When we defend and we lock in, we can be pretty darn tough.”
Thursday just wasn’t the night for Holy Family’s top guys
As mentioned above, the Mavericks plays an excellent defensive game. Both Baird and Helbig, however, had their opportunities. Baird, for example, scored 13 points in the second half to pace a Holy Family run after the Tigers fell way behind in the first half. But for the most part, the shots just weren’t falling.
Helbig had a number of good looks that just missed from 3-point range and Baird created good opportunities for himself with a good-looking midrange jump shot. It seems on the surface like a rare off night for these two but a lot of their lack of production was simply due to bad luck.
Adam Jolly a bright spot for Holy Family
While most of the team struggled, Jolly was the most consistent and productive player for the Tigers. He scored at lead four points in each quarter and finished with a game-high 20. The 6-foot-5, 200-pound senior is averaging 12.6 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals and 1.5 blocks per game this season.
Mead continues to prove deadly from long range
The Mavericks made six more 3-pointers on Thursday night, and they did it against a Holy Family team that held its first 14 opponents to 43.3 points a game. One night after the Mavericks put up a season-high 90 points against Erie, Caleb Ayers hit three 3-pointers, Nick Jacobs hit two and Will Maher made one. Pretty much every player on the Mavericks’ roster is capable of knocking down a long ball and the team is averaging 8.7 made 3-pointers per game.
Looks like we’re in for a fun finish in the Tri-Valley League
The Tri-Valley League has lived up to its billing as a much-improved 4A conference this season. Holy Family and Mead area clearly at the top, as the teams are ranked in the top 10 and are a combined 15-1 in conference play. But Skyline, with Austin Robison and Gage Robertson leading the way, is currently 6-2 through the first half of the league schedule. Up-and-coming sophomore Ben Hageman (13.2 ppg) and Windsor still look tough, as well.
Even in the bottom half of the standings, teams like Frederick, Roosevelt, Berthoud, Erie and Fort Morgan are tough wins and have shown their upset potential with closer-than-expected games against some of the conference frontrunners.