LITTLETON — The ball is officially in Arvada West’s court.
A 55-50 road victory over Columbine on Friday night gave A-West (14-7, 9-3 in league) a 1-game lead over the rest of the Class 5A Jeffco boys basketball field with two conference games remaining.
“It feels good for the moment, but we aren’t done yet,” said A-West senior James Pelon who scored 19 points in Friday’s big win. “We still have a huge game Tuesday against Pomona. It’s not over yet.”
It’s been a wild sprint to the league title with a handful of teams still in the mix as the regular season wraps up next week. However, the Wildcats are just two victories away from winning the conference title outright.
A-West’s Josh Rogers (0) battles with Columbine’s Logan DeArment. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
A-West has rivals Pomona (10-11, 5-7) and Ralston Valley (3-17, 0-11) remain on its conference schedule next week. The Wildcats defeated both the first go-around in league play.
“It sounds good, but we still know we’ve got work to do,” A-West junior Josh Rogers said of the Wildcats closing in on a fifth boys basketball league title in the program’s history. “Next week isn’t going to be easy at all.”
It wasn’t easy Friday night. Columbine (11-10, 8-4) came in having won 7-of-8 games and not having lost a conference game on its home court. The Rebels looked primed to sweep the season-series against A-West with a 34-27 lead minutes into the third quarter, but the Wildcats rallied.
A-West went on a 12-0 run while holding Columbine scoreless for nearly six minutes in the third quarter.
“We were lacking energy in the first half,” said Rogers, who poured in 11 points in the critical third quarter on his way to a game-high 20 points. “The focus at halftime was to go out and make plays, don’t be scared and don’t back down. If you are going to make a mistake make it going 100 percent.”
While Pelon and Rogers carried the majority of the scoring load combining for 39 points, junior Ethan Lindeblad (7 points) and Josh Yago (4 points) both had big baskets in the fourth quarter to hold off the Rebels.
A-West’s Taylor Kline (10) plays defense on Columbine’s Luke O’Brien. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)
“I’m so proud of our guys tonight. We didn’t play well in the first half,” A-West coach Jeff Parriott said. “I thought we got a boost from our younger kids. We were a little more assertive in the second half.”
Columbine couldn’t buy a bucket at times in the second half while being held to just 21 points after halftime. Still, Columbine sophomore sensation Luke O’Brien (15 points) launched a 3-pointer in the final seconds that could have tied the game. His shot from long range missed the mark and Yago sank a pair of free throws in the final seconds to seal the victory.
“That’s a really good team,” Parriott said of Columbine. “They have had a great run the last few games and they aren’t done either. It’s a well-coached team where we had to play really well to win.”
The work is far from done for Columbine or A-West.
The Rebels have home games against Ralston Valley (Tuesday, Feb. 13) and rival Chatfield (Friday, Feb. 16). The Chargers (11-9, 7-4), winners of four straight, hosts Bear Creek (12-7, 7-4) at 1 p.m. Saturday. The winner at Chatfield High School tomorrow afternoon will be tied for second place in 5A Jeffco with Columbine just a game behind A-West.
“Two games removed from celebrating,” Parriott said of closing in on the league title. “You have to play them one at a time.”
Columbine had its 4-game win streaks snapped, but the Rebels still have a chance to win the 5A Jeffco League title. (Dennis Pleuss/Jeffco Athletics)