(Stephen Priest/CHSAANow.com)
AURORA — After a tough loss to Arapahoe to close out the regular season, Cherokee Trail coach Jerry Austin and his veteran Cougar squad knew they had to come into Tuesday’s game against Gateway focused and ready to send a message.
After a close first half that saw both teams start off hot shooting the basketball, particularly from three-point land, the Cougars were eventually able to gain control of the game and finish strong, earning a 72-47 win over the Olympians to advance in the Class 5A state playoffs.
“Friday’s loss was actually really hard on us so we knew we had to come in and dominate the game,” Cherokee Trail senior Jaleesa Avery said.
Avery helped set the pace for the Cougars (15-9 overall) with 15 points on the night.
The Olympians (10-14) played inspired basketball in the first half, putting pressure on Cherokee Trail to perform and making the game close.
Part of the reason the game was close early on was due to the incredible shooting display put on by Gateway’s leading scorer for the year in senior Carmen Ramey, who finished the night with a game-high 21 points.
“In the first half, Ramey hit some great shots, having 19 points in the first half which made a big difference in the game,” Austin said. “And we figured in the second half, she wasn’t going to shoot that well and we could get back into control of the game.”
Ramey’s 19-point first half was largely created by her scoring outburst in the second quarter as she was responsible for eight points (six coming from long range) on her team’s 9-3 scoring run to start the second period; in addition, to producing 14 points overall in the quarter.
Austin’s halftime prediction came to fruition as Ramey went cold the rest of the game, only scoring two more points the rest of the way.
“We started off a little slow, but we knew this was a team we could get past and it wasn’t anything that we couldn’t handle,” junior Taryn Foxen said. “We just had to make sure we came out harder in the second half and work together as a team.”
And that they did as Cherokee Trail managed to blow open the game in the second half, not only by eliminating Ramey’s impact, but through an abundance of turnovers and domination on the boards to allow for second and third chances offensively for the Cougars.
Foxen led the Cougars’ scoring effort with 19 points.
By the fourth quarter, the game became a track meet for Cherokee Trail as almost every possession they were on defense progressed into a forced error by Gateway allowing the Cougars to get out into transition for an easy two.
After disposing of the Olympians to begin their tournament run, Cherokee Trail remains focused on the next task at hand, which is Pine Creek in a second round game Friday. Yet, that isn’t to say that this Cougar team doesn’t have their sights set on the bigger picture which is a 5A state title.
“(If we) continue to play hard and as a team and if we don’t’ give up on each other while going at team’s the way we have been all year, we have a chance,” Avery said.
But before they can achieve such a satisfying accomplishment, they must take care of business against Pine Creek and coach Austin knows the type of problem the Spartans present.
“They’re a good basketball team,” Austin said. “They press and they do a lot of good things”