(Max Potter/CHSAANow.com)
LITTLETON — Saturday Night, on rivalry weekend, Cherry Creek boys and girls basketball took down Centennial League Rival Arapahoe in enemy territory.
The No. 7 Cherry Creek girls team took a 72-55 victory over the Warriors. Both teams were able to find a grove after scoring a combined 10 points in the first quarter. The Warriors were shutout for the first seven-plus minutes of the contest.
All told it was the fourth quarter that won the contest for Cherry Creek, who put up 28 points compared to only 10 for Arapahoe.
“It feels awesome that we came together as a team in the second half, we pulled it together and did what we had to do to get the win,” junior forward Jaela Richardson said. “It feels great to come together as a team, we need to continue (coming) together as and focus on our goal.”
In the boys game, the intensity and crowd energy were high and Arapahoe came out with a great first half.
(Max Potter/CHSAANow.com)
The Warriors were shooting well and dominating on the glass, building a 31-27 lead at the break. The second half, on the other hand, belonged to the Bruins. They put up 20 points in the third quarter and once they grabbed a lead, they never looked back. The game ended with a final score of 69-57 in favor of Cherry Creek.
“It was a team win, everyone was scoring and passing and getting open looks,” junior Rashon Johnson said. “We were slow in the first half, then we can out strong in the second half.”
The Bruins have a very tough week coming up with Eaglecrest on the road and Grandview at home.
“We need to treat it like every week, come in and practice hard, get the game plan down and try to get the win,” Johnson said. “We (also need to) keep our heads, not act bigger than we are and play Creek basketball.”
The Bruins will be back in action with a doubleheader at Eaglecrest Wednesday, and a doubleheader versus Grandview Saturday.
As for Arapahoe both the boys and girls teams will face Smoky Hill on Wednesday and Cherokee Trail on Saturday.