CENTENNIAL — The previous time Arapahoe boys basketball competed in the Centennial League, it was at least three years before any current Warrior was born.
Twenty-one years later, Arapahoe made a triumphant return. The Warriors’ 62-47 victory at home over Smoky Hill on Wednesday night was thorough, welcomed and provided promise for what awaits, notably home-and-away matchups in some of the more interesting places to play in Class 5A.
Arapahoe’s Parker Semin, a 6-foot-5 sophomore who leads the team in scoring, rebounding and running (he’s the fastest Warrior in both the distances and sprints), all but gushed over switching from the Continental to the Centennial.
“It was exciting,” Semin said after contributing 13 points, five rebounds and lots of defense. “It means a lot. It’s so much faster in this league.”
Back in the new-look Centennial from the beginning days of suburban sprawl in the metropolitan’s southern area — Cherokee Trail is in and up from 4A; Boulder and Fairview opted for the Front Range — Arapahoe (7-3 overall, 1-0 league) used long-distance shooting early as well as a rash of turnovers by the Buffaloes (6-4, 0-1) to grab the lead, then maintain it.
“That was the difference in the game, the turnovers, and we just held it,” Warriors coach Dan Snyder said. “And I think (Parker) will be a player.”
All five of Arapahoe’s 3-pointers, three by Kevin Wallace, came in the first half before it fared better down low. Smoky Hill came up with an assortment of mini-runs to stay within range but never got closer than eight points. Plus, 24 turnovers, nine in the second quarter, made it too much of a climb.
“Basically, every possession you give (away), they’ll score one point, and that’s not good,” Smoky Hill coach Keenon Clement said.
After halftime, Arapahoe’s transition was superior, as was its success getting inside shots.
Drew Babb paced the Warriors with 16 points, who went 13-of-14 at the free-throw line. Wallace contributed 11 points as Arapahoe generated enough offense and defensive pressure to keep the Buffs chasing.
Smoky Hill’s top scorer was Phil Hill (nine points). Jai Bransford, Nick Delprete and Nico Perry each contributed eight.
Smoky Hill 12 12 13 10 — 47
Arapahoe 16 19 15 12 — 62
Smoky Hill — Delprete 3 2-4 8, Bransford 4 0-0 8, Hill 4 0-0 9, Turk 0 0-3 0, Johnson 1 0-0 2, Wafer 1 3-4 5, Perry 3 1-2 8, Richardson 2 0-0 6, Farris 0 1-2 1. Totals 18 7-15 47.
Arapahoe — Fromm 1 0-0 2, Eigner 3 2-2 8, Wallace 4 0-0 11, Semin 6 1-2 13, Knafelc 1 4-4 6, Babb 5 6-6 16, Keen 0 0-0 0, Moore 1 0-0 3, Kocur 1 0-0 3, Balli 0 0-0 0. Totals 22 13-14 62.
3-point goals — Richardson 2, Hill, Perry; Wallace 3, Kocur, Moore. Total fouls — Smoky Hill 11, Arapahoe 18. Fouled out — None. Technicals — None.
Neil H. Devlin: 303-954-1714 or ndevlin@denverpost.com
